Tambo-tambo or Padarusdus or Ginatan Bilo-bilo

There is a lot of name for this dessert and a lot of ways to cook it. We call it Padarusdus or Paradusdos in Ilocano. Correct me if I am wrong but I think the name came from when the glutinous rice flour is shaped into balls and made to roll in dry flour and as the balls roll, especially if there are many who are making them, it would appear like there is a "scuffle" of mochi balls. Or at least that`s what I remember my aunt told me. That by the way is the meaning of "darusdos". Although it could have come from the Tagalog word "dausdos" which means "to slide". But etymology is the least of my concerns now.

So anyway, whenever I go home to Batac, I would just crave for it. Last October, the first thing I requested from Manang Perla was to buy a serving of padarusdus and she said that she'd better make it herself because it would be cheaper and that way everybody can eat. I am so glad she did! I watched her cook it so that next time I'll know how but like the great cook that she is, she never ever measured her ingredients but just boiled and tossed in every ingredient and lo and behold!

This is a dish so rich in carbohydrate as most of the ingredients are made of starch! The glutinous rice, sweet potato, sago or tapioca, and other root crops which one may want to add.

When I came back to Japan, first thing I did was to order some sago, tapioca and coconut milk from a Filipino store online. By the way, for those who are not aware, sago and tapioca are different in that, sago is made from the pith of sago palm stem (Metroxylon sagu) while tapioca is from the root crop Manihot esculenta or cassava. Both are made of starch though and can be used in the same way.

Here is what I did, crudely, but, it worked and it satisfied my palate.

Ingredients:
1 can coconut milk
1/2 - 1 cup brown sugar
sago (cooked)
sweet potato (cut in bite size)
bananas
glutinous rice balls (I used mochi powder, well they are the same)
vanilla

Directions:

*Glutinous rice balls are made by blending the glutinous rice flour with water and shaping them into balls.

Boil the coconut milk. Once the coconut milk is boiling, add the sugar. The amount of sugar depends on how sweet you want it. Put in the sweet potatoes. If you have cooked the sago beforehand, you can just add it after the sweet potatoes. Then the bananas. Right after that, drop in the mochi balls and cook till the balls float. Add vanilla for that aromatic flavor.

I only had sweet potatoes and bananas here but some would add yam, jackfruit and/or sweet corn.