Balam Road Lor Mai Kai (Chicken & Mushroom Sticky Rice)

A common breakfast food or tea-time snack originating from Southern China, Lor Mai Kai is a sort of Dim Sum popular in Malaysia and Singapore. Found anywhere from the local coffeeshop to school canteen, this recipe's inspired by 80's nostalgia and named after my first home at Balam Road in Singapore.

Before the pale, factory-made versions you'd find on sale today, I remember those childhood mornings when we'd stroll across to Macpherson Market along Circuit Road. The Dim Sum stall vendor would scoop out a freshly steamed, handmade Lor Mai Kai from out of a tin bowl and onto layers of clear plastic and brown paper for us to take home.

The original (and much oilier) version includes a slice of Lap Cheong (Chinese Sausage), while the Cantonese variety contains dried shrimps or pork, is usually paler and wrapped in lotus leaves.

Ingredients
Makes 6 snack portions

3 cups Glutinous Rice
3 Skinless Chicken Thigh Fillets
A small fistful of dried, sliced Chinese Mushrooms
6 slices Lap Cheong (Chinese Sausage)
2 slices Old Ginger, cut into thin strips
4 Tbsp Corn Oil

Chicken Marinade:
1 Tbsp Premium Light Soy Sauce
1 1/2 Tbsp Oyster Sauce
3/4 Tbsp Seseme Oil
1 Tbsp Shaoxing Chinese Wine
1 tsp White Sugar
Dash of Pepper

Rice Flavouring:
2 1/2 Tbsp Premium Light Soy Sauce
2 Tbsp Seseme Oil
3 tsp White Sugar
Dash of Pepper

Pre-preparation

• Slice each large, skinless chicken thigh fillet in half. Marinate overnight.
  
• Wash glutinous rice. Soak for 4 hours then drain.
• Soak dried sliced Chinese mushrooms in cold water 10 minutes prior to cooking. Retain mushroom stock.
  

Cooking
Use a medium heat throughout

1 Heat oil in wok. Brown ginger strips in oil until fragrant. Pan-sear chicken thigh fillets on both sides for 3-4 minutes. Move chicken pieces to the side of the wok. Add Chinese mushrooms and Lap Cheong slices. Brown for 3-4 minutes, allowing flavours to merge. Remove chicken, mushrooms and Lap Cheong slices. Set aside.

2 Add glutinous rice to wok and flavour. Add 3-4 tablespoons of mushroom stock to rice, to wet as required. Stir and flip rice constantly with a spatula until it acquires a sticky consistency. Remove wok with rice from hob.

3 Arrange chicken, mushrooms and Lap Cheong slices in rice bowls or 4 ounce ramekins. Scoop rice into each bowl/ramekin, pressing down and compacting the rice. Steam on high heat for 40 minutes.