Hello everyone, I am pleased to be a part of this community because I can see various kinds of food from different countries. And of course, every country has exceptional food not found in other countries.
This time I want to share one of the typical foods from my area, Kalimantan, even this food is difficult to find in other places even though it is still in Indonesia. The name of the food is "Ketupat Kandangan." Ketupat Kandangan only found in Kalimantan.
Ketupat Kandangan is an exceptional food from the South Kalimantan, Kandangan. Therefore this food is called Ketupat Kandangan because it comes from that area. Making the Ketupat itself, usually using leaves from young coconuts, can be purchased and found in traditional markets. However, many restaurants that sell Ketupat Kandangan choose to make this Ketupat themselves instead of buying it at the local market.
What makes Ketupat Kandangan different from the other dishes? Because the dish uses snakehead fish (Haruan) as the main dish. This snakehead fish is cooked with a smoked technique and usually employs a burnt coconut shell in the smoking process. The use of coconut shells in the smoking process will usually produce a distinctive aroma. The smell is very different if the smoking process uses ordinary firewood. After the snakehead fish finish cooking with the smoking process, it will be put into the sauce of Ketupat Kandangan.
Ketupat Kandangan sauce is from coconut milk as the main ingredients, and later in cooking this sauce, the "Tahilala" will be taken, which will be served together with the sauce. I apologize for the "Tahilala" myself. I couldn't find the meaning in English, so I think it's the local language. If I interpret Tahilala as the lumpy part of cooked coconut milk, Tahilala itself has a savory taste.
The chili sauce itself, commonly known as Sambal Binjai, is also a typical chili sauce from the Kalimantan. Binjai itself is a fruit known by the Latin name Mangifera Caesia, still a relative with mango, only it has a sour taste and a unique aroma. And this is will usually be served together with Ketupat Kandangan. Some people in Kalimantan will add lime juice and Tahilala to this chili sauce when they are want to eat Ketupat Kandangan.
And the last thing is, how to eat Ketupat Kandangan itself, maybe this will be very strange for some people outside Indonesia, even for some Indonesians themselves it may still be a bit weird. Because, how to eat is to use hands. Yes, this is very strange, even my friends are confused because this is a soupy food, but eat it with hands. However, the most characteristic of eating Ketupat Kandangan is the way of eating it. I even eat this Ketupat Kandangan using my hands because it's been taught since childhood. But there's nothing wrong if you want to use a spoon.
Apart from using your hands, how to eat Ketupat Kandangan is to crush the Ketupat itself, so it looks like rice, and this won't be easy to do with a spoon. If you use a spoon, you may have to cut the Ketupat with a spoon before you eat.
If the question arises? Why is Ketupat made if later eaten by crushing it? I don't understand what the reason is. Let's say this is the uniqueness of Ketupat Kandangan itself.
Hopefully, one day if you visit Indonesia, especially Kalimantan, don't forget to taste this food.
Thank you.