Ketupat
Rice cakes in coconut leaf pouches
Ketupat: rice cakes boiled in woven young coconut-leaf pouches for Lebaran
On the eve of Idul Fitri, kitchens and mosque courtyards across Indonesia fill with people weaving janur, pale young coconut leaves, into diamond-shaped pouches; filled loosely with rice and boiled for hours, they swell into dense, faintly grassy cakes. Sliced, ketupat is served on Lebaran morning under opor ayam, sayur labu siam and sambal goreng. If you can't get coconut leaves, ready-woven casings are sold frozen in Asian shops, or you can use the bag method in the last step. Chef's tip: fill the pouches only a third to half full; packed tight, the rice has no room to swell and the centre stays hard and raw.
- Total time
- 260 min
- Difficulty
- medium
- Serves
- 8
Ingredients
- 1 ⅛ lb long-grain white ricenot jasmine; an ordinary medium-starch rice sets best
- 10 ketupat casings (woven coconut leaf)fresh or frozen; or 2 heatproof muslin or cooking bags
- 1 tsp salt
- 5 litres waterplus more to top up
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Method
0/6 doneStep 1: Rinse 1 ⅛ lb long-grain white rice until the water runs clear and drain well. Mix in 1 tsp salt.
Step 2: Spoon rice into each of the 10 ketupat casings (woven coconut leaf) through the small opening until it is one third to half full, then close the opening by tucking the loose leaf ends back in.
Step 3: Bring 5 litres water to the boil in your largest pot, add the ketupat and weigh them down with a plate so they stay under water.
Step 4: Simmer steadily for 4 hours, topping up with boiling water so the ketupat are always covered. They are done when they feel heavy and hard and a cut test shows a dense, even white centre with no hard grains.
240 minStep 5: Lift them out and hang or stand them upright to drain and cool for several hours or overnight; they firm up as they cool and slice cleanly.
Step 6: Without leaves: fill two muslin or cooking bags one third full of rice, tie tightly and boil the same way. Cut the cooled cakes into cubes and serve with Lebaran curries; they keep 2 days at cool room temperature.
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 225 kcal
- Protein
- 4 g
- Carbs
- 50 g
- Fat
- 0 g
- Fibre
- 1 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does ketupat take?
- About 260 minutes in total: 20 minutes to prepare and 240 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 8 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- Is it vegan?
- Yes. It has no meat, fish, dairy or eggs.
- Is it gluten free?
- Yes, as written. Check the labels on stock, sauces and spice mixes, which sometimes contain gluten.
- Can I make it ahead?
- Yes. It keeps well, so you can cook it earlier in the day or the day before and reheat it.
- What can I use instead of long-grain white rice?
- Any long-grain rice, same amount.
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