Buko Pie (Filipino Coconut Pie)

Buko Pie is the ultimate baked treat! With tender young coconut meat in a creamy filling and a crisp, buttery pastry crust, this Filipino coconut pie is perfect for a snack or dessert!

Paella is a Spanish rice dish cooked and served in a paellera, a large shallow frying pan, where it took its name. It is traditionally made with short grain rice, butter beans or peas, and plentiful meats in the area, such as duck, chicken, rabbit, or seafood. Saffron threads give the dish its characteristic color and flavor, but turmeric can be substituted as a cheaper alternative.

While many consider Paella as the national dish of Spain, it originated from the Valencia region, which is regarded as the home of Paella. Many variations exist in Spanish-speaking countries and internationally, from the original Paella Valenciana, Paella de mariscos made of seafood, to mixed Paella, which combines meat, seafood, and vegetables.

The Philippine Paella

This Filipino-style Paella or paelya is the perfect example of Spanish influences in our cuisine. A byproduct of 300 years of colonization, it is a delicious fusion of our local tastes and cultural heritage.

As it commonly uses relatively expensive ingredients like saffron and prawns, the dish is mostly relegated to special occasions and holiday celebrations. It’s an elegant and impressive addition to any Christmas feast!

Arroz Valenciana is another Filipino interpretation of the Spanish paella, using native ingredients such as coconut milk and glutinous rice.

Buko pie is a Filipino-style coconut pie made of fresh, tender young coconut meat combined with a creamy filling and enclosed in a flaky pie crust.

The pie is a favorite pasalubong item mostly bought from the area of Laguna where it’s known to have originated. Stores such as Colette’s and Lety’s have become iconic destinations for this scrumptious pastry, but few people are even aware that none of these establishments is the original creator of the famous Laguna buko pie.

History

The real founder or, in this case, founders of the buko pie are the Pahud sisters, and their only shop called the ORIENT is in Los Baños, Laguna.

The idea for buko pie was born when the sisters planned to start their bakery. Since one of them has worked abroad as a housemaid in the United States and learned how to make apple pie, they wanted to offer this type of pastry in their bakery.

But due to a scant supply of apples in the country, however, they decided to take advantage of what is most abundant in their area, and that is coconuts.

The coconut filling

The texture of the buko is very important in the success of this recipe. Choose young coconuts that have a generous amount of meat yet but are still very tender.

Carefully remove the meat using a spoon instead of a shredder for whole and chunky pieces instead of thin strips.

The pie crust

The pie pastry uses lard, but you can substitute unsalted butter or vegetable shortening (Crisco) if you prefer a healthier fat.

If substituting butter, use unsalted. Butter has less fat than lard so you might have to add more to achieve the same results. For every 1/2 cup of lard, you can replace with 1/2 cup and 1 tablespoon butter.

If substituting vegetable shortening, use 1:1 as shortening and lard have almost the same amount of fat.