Tapai Ketan (Indonesian Fermented Sticky Rice)
| Fermentation | Cuisine of Indonesia
Ingredients
- 2 cups glutinous rice (sticky rice)
- 4 cups water
- 1 cake of ragi tapai (see notes)
- A couple of drops of pandan paste for color (optional)
Instructions
- Rinse the rice and cook it in the water, unsalted. If adding pandan paste, add it now. The absorption method is usually easiest: bring the water to boiling point with the rice in it, then put the lid on the pot and turn the heat down to lowest possible setting and simmer for 15 minutes.
- Allow rice to cool down to about 30°C (86°F). To help it cool down faster, sit the pot in a basin of cold water.
- Crumble the cake of ragi tapai over the rice and mix in well.
- Loosely pack the mixture into a large jar, cover with a cloth, and set aside in a warm place to ferment (about 30–35°C / 86–95°F). The tapai will ferment over the next 2–4days. After about two days, it should start to show a little liquid at the bottom of the jar, and will start producing a distinctive smell of tapai. At this point, the tapai can be considered complete, although it will taste better after a couple of days kept in the refrigerator.