The Hari Raya Aidil Fitri (Eidul Fitr) holidays have passed but the festivities continue traditionally for 30 days so its not too late to feature some traditional Malay fare that is served in abundance during Hari Raya.
My feature today is on “Ketupat”. Ketupat is a traditional Malay rice cake (right in the picture above) which is made from rice compacted into a casing woven from coconut leaves and then boiled until cooked. Usually, the casing is woven into a bunch to make it easier and less time consuming to cook and then each Ketupat is served whole.
To eat, the Ketupat is usually sliced open and the rice cake removed from the casing. Weaving the casing takes technique and skill and it takes even more technique and skill to ensure that the rice stays IN the case and not spill out while cooking. In many ways it is similar to the “Bak Chang” of the Chinese which are rice dumplings cooked in a bamboo leaf case. (Read how to make Bak Chang on Delicious Asian Food)
The rice is not flavoured so the Ketupat is usually eaten with curry or rendang.
I come from a town in Johor in the south of Malaysia where many Malays are of Javanese descent. One of their specialities which I particularly enjoy is the “Sayur Lode Kering” (1st picture above) which has glass noodles, tempe, dried prawns, tofu and various other ingredients fried until dry. I can’t seem to get it in Kuala Lumpur. The other form of lode is the “wet” version which is essentially mixed vegetables in a light coconut milk sauce (2nd picture).
The Ketupat is a staple during Hari Raya Aidil Fitri even if it can also be found on normal days. These days, they have the “express frozen version” which comes in a plastic bag that you can boil up and have “instant ketupat” but nothing beats eating the original traditional version with the faint lingering flavour and taste of the coconut leaves.
Having lots of traditional food in abundance is one of the reasons living in Malaysia can be truly wonderful! 
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{ 4 comments… read them below or add one }
This is my fave … I will attack the Ketupat in longtongs and satays hehe… seeing your write up is making me crave again!
LODEH!!!! Yum-yum!!!! I saw a packet of Instant Lodeh Spice Powder here in Jakarta, it brought back many happy memories of childhood Raya days spent eating lodeh and ketupats made by our Malay neighbours.
OK… why am I always here at this site, it does nothing but makes me hunger for food that I can’t find. LOL
@Cheesey: I would love to try cooking a Lode. I think I’ll find me a recipe, failing which there’s always instant spice powder!
Don’t let hunger stop you from coming by!
@noobcook: Heh… I can’t eat a lot of it, but its nice when you haven’t eaten in a while.