Sticky Rice in Bamboo Leaf

I'm going to Taipei tomorrow, ALL BY MYSELF! This is my first trip to Taiwan, I'm so excited! Not to mention that I'd be seeing my friends A, J, their toddler N, and meeting their baby R for the first time! AND I will get to have some real Taiwanese food! (Can you tell that I’m excited with all those exclamation marks? =)

I'm a little worried about what hubby and the kids are going to eat though. So I've been planning their menu and making tons of red bean paste buns (my kids love them!), and sticky rice in bamboo leaf which can be frozen for months and eaten whenever they like.

Sticky rice in bamboo leaf are called Zongzi in Chinese. There are many different kinds of Zongzi throughout China. The most common variation that you can find in the US is the Cantonese/Hong Kong style dim sum sticky rice in lotus leaf (Lo Mai Gai). In Southern China/Taiwan, you will find lots of savory Zongzi with sausage, pork, and shrimp, etc. Many would also include boiled peanuts, chestnuts, and salted duck eggs, etc. In the North, most Zongzi are either plain or filled with red bean paste or green beans, eaten dipped in sugar as a dessert.

Hubby isn't a big fan of the Northern style, so I always make the savory meat ones. Growing up, I (and everyone I know) loved salted duck egg yolks. Even though, the salted duck eggs here don't taste nearly as good as the ones in my memory, I still think they are a treat. So the first time I made Zongzi, I also included a duck egg yolk in each. Unfortunately, the kids didn't like them; even hubby thought the yolks were an acquired taste. (I ended up eating one Zongzi and three egg yolks that time. All those cholesterol!) I no longer add the egg yolks, but if you share my love, by all means, add a yolk!

Sticky Rice in Bamboo Leaf (Zongzi)

Traditionally, Zongzi are made with reed leaves. My dad grew up with fields of bamboo trees near and behind his house. He told me that even full grown bamboos don't have leaves that big, what we bought as "bamboo leaves" are truly reed leaves. I don't know why they are labeled as "bamboo leaves". I will continue to refer to them as bamboo leaves so there is no confusion, but keep in mind that they are really reed leaves.

Makes 10

15 oz glutenous rice (sticky rice)
20 bamboo leaves, bottom 1/2 inch clipped
10 1 - 2 ft long twine
10 pieces of braised pork belly (such as the Taiwanese Style Spiced Pork), about 3/4 inch square cross section
10 pieces of Shiitake mushroom cooked with the pork belly
1/2 cup of meat sauce from the above braised pork belly
10 salted duck egg yolk (optional)
white pepper (optional)
boiled peanuts (optional)
12 roasted chestnuts (optional)
12 - 24 soaked dried shrimp (optional)
raisins (optional, about 5 per Zongzi)

Rinse the rice 2-3 times. Soak overnight.

Soak the bamboo leaves in warm water for at least an hour till they are pliable.

Steam the rice for 40 minutes till it’s cooked.

Mix the rice with the meat sauce. Mix in the white pepper if preferred.

Take 2 bamboo leaves, line up, bottoms facing out, overlapping about 3/4 way through. Fold at the middle to form a triangle at the bottom, and overlapping the leaves away from you. Fill with a scoop of rice, make a well in the middle. Sprinkle on a couple of raisins if using. Add one piece each of the pork belly, mushroom, and duck egg yolk, etc. Add another scoop of rice on top. Sprinkle on a few more raisins if preferred. Shape the rice to a tetrahedron shape. Fold the leaves over. Tie with twine.

Steam for 30 minutes.

Serve while hot.
(If frozen for later consumption, steaming is still the best way to reheat. If microwave is the only resort, heat in one minute intervals, and check and turn the direction in between.)

If your first attempt didn't resemble a tetrahedron shape, don't get discouraged. Practice makes perfect. My first dozen or so didn't look any good either. =)