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1
Weave or obtain young coconut leaf pouches of diamond or rectangular form, then verify the seal on each so that the pouch holds raw rice without spillage yet remains open at the fill point. Fill each pouch to exactly half its interior capacity with raw parboiled rice — no more and no less, because the grain must have room to swell and press evenly against every wall of the leaf, which is what produces the characteristic dense, uniform compression at the centre. The filled pouch should feel conspicuously light and loose; that is correct — seal the fill point according to the weave.
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2
Place the sealed pouches in a large pot and cover completely with cold water, weighting them with a plate or inverted rack if they float so that no part of the pouch escapes the boil and cooks unevenly. Bring to a full rolling boil, then maintain a steady boil for 3–4 hours, replenishing with boiling water as needed to keep the pouches submerged throughout. The pouches are done when they feel uniformly firm and dense under light finger pressure, with no soft or yielding point anywhere along the surface.
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3
Remove the pouches from the water and allow them to cool completely at room temperature without unwrapping, because the leaf continues to pass its faint tannin and oil into the outer layer of rice and holds the moisture in place as the block sets to its final texture. Do not rush this stage — a warm ketupat will crumble under the knife and the surface will tear rather than slice clean. The ketupat is ready only when it is fully cold and firm to the touch.
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4
To serve, cut the leaf away cleanly with a sharp knife rather than tearing it, so that the compressed surface of the rice remains intact and the clean, glossy face characteristic of correct ketupat is preserved. Slice the unwrapped block into portions. The cut surface should be very dense, almost cake-like, slightly glossy, and hold its edge without crumbling.