michelle picker cooks

Chinese savoury sticky rice, nuo mi fan (糯米飯), is made of glutinous rice with various ingredients and flavourings, which are wrapped in lotus leaf parcels and then steamed until the flavours combine into a delicious mass. This is one of those ubiquitous dishes which has many different variations. I chose to make one large parcel and adapted this recipe from Gen at Casually Peckish to suit what I had available.

Before you start, soak the glutinous rice. In a large bowl rinse 2 cups of glutinous rice in cold water a few times until the water is almost clear then fill with cold water to 5cm (2″) above the rice. Leave to soak for at least 3 hours or overnight. Rehydrate 6 shiitake mushrooms in 1 cup of boiling water – this might only need 30 minutes but will benefit from leaving to soak longer. When you’re ready to cook, squeeze the excess liquid out of the mushrooms, retaining the soaking water, and slice the mushrooms finely. Soak 3 tablespoons of dried shrimp in some hot water. Immerse 2 lap cheong (Chinese sausage) in warm water and remove the casings then cut them into thin diagonal slices. Next finely slice 4 shallots and finely mince 4 cloves of garlic. In a wok or frypan heat some oil over medium heat and fry the shallots until golden brown. Set aside. In the same pan fry the lap cheong and mushrooms for a few minutes then add the minced garlic and the drained shrimp and cook for 1 minute more. Turn the heat up and deglaze with 2 tablespoons of shaoxing wine. When the wine has almost evaporated add 1 tablespoon each of soy sauce, dark soy sauce and brown sugar. Allow the sauces to caramelise then add the drained rice and the fried shallots and stir fry for a couple of minutes. Finally, turn down the heat and add the reserved shiitake soaking liquid. Continue to cook until the liquid has been absorbed into the rice then remove from the heat. Line a bamboo steamer with banana leaves (I have a banana tree) or lotus leaves or cheesecloth. I covered the top of the rice with leaves as well. Put the lid on and steam for 1 hour, checking from time to time that there is enough water underneath. When the rice is ready make sure to keep it hot until you’re ready to serve. Garnish with finely sliced green onions.