Version from East Java, Indonesia
jipang — East Java, Indonesia
A crunchy East Java rice candy: puffed or glutinous rice bound in caramelized sugar and pressed into bars, also known regionally as bipang.
- 20 min
- Prep
- 15 min
- Cook
- 8
- Servings
- Easy
- Difficulty
Jipang is a crisp snack built from puffed rice or cooked glutinous rice grains, bound together with caramelized sugar and pressed while hot into flat sheets that are cut into small bars. The texture sits between chewy and crunchy, and the surface carries a light shine from the hardened syrup.
This snack is reported from East Java and is sold widely across Indonesia under several regional names, including bipang and berondong beras. It turns up at markets, roadside stalls and small home workshops, packaged in plastic wrap or cellophane for sale by the piece or the bag.
To prepare it, rice grains are soaked, dried and puffed either by dry-roasting in hot sand or by frying briefly in oil. Separately, sugar and water are cooked down into a light amber caramel, sometimes with a pinch of salt. The puffed rice is folded quickly into the hot caramel until every grain is coated, then the mixture is pressed flat on a greased tray, cooled and cut into bars.
Variations in this East Java version include the addition of roasted peanuts or sesame seeds mixed into the caramel, and the choice between plain white rice and the chewier glutinous rice grain, which changes both the bite and how long the bars keep their shape once cooled.
Preparation
Grease a shallow tray or baking sheet with the oil.
Combine the sugar, water and salt in a heavy pan.
Cook over medium heat until the syrup turns a light amber caramel.
Stir in the peanuts and sesame seeds.
Add the puffed rice and fold quickly until every grain is coated.
Pour the hot mixture onto the greased tray and press flat with a spatula.
Let it cool completely until firm.
Cut into bars or rectangles before serving.
