I have used this recipe more times than my mother’s recipe. Such a statement should never be uttered (blasphemy!) but I must. This recipe requires 8 hours of soaking the rice before simply throwing everything together and pressing a button on a rice cooker. My mom’s method requires no soaking for 8 hours, and simply cooking the rice in the microwave before stir frying in a wok. So, both methods have short cuts, but which one you prefer depends on your type of laziness. If I forget to soak my rice overnight, I use my mom’s method. If I do remember to soak the rice, I use the rice cooker method.
I honestly can’t tell you what the real method is, but the two methods I’ve been using have produced excellent results, and taste the exact same as any naw mi fan you would order at an authentic Chinese restaurant. I only say that because after I make this for people, they take a bite and say, it tastes just like the naw mi fan at a restaurant. So that’s pretty much all the proof I’d ever need. 10 out of 10 mouths agree.
This recipe is adapted from Daily Cooking Quest’s site. I’ve only made minor adjustments to the seasonings and quantities of the sausage and mushrooms. We love lots and lots of mushrooms in ours so we uses 3-4x as much.
Naw mi fan is Chinese sticky rice (also called sweet rice, or glutinous rice), cooked with various components such as lap cheurng (Chinese sausage), shiitake mushrooms, small cubes of marinated chicken thighs, dried scallops or dried shrimp. I only use the Chinese sausage and shiitake mushrooms (and sometimes marinated chicken, if I have it on hand) because that’s what my family likes. I have never liked dehydrated shrimp (yes yes, I’m not a real Chinese person if I don’t like dried shrimp) because I choked when one got caught in my throat once so it scarred me for life. The rice is flavored with a sauce made with soy sauce, oyster sauce and other ingredients.
If you are using dried shiitake mushrooms, put them in a bowl of water to reconstitute before cooking. I would do it at the same time you start soaking the rice so everything is ready at the same time. Put the bowl of soaking mushrooms in the fridge until ready to use, then squeeze the water out of the mushrooms before slicing.
I also remove the casings from the Chinese sausage before slicing. My kids don’t prefer the casing because sometimes it’s difficult to chew apart, like most sausages with casings.
I usually try making a Thanksgiving dinner with all the traditional sides, but this one tends to slip in. Like all the time. My family isn’t as crazy about stuffing as I am, and devour this sticky rice like a pack of ravenous wolves, so it is a good substitution if you need a comforting, filling side dish.
Excuse my horrifying spelling of lap churng, as I probably misspelled it every time I attempted to type it on this post. Cherung, cherng, churng, cheorgng, chureng.
Naw Mi Fan (Chinese Sticky Rice
Ingredients
- 2 cups sweet (aka glutinous) rice, soaked in water overnight or 8 hours
- 12 shiitake mushrooms, sliced
- 4 lap cheurng (Chinese sausages), sliced
- 4 garlic cloves, minced
- 3 scallions, white and green parts chopped and divided
- 2 tsp. sesame oil
- SAUCE:
- 4 Tbsp. Shaoxing wine
- 2 Tbsp. soy sauce
- 2 Tbsp. low sodium soy sauce
- 1 Tbsp. oyster sauce
- 2 tsp. sesame oil
- 3/4 tsp. salt
- couple dashes white pepper
Directions
- Step 1 Soak your rice overnight (or at least 8 hours) with water, in the fridge. Drain when ready to use. Do the same with the shiitake mushrooms if using dried ones. Squeeze water out of mushrooms before slicing. Removing the casings from the lap cheurng, then slice into pieces.
- Step 2 Combine all the ingredients for the sauce in a cup or small bowl. Set aside until ready to use.
- Step 3 In a large skillet, heat 2 tsp. sesame oil on medium high heat. Add minced garlic and white parts of chopped scallions, and stir until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add lap cheurng, and stir for 2-3 minutes. Add mushrooms, cook for another 2-3 minutes. Add sauce mixture, and cook for 2 minutes. Add rice and turn off heat. Stir until everything is well combined.
- Step 4 Pour everything into a rice cooker and fill with 2 cups of water, just enough to cover the top of the rice. Add more water if you need it to cover the top. Turn rice cooker on. When it turns off, fluff the rice, sprinkle the green parts of the scallions on top, cover with lid and let steam for another few minutes. Serve.
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Instructions with Photos:
Soak your rice overnight (or at least 8 hours) with water, in the fridge. Drain when ready to use. Do the same with the shiitake mushrooms if using dried ones. Squeeze water out of mushrooms before slicing. Removing the casings from the lap cheurng, then slice into pieces.
Combine all the ingredients for the sauce in a cup or small bowl. Set aside until ready to use.
In a large skillet, heat 2 tsp. sesame oil on medium high heat. Add minced garlic and white parts of chopped scallions, and stir until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add lap cheurng, and stir for 2-3 minutes. Add mushrooms, cook for another 2-3 minutes. Add sauce mixture, and cook for 2 minutes. Add rice and turn off heat. Stir until everything is well combined.
Pour everything into a rice cooker and fill with 2 cups of water, just enough to cover the top of the rice. Add more water if you need it to cover the top. Turn rice cooker on. When it turns off, fluff the rice, sprinkle the green parts of the scallions on top, cover with lid and let steam for another few minutes. Serve.
Sometimes I sprinkle extra green onions on top as garnish too. If you hate green onions (like my kids do), you can omit the green parts entirely, and just cook with the white parts (which I don’t tell the kids about).
Hi and welcome to Soupbelly! My name is Candy and I run a frozen dumpling business. You can find me at pop ups in the Atlanta area.