Balinese traditional cakes remain to have its market share amidst the proliferation of diverse modern snacks today. It is evident, though only relying on the sales in traditional markets, the transaction is this kaliadrem cake can compete against modern type of cakes offered by a number of bakeries and supermarkets.
“So far, the kaliadrem is still in high demand. However, the volume tends to fluctuate. In other words, sometimes many people came to purchase the cakes, while on the other occasion we could not make a single sale per day,” said Nyoman Suantari, one of the traditional cake sellers. The sale of kaliadrem, a traditional snack made of rice flour, was no less competitive against the other more modern cakes.
This traditional cake can survive because it is not only targeted for the content of oblations during the Galungan and Kuningan festivity. Lately, the snack with a savory and sweet flavor is also taken advantage by many people as accompaniment of drinking tea or coffee in the afternoon.
Suantari explained the enthusiasts of traditional snacks like kaliadrem would certainly favor it. Kaliadrem itself was sold with a variety of forms ranging from a round mini donut to triangular. Both forms were characterized by a hole in the center of the donut. The number of hole varied from one to three pieces. The cake was made from simple ingredients like rice flour, brown sugar, coconut, salt and water. It was made in a very long time about 5-8 hours because it was still using a traditional method, directly made from rice grounded into flour. This method was intended to keep the original flavor of the cake.
Another cake seller revealed that kaliadrem remained in high demands in the market today. It was not only due to its cheap price, but also due to sweet taste fitting with local appetite. Moreover, the surface of the cake was sprinkled with sesame seeds that caused it increasingly mouthwatering
