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!

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.

How to serve

Enjoy this delicious buko pie as a dessert or midday snack with coffee, tea, or your favorite cold drinks.

How to store

• Wrap the pie tightly with plastic film and refrigerate for up to 3 days.
• To freeze, place the baked pie on a baking sheet and freeze until frozen. Transfer to a resealable bag and store in the freezer for up to 4 months.
• Thaw at room temperature for about 1 hour and heat in a 375 F oven on the lowest rack for about 20 to 30 minutes or until warm.