In Asia, this breakfast staple is found in restaurants serving dim sim, neighbourhood coffee shops and street food vendors. An easy steam recipe using glutinous rice or sticky rice, and soy sauce chicken with a robust touch of dried shitake mushroom. High end restaurants serve them wrapped in dried lotus leaves while the rest of the world steam them in little bowls. Here is an easy recipe. Note that prep is best done the day before.
Ingredients
2 cups glutinous rice
2 cups water
8 Dried Shitake mushrooms (or 16 small ones)
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Chicken & marinade
3 pieces chicken thighs (cut in halves)
2 tbsp Oyster sauce (Get premium Lee Kum Kee Oyster sauce)
2 tbsp light soy sauce (Kikkoman is a good choice)
1 tbsp Dark soy sauce
1 tbsp Dark sweet soy sauce (kecap manis)
1 minced garlic
1 shallot
1 tsp sesame oil
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
Optional
Chinese sausage (2cm piece of sausage in each bowl – pan fry for extra flavour)
Method
- Overnight, soak 2 cups glutinous rice in 2 cups water
- Overnight, marinate chicken, with all seasonings and place in fridge
- Overnight, soak dried Shitake mushroom with enough water to cover the top
- Lay 8 small bowls on baking pan
- Drain mushroom and DISCARD water
- Place a piece of chicken (without liquid*)and a mushroom into each bowl
- With an ice cream scoop for measurement, scoop equal amounts of rice into each bowl (without liquid*), neatly, on top of the chicken & mushroom
- *Liquid – fill cups with remaining liquid, just enough to cover the top of the rice. Discard access liquid.
- Steam 100c for 45 mins
- Invert rice onto plate to serve.
- Plastic wrap remaining rice. Keep well in fridge or freezer. Reheat on steam for 5-10 mins
Not a fussy recipe. Will cook, with or without soaking of rice or chicken.
Gratitude: Thank you Mrs. Cheak, for leaving us your cooking legacy
