Ginataang Bilo Bilo
Ginataang Bilo Bilo with sticky glutinous rice balls, sweet potatoes, plantain bananas, langka, and tapioca pearls! All cooked in creamy coconut milk to make an extraordinary dessert!

A hearty and comforting snack in the Philippines that doubles as a dessert. I remember this dish when I was younger as something that takes a lot of time to prepare. Before, coconut milk was done manually by squeezing the juice from grated coconut. The same goes for making the glutinous rice, it’s time-consuming and takes a lot of effort to make.
But today, with canned coconut milk and processed glutinous rice flour, you can make this yummy dessert easily. A quick trip to the grocery or Asian store near you will reward you with all the ingredients needed. With some boiling, mixing and stirring, you’ll be able to taste and enjoy this extra-ordinary Filipino snack in a jiffy!

Ginataang Bilo Bilo, Ginataang Halo-halo, Binignit.
Basically, the three dessert from the Philippines are almost similar with ingredients and cooking method. To northern folks, it is commonly known as ginataang bilo bilo or ginataang halo-halo while in the Visayas region it is called binignit. The difference lies with the way glutinous rice or “pilit” , if you’re Visayan, is used.
Ginataan bilo bilo includes tropical fruits like jackfruit stips and plantain or saba bananas. Purple yam or ube and kamote are also included. Binignit is similar but instead of making rice balls the glutinous rice is used to thicken the soup. For me, I know it as “sampelut” since I’m from Pampanga.

Notes On Some Ingredients
Cooking Tips

How To Serve And Store
Other Filipino Desserts You Might Like:

Ginataang Bilo Bilo
Ingredients
For tapioca pearls
- ½ cup tapioca pearls / sago
- 3 cups water
For glutinous rice balls
- 1 1/2 cup glutinous rice flour
- 1/2 cup water
For Bilo Bilo
- 2 cans 200ml coconut milk
- 1 cup water
- 1 cup sugar
- 1 medium Okinawan sweet potato (cut in cubes)
- 1 medium white sweet potato (cut in cubes)
- 2 pcs. plantain banana (cut in slices)
- 1 cup jack fruit (cut into strips)
Instructions
Cooking the tapioca pearls
- Boil water in a cooking pot and add tapioca pearls. Cook for 20 minutes or until translucent.3 cups water, ½ cup tapioca pearls / sago
- Use a strainer to drain water, and run the pearls in cold water. Place in a bowl and set aside.
Making the glutinous rice balls
- In a mixing bowl, place glutinous rice flour then pour water gradually while stirring until dough forms.1 1/2 cup glutinous rice flour, 1/2 cup water
- When dough forms, scoop 1/2 tsp. and shape into a ball using the palm of your hands.
- Repeat process for the remaining dough. Set aside.
Cooking the Ginataang Bilo Bilo
- In a large pot, combine water and coconut milk and bring to a boil over medium heat.2 cans 200ml coconut milk, 1 cup water
- When it starts to boil, add sweet potato cubes and jackfruit strips. Simmer for 3 – 5 minutes or until tender or half cooked.1 medium Okinawan sweet potato, 1 medium white sweet potato, 1 cup jack fruit
- Add the banana plantains then simmer for 6-8 minutes or until plantain slices are soft and sweet potatoes are fully cooked.2 pcs. plantain banana
- Add the glutinous rice balls, stir to distribute and simmer 6-8 minutes or until rice ball float or rise to the water’s surface.
- Once the rice balls start floating and the sauce is a bit thick add sugar. Stir to dissolve then gently mix in cooked tapioca pearls.1 cup sugar
- Simmer for another minute then remove from heat. Serve and enjoy. Bon appetit!
Video
Notes
- Do not cook the sauce too thick because once it cools down the consistency will be pasty.
Maraming salamat Mia and Bebs for this easy and yummy recipe! Just made it today…with probably double the langka as we love this fruit!
Warm regards from NZ☺️
Hi Michelle,
Salamat din sa tiwala. Over the moon that you enjoyed the dish.
All the best!