Steamed Glutinous Rice with Chinese Sausage, Mushrooms and Dried Shrimp

I tried cooking glutinous rice for the very first time - steamed glutinous rice with Chinese sausage, mushrooms and dried shrimp - and was surprised at how easy it can be. 

It's a really simple recipe, but I went a bit overboard with the seasoning. Most people just use a mixture of light and dark soy, but I also threw in oyster sauce, Japanese tsuyu sauce and Indonesian ABC sweet dark soy. Those are optional; they just lend more umami factor to the dish. For measurement, I used the dessertspoon (the dining spoon we normally eat with, which is technically half a tablespoon).

INGREDIENTS 

500g glutinous rice (enough to feed five adults!) 

100g dried shrimp 2 Chinese sausages, sliced 

6-10 dried mushrooms 

4-5 cloves garlic, chopped 

1-2 tablespoons oil 

3 tablespoons water spring onions, chopped, for garnish 

SEASONING 

2 dessertspoons light soy 

1 dessertspoons dark soy 

1 dessertspoon oyster sauce* 

2 dessertspoons ABC sweet soy* 

2 dessertspoons tsuyu* (Japanese soy for dipping noodles etc) 

1 dessertspoon shao xing cooking wine 

1 dessertspoon sesame oil 

ground pepper to taste 

 * optional - you can just use regular soy sauce 

METHOD 

1. Soak glutinous rice for a few hours, ideally overnight. I also changed the water several times to reduce the starchiness. 

2. Soak the dried shrimp and mushrooms (separately, of course) for half an hour, or until softened. Slice or quarter the mushrooms. 

3. Heat cooking oil and fry the garlic, Chinese sausages, dried shrimp and mushrooms, for a couple of minutes until all is fragrant. 

4. Add rice, and seasoning. Fry for a few more minutes, until evenly coated. 

 5. Transfer to a shallow bowl for steaming (I used a wok and cover as steaming device). Drizzle the 3 tbsp water on top of the rice and steam for 30-40 minutes. 

6. Sprinkle chopped spring onions onto rice and serve. If you prefer softer and mushy rice, you can steam it for longer or add more water. 

OH, and HAPPY FATHER'S DAY to all dads reading!