Dadiah

Dadiah, also spelled dadih, is a traditional fermented buffalo milk from the Minangkabau people of West Sumatra that sets naturally inside a bamboo tube into a thick, mildly sour, yogurt-like food.

Dadiah: A section of cut bamboo tube filled to the rim with smooth, thick, ivory-white set milk curd that looks like firm yogurt, with a small piece of green banana leaf folded bac
  • Traditional and regional desserts
  • Indonesia

Also called: yogurt

Dadiah is a traditional dairy food of the Minangkabau people of West Sumatra, Indonesia. It is made from fresh buffalo milk that is filtered to remove bits like stones and grass, poured into a length of bamboo, and left to ferment on its own. No starter culture is added, and the milk is not heated first.

The bamboo is key to the texture. Its moisture-absorbing walls help the milk thicken into a soft, even curd instead of separating into whey. The open end is covered with banana leaves and tied shut, and the tube sits at a warm 28 to 30 degrees Celsius. Fermentation usually takes about a day, though it can run two or three days. In one study, consumers preferred dadiah fermented for 48 hours, which had a smooth texture and a mild sourness.

The finished dadiah resembles yogurt, and it is one of the best-known traditional fermented foods of the Minang people.

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Related entries

Sources

Written by VanillaGoods in our own words from these sources. Last reviewed October 15, 2026.

  1. From tradition to innovation: dadih, the Minangkabau tribe's traditional fermented buffalo milk from Indonesia, Springer Nature (peer-reviewed journal article)
  2. Characterization of Dadih: Traditional Fermented Buffalo Milk of Minangkabau, MDPI Beverages (peer-reviewed journal article)