Chinese Sticky Rice Chicken Dumplings

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Instructions

 

Cook Fillings:

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  First, prepare to marinade the chicken. Cut the chicken thigh into chunks, about 3 cm in size.
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  Mix with marinade and refrigerate for at least 1 hour or preferably overnight.
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  Then heat up oil in wok and briefly fry the marinated chicken with chopped garlic until they brown lightly. The aim is to sear the chicken meat briefly.
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  Remove from wok and place in a bowl or casserole and set aside while we prepare the other fillings.
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  Clean salted eggs. Then cut the salted egg yolks in halves and set aside in a bowl.
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  Rinse and soaked dried shrimps for about 30 minutes.
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  Drain well and fry in oil till golden brown. Place in a bowl and set aside.
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  Then rinse and soak dried shiitake mushroom till softened.
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  Drain well and saute the mushrooms till aromatic and brown slightly. Remove from wok and place in a bowl.
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  Soak the dried chestnuts in cold water, preferably overnight.
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  Then boil the dried chestnuts for about 20 minutes or till softened.
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  In the same wok, fry the chestnuts until they brown slightly. Remove from wok and place in a bowl.
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  Next, rinse and add 1 tsp alkaline water into split mung beans. Soaked in water for at least 3 hours.
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  Drain well and mix well with the seasonings.
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  Stir fry the split mung beans with chopped garlic till aromatic, place in a bowl and set aside.
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  Next, rinse and soaked black-eye beans for at least 30 minutes.
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  Drain and mix well with the seasonings.
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  In the wok with oil, stir fry the black-eyed beans with chopped garlic till aromatic, place in bowl and set aside.
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  Wash and rinse the glutinous rice till water runs clear. Then soak in water for 1 hour.
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  Drain well before adding the seasonings into the glutinous rice and mix till evenly combined.
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  Then, using the same wok, fry chopped garlic till fragrant. Add the seasoned glutinous rice and stir fry for 2 minutes. Stir in the black-eyed beans and adjust to taste.
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  Transfer to a casserole and set aside.

Prepare bamboo leaves:

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  Soak bamboo leaves one day ahead or overnight until softened. First bring a large pot or wok of water to a boil. Add about 1 tablespoon of oil into the water.
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  Carefully place the bamboo leaves into the wok. Make sure the water covers all the leaves and cook over high heat for about 15 minutes, just to soften the bamboo leaves.
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  Also, boil briefly the grass strands used for tying the wrapped sticky rice dumplings.
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  Remove the bamboo leaves from the wok to cool. Untie the bamboo leaves and use a clean cloth to wipe both sides of each bamboo leaf.
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  Then snip off both stray ends of each of the bamboo leaves.
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  Gently place the cleaned bamboo leaves and grass strings in a large container of cold water. Leave the bamboo leaves to soak in the cold water overnight. And we're ready to wrap the dumplings!

Wrap Sticky Rice Dumplings:

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  To wrap dumplings, layer two bamboo leaves in opposite directions ( the tail end of one lining up with the top end of the other) with the smooth sides up and form a cone.
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  Then add in 1 heaped tablespoon of fried glutinous rice mixture. Fill about 1/3 of the cone with the glutinous rice mixture. Press down firmly with a spoon.
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  Next, add in a piece each of chicken, mushroom, chestnut and salted egg yolk. Also add in 1 tsp dried shrimps and 1 tablespoon of split mung beans.
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  Top the fillings with more glutinous rice mixture, till the brim of the cone. Press down firmly again with a spoon.
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  Next, fold the leaves over to cover the open top of the rice dumpling completely. Make sure you press the tip of the rice dumpling so that the end is pointed. Then fold the leaves over the edges of the cone in a triangular shape.
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  At the top of the triangle (base end of the leaves), fold over the ends either to the right or left, making sure the rice dumpling is firmly wrapped.
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  Tie the rice dumpling firmly in the middle (it should include the end of the leaves that were folded over) with grass strings by using a downward pulling motion.
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  Tie the dumpling with the grass strand twice, each time with an easy knot to ensure no loose ends.
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  Snip off excess bamboo leaves and strings. And we're ready to cook the sticky rice dumplings.

Cook Sticky Rice Dumplings:

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  First, boil water in a large pot. Add in salt.
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  When water comes to a boil again, gently lower the sticky rice dumplings into the water making sure they are fully submerged.
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  Cover the pot with lid and cook the sticky rice dumplings over medium-high heat till cooked. If using pressure cooker, it will take about 1 hour. If using normal pot, the cooking process is about 2 to 3 hours, depending on the size of the rice dumplings.
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  Always check for doneness once the rice dumplings are cooked. To check if they are cooked through, unwrap one of the dumplings in the pot, check for doneness and taste it before removing the rest of dumplings from the pot.
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  Once the rice dumplings are cooked, remove from pot and hang them up to drain off excess water and to cool down. And we're done!
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  Once the sticky rice dumpling has cooled slightly, unwrap and enjoy!