Ketupat

Ketupat is a compressed rice cake made across Indonesia and the wider Malay world by boiling rice inside a woven young-palm-leaf pouch. This profile follows a plain Indonesian style using dry, non-sticky white rice and water in the characteristic diamond-shaped casing.

Its flavour is deliberately mild and rice-forward, with a faint leafy aroma transferred by the woven pouch during boiling. That neutrality allows ketupat to accompany strongly seasoned dishes without competing with them.

Once unwrapped, the cake keeps the pouch's compact diamond form and a subtle woven surface pattern. The swollen grains fuse into a firm, cohesive white block that slices cleanly while remaining tender and slightly springy.