Traditional Lontong aka Rice Cake

Ingredients:

3 cups Jasmine Rice ~ washed & drained

Banana Leaves

Lontong cylinder

Directions/Instructions:

1. Clean the banana leaves and cut the shape of the cylinder mold.  Warm them up a little on an open fire briefly (This helps the banana leaves stay soft and avoid cracking)
2. Roll each leaf into a cylinder and fill half the cylinder with the rice. (Eg. If the cylinder is 20cm roll in length, fill up the rice below half of 20cm, which is about 10cm)  Continue until you use up all the rice.
3. Prepare a big pot of water and bring it to a boil; add some salt.  Place the lontong cylinder inside the pot.  Cover the lid and let it boil for 30 mins over medium heat.  Off the heat and let it sit for another 30 minutes; do not remove the lid.
4. After 30 minutes, submerge all the lontong cylinders in the water. Cover the lid and boil over medium heat for another 30 minutes. Turn off the heat again and let it sit for another 30 minutes. Repeat this process three times.
5. Once done, remove them from the water and let them cool for about an hour before removing the lontong from the cylinder.