Rice Terraces in the Philippines |
Sticky rice is dry steamed after soaking in water for at least 7 hours. Unlike the regular Jasmine rice, sticky rice is dry and of course, sticky. It's place in a bamboo rice container to keep it moist and placed on the table along with the rest of the meal. Then you dig in with your hands clump the chuck into a ball then deep it in a sauce or whatever dish that your eating it with. So, yes, it is best eaten using your hands.
At our hole in a wall location, we constantly have customers who loves to eat sticky rice but doesn't know how to cook it. So here's a back-to-basic instruction on how to cook sticky rice.
You will need:
You will ALSO need: Available in most kitchens
1. Large Bowl/Container
2. Pot Lid
3. Plenty of Water
4. Heating element i.e Stove
Preparation:
At least 7 hours before cooking, place 3 cups of long grain sweet rice/sticky rice into a large bowl or container. Rinse the rice very well until the water is mostly clear. Let the rice soak for at least 7 hours.
(Suggestion: Soak your rice over night, the time will go by faster and you are not tempted to keep checking it through out your day)
Instructions:
1. Fill the rice pot steamer with water about half-way and let it boil.
2. Drain the water from the rice and put it rice into the bamboo basket.
3. Place the bamboo steamer basket over the opening. Make sure that the tip of the basket is not touching the water in the pot. Dump some water out if that's the case.
4. Place a pot lid over the rice in the basket to trap some of the steam and allowing it to cook the rice.
5. Every 5-10 minutes pick up the basket and give it a couple of tosses (This will allow the rice to cook evenly)
6. 1 cup of rice cooks in 15-20 minutes. For every cup of rice added, add 10 minutes more.
NOTE: For 3 cups, it should cook after 30 minutes (Tossing it every 10 minutes). You may also have to add more water to the pot towards the end or use a bigger basket and pot.
7. If the rice looks translucent, then it's cook. Better yet, try a small sample if you're not sure.
8. Place the rice in the Bamboo Rice Container and Serve.
NOTE: Some like to place clear wrap over the basket container before putting the cook rice for easy cleanup. These Basket are not made to store cooked rice overnight, the rice will stick to the bamboo. If you chose to not clear wrap the basket, clean up is simple: Take excess rice out, let the rest dry up then using your hand, rub the inside of the basket to release the dried rice.Resist the urge to soak the basket, it will only smell bad and leave gunk rice paste inside the basket.
Serve it with your favorite Thai, Vietnamese, or Lao dish and enjoy. Some enjoy it in a special Thai fish sauce dip. We will post a recipe one day.
Until then,
Mangan Tayon (Let's Eat!)
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