(Makes 8)
4 Lotus Leaves
1 lb Sticky Rice
6 oz Char Siu BBQ Pork
1 Chinese Sausage
4 Dried Shitake Mushrooms, rehydrated in warm water for 10-15 minutes, *reserve the soaking water
4 small boneless skinless chicken thighs, cut into ½ inch pieces
1 tsp cornstarch
2 tsp water
3 small shallots (each the size of a garlic clove), minced
1 tblsp oil
4 oz of water
1 tblsp oyster sauce
1 tblsp light soy sauce
½ tsp dark soy sauce or tamari sauce
2 tsp chicken bouillon
2 tsp sugar
½ tsp salt
1 tsp cornstarch and 1 tsp water, to make a slurry
2 tsp sesame oil
Rinse/wash the glutinous rice in a large bowl. Repeat 2 more times, fill the bowl back with water and let the rice overnight. Then drain and steam the rice wrapped in a cheesecloth for 10 minutes, flip over the rice wrapped in cheesecloth and steam another 10 minutes. Turn off the heat and let sit a final 10 minutes.
Add the chopped chicken to a medium sized bowl and add the cornstarch and water and mix well with the chicken pieces.
Chop 2 of the Shitake mushrooms into small pieces, the last two mushrooms slice on the bias (diagonally) into 4 slices for each mushroom, so you'll have 8 slices, one for each lo mai gai. Set aside.
Slice the Chinese sausage on the bis into 8 slices, set aside.
Slice the char siu pork into 8 slices, set aside.
In hot wok or frying pan, add 1 tblsp of oil, let get hot right before it smokes add the chicken in and turn off the heat, stir the chicken around for 30 seconds, turn the heat back on and add the shallots, cook for 15 + 30 seconds.
Add all of the shitake mushrooms, then add the 4 oz of water. Stir the contents of the wok or frying pan for 45 - 60 seconds, the chicken should be fully cooked at this point.
Add in the oyster sauce, soy sauce, dark soy sauce, then turn the heat off to prepare the slurry. Turn the heat back on and add the slurry and gradually turn the heat down as the sauce thickens, about 2-3 minutes longer. Now add in the sesame oil. The sauce must be thick. Turn off the heat and put the filling on a plate to cool.
Take the reserved mushroom soaking liquid and bring the amount to ½ cup, add more water if necessary. Add 1 tsp oyster sauce, 1 tsp soy sauce and 1 tsp olive oil. This liquid mix will help loosen the sticky rice to make them easier to wrap. Use this liquid and mix it into the cooked sticky rice to make it easier to manipulate into 8 portions, once we put this together. Place the sticky rice on a plate, flatten it with the palm of your hand and divide into 8 equal portions.
Right before rolling up the lo mai gai, blanch the leaves again in boiling water. You are using now 2 leaf portions per lo mai gai. The two longer bases of each portion overlap by about 2 inches, leaving both narrower tops on opposite sides.
Take half of your first rice portion and shape it into a rectangle about 4 in. x 2 in. and place it in the center of your two overlapping leaves. Add on top of the rice a tblsp of the mushroom/chicken mixture, add on top of that a slice each of the char siu, slice of mushroom and slice of Chinese sausage. Add the other half of the rice portion by making another 2" x 4" rectangle and placing it on top, pressing down slightly.
Now wrap the right side over and tuck it snugly into the bottom of the base filling, wrap the left side around the outside, then fold the top down across the packages body, then fold the bottom over the packages body. You should now have a rectangle lotus leaf wrapped package ready for steaming.
Steam for 20 minutes in a single layered tier, use as many tiers as you need as long as the lo mai gai is not placed on top of each other during the steaming process. Crack open, beware of steam inside the wrapped deliciousness! You can serve as is, or be fancy and grate some salt cured duck egg yolks and sliced green scallions on top.