Thai Sticky Rice Food

HOW TO MAKE THAI STICKY RICE (วิธีทำ ข้าวเหนียว)

Steps:

• The night before you want to cook sticky rice, take your raw sticky rice, place it into a bowl or plastic tub, submerge in water, and allow to soak room temperature overnight. Alternatively, you can soak for at least 4 - 5 hours, but overnight is best.
• Take the sticky rice out of the water (and the grains should be softer and a little swollen), and place into a bamboo steamer, or any type of steamer. Cover the steamer with either a lid, or you can do what I did and cover the basket with a cloth, then a metal lid - just to keep all the steam within the rice.
• Add water to a pot with the steamer over the pot (just make sure the water doesn't touch the sticky rice), and once the water comes to a boil, steam for 15 - 20 minutes (usually 15 minutes for me is perfect) on a medium heat.
• After 15 minutes take off the lid carefully, because it will be very hot, and just grab a taste test of the sticky rice to make sure it's soft and fluffy. If it's still a little crunchy, steam for a few more minutes, but if it's good to go, turn off the heat and either eat immediately, or transfer to some sort of airtight container or basket to hold until you're ready to eat.
• Enjoy Thai sticky rice while it's hot and fresh.

SAVORY THAI STICKY RICE

Steps:

• Soak 2 cups sweet (sticky) rice in 3-4 cups water, or enough so water exceeds the rice by at least 1 inch. Soak for at least 40 minutes (if you lose track of time, it's no problem - sticky rice can soak up to 4 hours or longer). Note: Sweet rice has a hard outer shell that needs to soften before it can be cooked.
• While rice is soaking, prepare your steamer. Line a bamboo steamer or colander with 2 layers of banana/bamboo leaf, OR use cheesecloth, or a clean kitchen cloth. To clean and thaw the leaf (if frozen), rinse under hot water. Cut the leaf large enough that it extends over the top. Place steamer over a large pot, and have a tight-fitting lid ready.
• Place bacon in a large frying pan/wok together with 1-2 tablespoons water. Fry over medium-high heat until cooked (chewy, not crisp). Remove from heat, leaving all or half the fat in the frying pan.
• Remove bacon from the pan and cut into small pieces (I use a clean pair of scissors for this, like they do in Asia - much faster and easier than a knife!). Place it back in the frying pan.
• Also add to the frying pan the shallots or onion, mushrooms, garlic, and chili. Return to medium-high heat and stir-fry 1-2 minutes, until fragrant. If your pan becomes dry, add a little water (1-2 Tbsp.).
• Turn heat to low. Add the drained sticky rice, plus the fish sauce and soy sauces. Also add half the green onion. Stir until the color of the rice has consistently darkened . Remove from heat.
• Transfer the rice from the frying pan into your prepared steamer. Make sure there is at least 1 inch of water in the pot. Cover with the lid and steam over high heat for 30-35 minutes. (You may have to add more water to your steamer partway through.).
• After 30 minutes, remove from heat. Allow to sit (with lid on) for 5 minutes. The rice should be soft, sticky, and slightly translucent. If there are any hard grains, steam 5 minutes longer. (Dig down into the middle of the rice when testing for "done-ness".).
• Taste-test the rice for salt. Sprinkle over a little more fish sauce if not salty or flavorful enough. If too salty, add a sqeeze of lime juice. Gently stir rice with a fork or chopsticks to mix inches.
• To serve, slide the banana/bamboo leaf directly onto a serving plate. Or, if you want to pretty it up, line a serving bowl or plate with a fresh banana leaf. Mound the rice on top and sprinkle with remaining spring onion (add optional garnishes too if desired). ENJOY!

THAI STICKY RICE

Steps:

• Place rice in a large bowl and add enough room-temperature water to cover by 1 inch. Soak at least 4 hours and up to 10. Once rice has soaked, rinse rattan basket to dampen, then set upright in a colander. Rinse cheesecloth to dampen, then line the inside of the rattan basket in an even layer (there will be overhang). Set aside.
• Drain rice by slowly pouring off the water; when most of the water is gone, run the tap gently over the rice to rinse it, letting the water overflow from the bowl. As the tap runs, use your hand to gently stir the rice. The water will be cloudy at first, but it will become almost clear after 2-3 minutes. At that point, drain the rice in the sink using the cloth-lined basket fitted over the colander (discard the rinsing water). Add water to the steamer pot to a depth of 2 inches. Add pandan leaf, then bring water to a boil over high heat, 5 minutes.
• Tie the cheesecloth into a bundle so the rice is completely enveloped. Place the rattan basket on top of the steamer pot. Reduce heat to medium, and place a pot lid that fits snugly inside the steamer directly on top of the rice bundle. Allow the rice to steam for 15 minutes.
• After 15 minutes, remove pot lid. Use tongs to flip the cheesecloth bundle, so the top of the bundle now rests against the bottom of the basket. (Use the lid for assistance if necessary.) Replace the lid and steam for 15 more minutes.
• After a total of 30-35 minutes of steaming, remove rice cooker from heat. Serve immediately, or place rice bundle in an insulated container (such as an ice bucket) to maintain the heat, keeping the container covered until ready to serve, up to 1 hour.

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.

FOOLPROOF THAI STICKY RICE

Steps:

• Place rice into a mesh colander.
• Rinse the rice grains in two or three changes of cold water in a bowl until the water runs clear from the colander.
• Place the rice into a bowl and fill with cool water to 2 to 3 inches above the rice.
• Cover the bowl and allow the rice to soak for 6 to 8 hours.
• Drain the rice and transfer to cheesecloth-lined steamer or pasta pot basket.
• Set steamer on wok or pasta pot with boiling water; do not let rice touch boiling water.
• Cover pot and steam rice, checking water level often, adding more boiling water as need; cook for 20 minutes.
• Remove from heat and let stand, covered for 5 minutes before serving.