Large Puso Pouchette with Handloomed Inset

This pouchette is named "pusô," literally meaning 'heart' in a couple of different languages in the Philippines.  Inspired by pusô, a rice cake also known as "hanging rice," made by boiling rice in a woven pouch of palm leaves. It is most commonly found in octahedral or diamond, but can also come in various other intricately woven complex forms. Pusô is traditionally prepared as a way to pack rice for journeys and is eaten held in the hands, usually paired with meat or seafood grilled on skewers. It is known under many different names throughout the Philippines with numerous variations, but it is usually associated with the street food cultures of the Visayan and Moro peoples.