A post about a kakanin, a traditional Filipino snack made from glutinous rice, went viral after it was referred to as “coconut mochi” instead of “palitaw.”
On February 4, director Bobby Bonifacio Jr. shared a photo of a palitaw on a paper plate.
“Chanced upon this coconut mochi at the local village eatery and it was delightful,” the caption read.
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The post garnered 3,000 likes, 455 reposts, 450 shares and more than 270 replies on the Meta-owned platform, as Threads users shared their reactions to the term.
“Coconut mochiiii???? I mean, it makes sense… pwede na ilaban sa neon balls at soybean curd,” another commented with a grinning-with-sweat emoji.
“Neon balls” is another name for kwek-kwek, which are boiled quail eggs coated in orange batter.
“Soybean curd,” meanwhile, refers to taho, a silken tofu snack served with tapioca pearls and brown sugar syrup.
“Sounds so fancy when you call it like that. Anyway… palitaw is really delish,” a different Threads user commented.
“Mochi pala ‘yung sosyal na name ng palitaw?” another wrote.
Others, meanwhile, disapproved of the English term, noting that “mochi” isn’t Filipino but of Japanese origin.
“Take pride [in] its Filipino name,” another wrote.
“Stop calling it coconut mochi, use [its] proper name — PALITAW! pauso kayo eh,” a different Pinoy commented.
“Respeto naman sa Mochi, anlayo nung palitaw, its either malagkit na bigas na isasaing or flour, which, madali lang lutuin. One step lang. Mochi takes long, kasi pinapalo palo pa ‘yon para lumagkit kasi matrabaho ng paghahalo ng ube. Pero masarap talaga palitaw,” another said.
“Mochi is Japanese… palitaw is Filipino. No offense to mochi, but calling palitaw, mochi, erases the culture behind it,” a different Pinoy commented.
Mochi is a Japanese rice cake made from “mochigome,” a sweet glutinous rice that is steamed, pounded into a smooth dough, and molded into various shapes.
Meanwhile, “palitaw” is a soft and chewy Filipino rice cake made from glutinous rice flour and water. It is rolled in grated coconut mixed with sugar or muscovado and sprinkled with toasted sesame seeds.
Enjoyed as a snack or dessert, palitaw gets its name from the Filipino word litaw, meaning “float” or “surface,” because the flat dough rises to the top of boiling water when fully cooked.
The snack is believed to have originated in Pangasinan, a province in Northern Luzon known for its strong rice-growing traditions.
ALSO READ: Palitaw: The Easiest Kakanin to Make for Christmas
