Steamed savoury sticky rice pudding 筒仔米糕

I had some of the stewed pork 滷肉 left and it is great to make 筒仔米糕 'tong zi mi gao' which is a savoury rice pudding/dumpling. It's again another speciality of Taiwanese snack or small eat (小吃 'xiao chi'). This rice pudding is similar to zhongzi, a lot easier to make without having to know how to wrap with bamboo leaves. Traditionally it is made with bamboo cup that looks like this. Now normally with rice bowls or pudding cups/basins.

Very simple and easy recipe. For this recipe you need 5 small pudding basins or rice bowls (I used 1/4 pt plastic pudding basin)

Ingredients:

250g glutinous rice (sticky rice)

about 1 cup of stewed pork 滷肉
3 - 4 salted duck egg yolks (if not available can use 2 hard boiled eggs fresh or stewed like as per stewed pork recipe), can also leave out if you don't like egg.

1.5 cup of water flavoured with 3 - 4 tbsp of the stewed pork meat sauce, if there is not much sauce sub with 3 tsp of light sauce + 2 tsp dark soy + 2 tsp fried shallot oil or sesame oil + pinch of ground pepper.

a little cooking oil

Method:

1. Rinse and soak the rice for about 2 hours. Drain of excess water.
2. If using salted duck egg yolks, cut in half. If using hard boiled egg cut into thick slices or quarters.
   
3. Make up the flavoured liquid.
4. Grease the pudding basins or rice bowls with cooking oil.
   
5. Put a piece of egg on the bottom of the basin, then add 2 - 3 tbsp of stewed meat. Press with spoon so there is not air gap. Then add enough rice leaving about 0.5 cm room for the rice to expand. Using a spoon again press the rice down so it is not loose.
   
6. Fill the basin with flavoured liquid just up to the level of the rice.
   
7. Steamed at high heat for about 30 - 35 minutes till cooked through. Heat off, leave in the steamer for about 10 minutes to cool a bit before serving.
8. Can either serve with or without turning the rice pudding out. Eat on its own or very nice with a spicy sweet and sour sauce. Recipe see below.

Here is a picture showing the different stages of filling the rice pudding.


And this is when they come out of the steamer.


I tried to turn them out of the basin, and they got a bit stuck on the bottom, so a bit lumpy and not a very nice picture. Never mind.



Here is the recipe for the sweet and sour sauce.

about 1/3 cup sweet chilli sauce
about 1/3 cup tomato ketchup
1 heap tsp miso paste
a little light soy to taste
1 - 2 tsp sugar to taste
3/4 water
1 heap tsp cornflour

Mix everything together till no lumps. Best mix miso first with a little water before mixing with the rest of the ingredients. Heat till thicken.