Ingredients
Rice
- 600 glong-grain rice, washed
- 1 tspsalt
Casings
- 20young coconut palm fronds, or 10 ready-woven ketupat casings
To serve
- rendang
- opor ayam
- sambal goreng
- serunding
Directions
- Use young, pale green fronds. Mature dark leaves are stiff, they crack at the folds, and they will not hold a tight weave.
- Fill each pouch about two thirds full with washed rice through the opening. Underfilled, the rice never compresses and you get a loose crumbly block instead of a firm sliceable cake.
- Keep them submerged throughout, weighting them with a plate if they float, because any part above the water cooks unevenly.
- Boil for 4 to 5 hours, topping up with boiling water as it evaporates.
- Top up with boiling water rather than cold, which would stop the cooking and leave a raw seam through the middle. There is no shortcut and a two-hour ketupat falls apart when cut.
- Lift them out and hang them up to drain and cool completely, for several hours or overnight.
- Hang them rather than piling them. Air must reach every side or the outside stays wet and they sour within a day. Serve with rendang, opor ayam and sambal goreng at Hari Raya.
Technique
- Ordinary long-grain rice, not glutinous, which is what distinguishes it from lemang and kelupis.
- It keeps several days at room temperature, which is why it became festival food made in quantity.
- The weaving is taught within families and there is a knack to it that takes real practice.
Substitutions
- Ready-woven casings, or plastic ketupat moulds sold for the purpose.
- A muslin bag tied tightly, which cooks the same way and looks like nothing.
Variations
- Ketupat palas, made with glutinous rice in a triangular palas leaf.
- Lontong, the same idea rolled in banana leaf.
- Ketupat sayur, served in a coconut vegetable curry for breakfast.
History
Rice compressed inside a woven palm-leaf pouch as it steams, made for Hari Raya and eaten with rendang and satay.
Frequently asked questions
What is Ketupat?
Ketupat is a salad & side from Malaysia: rice cakes woven in palm leaves, served with rendang at Raya. Rice compressed inside a woven palm-leaf pouch as it steams, made for Hari Raya and eaten with rendang and satay.
How long does Ketupat take to make?
Ketupat takes 45 min of preparation and 4 hr of cooking. The recipe makes 10 pouches. It is rated hard to make.
What can I substitute in Ketupat?
Yes, within limits. Ready-woven casings, or plastic ketupat moulds sold for the purpose. A muslin bag tied tightly, which cooks the same way and looks like nothing.
What is the most important thing to get right in Ketupat?
Fill each pouch about two thirds full with washed rice through the opening. Underfilled, the rice never compresses and you get a loose crumbly block instead of a firm sliceable cake.
