LoMaiGai (Steamed Glutinous Rice with Chicken)

by ThingsWeLike

Have you ever experienced awkward silence in a conversation? Wish that you could react fast enough to break the icy cold silence? Fear not, start memorising a few "Fill The Silence"-s from here, or if you think that the squiggly words are too challenging to read, try OMGfacts. You'll be surprise how the conversation can roll from there!

Thesilenttiger LOVES to read fun facts, and she always have a couple up in her sleeve during a conversation. Except, wrong timing, always. The conversations were rolling fine, but she have this randomness in her, and she couldn't stop herself from blurting them out, causing a short awkward silence with a burst of laughter after that. Well well, she's still our favourite joker. *smiles*

So, today we're gonna introduce this dish/ all time favourite/ snack/ gymfreakwillnotgetclose to you guys, steamed glutinous rice with chicken or best known as Lo Mai Gai (in Cantonese). This dish is usually served in chinese "high-tea" places, such as the coffee shops or dim sum places, where all yummy food secretly gather together to plan on conquering the world. The version we made was rather plain compared to the authentic ones, as we've removed the Chinese sausages and dried shrimps (thesilenttiger dislikes them).

Ingredients:
2 pcs chicken thighs
2 pcs shiitake mushrooms
1 cup glutinous rice
3 cloves garlic (minced)
3/4 cup water

Marinate (make double serves for both chicken and rice)
1/2 tsp oyster sauce
1/4 tsp light soy sauce
pepper
1/2 tsp chinese cooking wine
1/2 tsp five spice powder
1/4 tsp dark soy sauce

1. Soak to soften the chicken thighs and shiitake mushroomn and cut them to half.
2. Add in the marinates and mix well.
3. Cover with plastic wrap before putting into the refrigerator. The marination process have to be taken for at least two hours, but we recommend you to leave it overnight and cook it first thing in the morning.
4. As for the rice, the amount of marinates is the same, but also add in 3/4 cups of water.
5. Stir evenly and cover with plastic wrap, then into the fridge it goes.

6. The next morning, heat up oil in a pan and add in the chopped garlic.
7. Sauté until fragrant and slightly browned, then throw in the chicken and mushrooms.
8. Stir fry for a minute, then add in a quarter cup of water. Place the lid over the pan and simmer on medium low heat for 2 minutes.
9. Set the dish aside after 2 minutes as we assemble the dish. The chicken should be half cooked for now, as you will still need to cook it another round together with the rice.
10. Prepare a porcelain bowl and add a drop of oil into the bowl. (If you follow traditional recipe, you will need an aluminium bowl, but porcelain works as well)
11. Using a paper towel to coat the sides of the bowl for easier removal later.
12. Place one chicken thigh and 2 mushroom pieces to the base of the bowl and some sauce that didn't get absorbed.
13. Then, divide the rice into two portions and scoop one portion into the bowl, also adding the leftover marinate.If the marinate does not cover till slightly above the rice level, add in plain water.
14. Place the bowl in the steamer and cook for 20 minutes on medium heat.
15. After 20 minutes, place a plate over the bowl and carefully turn it over to remove the rice from the bowl to serve. If you've forgotten to oil the bowl, you'll find it hard to separate the rice from the bowl, so don't forget to oil the bowl!

Watch the video recipe:

Enjoy the steamed glutinous rice with a cup of coffee (click here for recipe!) and your Chinese life would be complete!

Fun Fact #1: Do you know that many airlines require the pilot and copilot eat different meals on flights to ensure the safety of at least one of them in the rare occurrence of a food related illness?

Bet you don't know that! Oh, wait. Do you? Fine.