It's that time of the year for the duman–young grains harvested from a variety of glutinous rice in Pampanga. Think pinipig, but not pounded to a pulp (the grain retains its slender outline). It is fragrant as a rice field, or how I imagine a rice field to be.
After hearing about it for three years from my Kapampangan friends, I finally got to taste the duman on the very first day of December. Kapampangans traditionally serve it for breakfast or merienda with hot carabao's milk or tsokolate de batirol. Pale green–it is almost "green gold"–the duman is sprinkled on top and then stirred into the milk. The grains plump up slightly minutes after settling at the bottom of the cup.
The taste is not immediately earth-shattering, but delicate and subtle like rice just beginning to cook. You'll have to pay special attention to its nuances but the flavor is there to be enjoyed like a long, involved conversation. It is best enjoyed that way because the duman is a traditional delicacy grown in limited quantity (which explains why not all Kapampangans know of it).
Angelo Songco, president of Butchie's Recipes of La Moderna, Pampanga and who grew up eating duman, says that it is planted only in select rice paddies in the town of Sta. Rita in the summer. When the rice is harvested in the early mornings of November-December, a strong duman-making culture–usually confined to families who grow and harvest the grain–emerges.
Most family members and relatives are involved in the rhythm of duman-making. The young grains that remain on the stalk become the duman. It is winnowed, soaked, toasted, pounded and packaged in banana leaves and paper. After the harvest, there are families already on the waiting list for their share of the duman. The remaining stocks are hawked by a vendor and not sold in any stall in the market.
Sold by the pati (about a kilo and a half) and measured by a small wooden box (takal), a kilo of duman costs around P3,500. A golden grain indeed. Knowing the duman's origin and the context with which it is consumed makes each grain all the more precious.
In the town of Sta. Rita, duman harvest signals the beginning of the Christmas season. It is said that you can smell it in the air. Although a visit during the duman festival in early December would have been a great way to partake of duman, I didn't have to travel out of Manila. At Butchie's Recipes, a cozy restaurant and pasalubong store in San Juan, it is sold frozen in small batches for take home or served in hot milk or tsokolate de batirol.
Angelo says that last year, a balikbayan customer purchased all of their stock so they were not able to sell to the public. This year, they have some in stock for those who want to try the duman. Tightly wrapped in foil and paper, the duman stores well in the freezer and lasts for months. Otherwise, a duman connoisseur does not waste time in eating it grain by golden grain.
Butchie's Recipes of la Moderna, Pampanga is at Ground level, Health Cube Building, 226 Wilson Street, San Juan City. Call 385-0387. http://butchiesrecipes.blogspot.com/
