The long-time favourite Lo Mai Gai is a must-order dish when my family and I go for Dim Sum. This sweet and savoury delight is traditionally wrapped in lotus leaves, but most Dim Sum restaurants in Malaysia serve them in a foil tart case. With some fluffy glutinous rice covered with a sweet and savoury sauce that's so aromatic, you'll want to keep going back for more.
One of the most important ingredients when making this dish is the Chinese sausage, also known aslap cheong. The colour and texture of this sausage are similar to chorizo. Flavour-wise, it is sweet, savoury, and less smokey, spicy and salty than chorizo or salami. The best substitute forlap cheongwould be, you guessed it right, chorizo. Add a teaspoon of brown sugar for every 100g of chorizo used in the dish.
When using glutinous/sticky rice, soak it for at least 2 hours (preferably overnight) before cooking. Soaking the glutinous rice will make it soft and thoroughly cooked when steamed.
The actual prepping and cooking time Lo Mai Gai takes less than an hour. However, this dish requires a lot more resting time to give the main ingredients like the glutinous rice and marinated chicken to be ready for cooking (steaming).
Ingredients
2 cups glutinous sticky rice (soaked)
1 Chinese sausage (sliced)
6 pieces dried shiitake mushrooms
3 pieces boneless chicken thighs (diced)
½ cup water
A small amount of sliced spring onions and sesame seeds for garnishing
Soak the glutinous rice for at least 2 hours with water. Drain the access water after soaking and set aside.
Soak the dried shiitake mushroom with ½ cup of water for 30 minutes. Once soften, remove the mushrooms and slice them up. Do not discard the water used to soak the mushrooms as this will be used later for the glutinous rice.
Prepare the chicken marinade by mixing the cornstarch and water together to create a slurry. Next, mix the slurry with the remaining ingredients for the chicken marinade in a large mixing bowl. Add the chicken into the marinade and set aside in the fridge for 1 hour.
Once the chicken has soaked up all the flavour, add the glutinous rice, Chinese sausage, shiitake mushrooms, and the rest of the “glutinous rice flavouring” ingredients to the bowl. Mix well.
Prepare the steamer. Brush the inside of a deep plate or baking tray with some oil. Pour in the mixed glutinous rice and gently press the top making sure every corner of the plat or tray is packed and flat. Place the rice in the steamer and close the lid. Steam for 25 minutes.
After 25 minutes, remove the rice from the steamer and allow to stand for 5 minutes before garnishing with some sliced spring onions and sesame seeds.
