Thai Grilled Sweet Sticky Rice With Banana Filling Food

SWEET THAI-STYLE CHICKEN BOWL

Steps:

• Combine 3 cups water, rice, and salt in a saucepan; bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low, cover saucepan, and simmer until liquid is absorbed, about 15 minutes. Remove saucepan from heat and let sit until rice is tender, about 5 minutes more.
• Place chicken breasts in a skillet and add soy sauce and 1 tablespoon water; turn heat to medium-high. Cover skillet and cook chicken, turning occasionally, until no longer pink in the center, about 20 minutes. Cut chicken into cubes.
• Combine coconut milk, sugar, and curry powder in a saucepan; bring to a simmer. Add mango to curry sauce and cook until heated through, about 5 minutes.
• Spoon rice into a bowl and top with sprouts, cashews, cilantro, green onions, and chicken. Drizzle mango curry sauce over chicken.

BAOSHAO MUSHROOMS (MUSHROOMS GRILLED IN BANANA LEAVES)

Steps:

• Prepare a grill for medium heat; brush grate with oil. Stir 8 red Thai chiles, thinly sliced on a diagonal, 1 Tbsp. light soy sauce, 2 tsp. Diamond Crystal or 1¼ tsp. Morton kosher salt, 2 tsp. finely chopped garlic, 2 tsp. finely chopped peeled ginger, 1 tsp. sugar, and half of lime juice in a large bowl until sugar is dissolved. Mix in 5 sprigs culantro or cilantro, coarsely chopped, and 3 sprigs Thai lemon basil or Thai basil, coarsely chopped, and let dressing sit 10 minutes.
• Meanwhile, spread out leaves from one 1 lb. package fresh (or frozen, thawed) banana leaves on a surface. Remove ribs, then cut leaves to make four 18x12" rectangles (depending on how many leaves come in your package, you may not use all of them). Cook in a large pot of boiling water until pliable, about 30 seconds. Drain and gently pat dry with a kitchen towel.
• Add 6 oz. enoki mushrooms, trimmed, torn into ½" pieces, and 2 oz. brown shimeji mushrooms to dressing and mix until mushrooms start to shrink and release some of their liquid, about 1 minute. Stir in 2 Tbsp. vegetable oil.
• Arrange two 18x12" banana leaf rectangles, vein side up, on a surface, then stack remaining two 18x12" rectangles on to create a double layer; veins should be running perpendicular to you. Divide mushroom mixture between stacks and top each with half of 1 lemongrass stalk, bottom 4" only, tough outer layers removed, thinly sliced. Working with 1 stack at a time, fold banana leaves over filling from left and right sides, then fold top and bottom up and over to form a packet. Tie packets with pandan leaves to secure (a strip of banana leaf will also work in a pinch).
• Grill packets until deeply browned and charred in spots, about 5 minutes per side. Serve with steamed jasmine rice or glutinous rice.

THAI SWEET STICKY RICE WITH MANGO (KHAO NEEO MAMUANG)

Steps:

• Combine the rice and water in a saucepan; bring to a boil; cover and reduce heat to low. Simmer until water is absorbed, 15 to 20 minutes.
• While the rice cooks, mix together 1 1/2 cups coconut milk, 1 cup sugar, and 1/2 teaspoon salt in a saucepan over medium heat; bring to a boil; remove from heat and set aside. Stir the cooked rice into the coconut milk mixture; cover. Allow to cool for 1 hour.
• Make a sauce by mixing together 1/2 cup coconut milk, 1 tablespoon sugar, 1/4 teaspoon salt, and the tapioca starch in a saucepan; bring to a boil.
• Place the sticky rice on a serving dish. Arrange the mangos on top of the rice. Pour the sauce over the mangos and rice. Sprinkle with sesame seeds.

BANANA AND COCONUT STICKY RICE PACKETS

Steps:

• Put the rice in a bowl and add water to cover by 1 inch. Let stand for at least 5 and up to 12 hours. (The cooking technique below requires a longer soaking than normal.)
• Drain the rice in a mesh strainer and rinse. Let sit a minute, then shake to expel excess water.
• Combine the coconut cream, sugar, and salt in a large nonstick skillet. Heat over medium-high heat for about 2 minutes, or until the mixture begins bubbling. Add the rice and stir to mix well. Cook for about 6 minutes, stirring often. Slightly decrease the heat if the mixture sputters so much that it feels out of control. This stage of cooking is complete when most of the liquid has been absorbed and the thickened mixture resembles a slightly soupy rice pudding or risotto; the rice grains will be translucent and cling together as a slippery mass in the glossy liquid. Expect the rice to be chewy firm and not fully cooked. Remove from the heat and set aside to cool for about 20 minutes, or until cool enough to touch. The rice will absorb more of the liquid.
• Meanwhile, peel the bananas, removing any strings as you work. Cut each in half crosswise, then halve each lengthwise. You should have 12 quarters total. Set aside on a plate. Have the beans nearby. If the banana leaves feel stiff, soften them by passing each over the flame of a gas stove or a hot electric burner.
• Before assembling the packets, use a rubber spatula to divide the rice into 12 wedges like a pie.
• Use one piece of banana leaf for each packet. Put it on your work surface, smoother side up and one of the shorter sides closest to you. Tear or use scissors to cut off a long, narrow strip, about 1/3 inch wide, and set aside to use later to secure the packet. Put a portion of soft rice on the center of the leaf and use the spatula to press it into a 5-inch-diameter circle. Sprinkle a scant 2 teaspoons of beans on the rice. Then vertically center a piece of banana on top and gently press down to secure in place. Pull up the long sides of the leaf so that they meet in the center, pressing gently so the rice covers the top of the banana; pick up the packet and mold it into cylindrical shape, if you like. To close, fold the long side of the leaf over twice; for less bulk, reopen the packet, fold one of the sides of the leaf down to cover the rice, then roll it up cigar style. The result will be a long, open-ended tube. Now, fold the ends of the leaf in to close (they will partially overlap, as they would if you were wrapping a gift ), and tie the ends down with the reserved leaf strip. (You can use kitchen string instead.) Repeat to make the rest.
• Place the packets, seam side down, in steamer trays in one layer. Steam over boiling water (see steaming guidelines on page 17) for 20 to 25 minutes, until the rice is tender; the banana leaf will turn dark olive green.
• Serve warm or at room temperature, unwrapped on an open leaf, and with a fork; the leaf is inedible. Refrigerate left overs and steam for about 10 minutes to refresh. To freeze for up to 1 month, wrap each packet in plastic wrap and then put them all in a zip-top plastic bag; thaw and steam to reheat.

KHAO NEEO

Steps:

• In a large bowl (large enough to hold at least twice the volume of rice, about 6 cups) cover rice with cold water by 2 to 3 inches. Soak rice 8 to 24 hours. Alternatively, soak rice in warm water (about 110°F.) 2 hours. The longer soak allows more flavor to develop.
• Drain rice and transfer to a Southeast Asian rice-steamer basket or sieve. Set steamer basket or sieve over several inches of boiling water in a large pot or deep kettle. It is important that the rice not touch boiling water. Cover rice with a lid and steam, checking water level occasionally to make sure pot or kettle doesn't boil dry and adding more boiling water if necessary, 25 minutes, or until rice is shiny and tender.
• Transfer rice to a basket or bowl, breaking it up into smaller lumps, and immediately cover with a lid or clean kitchen towel. (Rice dries out if exposed to air as it cools, so keep covered until serving.)