[Vietnamese Recipes] Sticky Rice (Xôi Mặn)

Vietnamese Sticky Rice is an easy and exciting rice LOADED with toppings that are sautéed until beautifully crispy.

It’s perfect for those large gatherings and it even packs well in everyday lunch boxes!

VIETNAMESE STICKY RICE RECIPE

If you grew up with Vietnamese friends during school (or are Vietnamese yourself), you probably would’ve had your fair share of seeing savoury Vietnamese Sticky Rice packed into lunchboxes.

I’m not going to lie – I was always a little jealous of those kids!

Let me tell you why. Vietnamese Sticky Rice isn’t just the plain ol’ rice we grew up eating. It’s a dish with all sorts of toppings that burst with flavour. If you ask me, it beats any sandwich from home.

It’s the kind of rice with a perfect balance of sweet and savoury from sautéing ingredients in the juices of Chinese sausages.

As soon as you pull the rice apart with a spoon, the toppings latch on forthe most amazing mouthful of crispy, fluffy and chewy textures.

The BEST part is there’s no need to wait until the next school day to eat it because you can have it fresh out of the steamer – just like this!

MAKE THE STICKY RICE RECIPE YOURS!

Pork floss, Chinese sausages, Vietnamese ham and quail eggs are traditional toppings for a savoury sticky rice, but you certainly don’t have to use all (or any) of these toppings.

The sticky rice will go with pretty much everything, so any ingredients added later will only give it extra flavour. Here are some other great toppings you can add to your xôi mặn:
mushrooms
fried tofu
seaweed
vegetarian ham

WHAT KIND OF RICE MAKES STICKY RICE?

To make Vietnamese Sticky Rice, you’ll need a rice grain that will bind together when cooked but still remain fairly separate to give you that satisfying chew.

That’s why glutinous rice is the ideal grain for this dish. You can certainly use other types of rice such as Jasmine rice, but the gumminess in glutinous rice allows for toppings like pork floss to stick to it, creating a more flavourful bite.

WHAT IS GLUTINOUS RICE?

Glutinous rice (also known as sticky rice) is a form of rice found in the southern and eastern parts of Asia. It has a milky white colour and gets its name from its stickiness after being cooked.

It’s not to be mistaken for having gluten. Glutinous rice actually doesn’t have any gluten!

Sticky rice is popular across many Asian countries, including Vietnam, China, India, Philippines and Indonesia. For Lao and Thai cuisines, it’s eaten as a daily staple while other countries – like Vietnam – often have it cooked with the ingredients.

WHAT YOU'LL NEED FOR VIETNAMESE STICKY RICE

FOR THE STICKY RICE

2 US cups glutinous rice
hot water (for soaking)

FOR THE TOPPINGS THAT NEED TO BE COOKED

The best part about this savoury Vietnamese Sticky Rice recipe is that you can add as much of any ingredient as you like. They don’t get cooked into the rice, so you just have to think about what flavours you love best and use more of each!

CHICKEN

500 g / 1 lb boneless chicken (I used thigh for a juicier cut)
water (for boiling)

OMELETTE

3 eggs
1/2 tsp salt, or to taste
1/2 tsp chicken bouillon powder
cooking oil

ADDITIONAL TOPPINGS FOR EXTRA FLAVOUR

Chinese sausages, thinly sliced
pork floss (we get it from the local Asian grocery)
Vietnamese ham (chả lụa), sliced into strips
quail eggs (we buy them at the local Asian grocery then boil them at home)
dried shrimps, rehydrated
fried onions
fried garlic
roasted peanuts
red shallots, finely sliced

SEASONING FOR TOPPINGS

2 tsp sugar, or to taste
1 tsp chicken bouillon powder
1 tbsp light soy sauce
1 tbsp cooking oil

FOR THE SPRING ONION OIL

1 spring onion, finely chopped
3 tbsp cooking oil with a high smoking point
1/4 tsp salt

HOW TO MAKE VIETNAMESE STICKY RICE

COOKING THE STICKY RICE

Wash, rinse then soak the rice in hot water for 1 hour. This will help soften the rice to lower the steaming time needed.

Drain the water from the rice and let it drip dry in a colander as you set up the steamer.

Steam the rice on high heat for 1 hour. Check on it every 20 minutes and sprinkle drops of water on top if you find it gets too dry.

Tip: Line the bottom of the rice with a thin cloth to stop the grains from clumping or a banana leaf for extra flavour.

PREPARING THE TOPPINGS

Add the oil to a pan on a medium heat and fry the red shallots, rehydrated shrimps, Chinese sausages, shredded chicken and Vietnamese ham for 1 minute.

Pour in the sugar, chicken bouillon powder and soy sauce to season the toppings then stir for 2 minutes.

MAKING THE SPRING ONION OIL

Put the spring onion and salt in a heat-proof dish then heat up the cooking oil to smoking point.

Pour the hot oil over the spring onion and mix well.

HOW TO ASSEMBLE VIETNAMESE STICKY RICE

You can serve Vietnamese Sticky Rice in one of 2 ways:
With a rice bed underneath the assorted toppings
All the toppings mixed in together with the sticky rice

Whichever you choose, serve immediately with a dash of pepper!

Vietnamese Sticky Rice (Xôi Mặn)

This Vietnamese Sticky Rice recipe is pure comfort food. Topped with Chinese sausages, egg strips, pork floss and scallion oil, it's so delicious that you'll want to pack it in lunchboxes AND serve it at partie
Prep Time: 1 hour 30 minutes
Cook Time: 1 hour 5 minutes
Total Time: 2 hours 35 minutes
Servings: 6

Ingredients

For The Sticky Rice
▢ 2 US cups glutinous rice
▢ hot water (for soaking)

For The Toppings To Be Cooked

Chicken
▢ 500 g / 1 lb boneless chicken (I used thigh for a juicier cut)
▢ water (for boiling)

Omelette
▢ 3 eggs
▢ 1/2 tsp salt, or to taste
▢ 1/2 tsp chicken bouillon powder
▢ cooking oil

Additional Toppings
▢ Chinese sausages, thinly sliced
▢ pork floss (we get it from the local Asian grocery)
▢ Vietnamese ham (chả lụa), sliced into strips
▢ quail eggs (we buy them at the local Asian grocery then boil them at home)
▢ dried shrimps, rehydrated
▢ fried onions
▢ fried garlic
▢ roasted peanuts
▢ red shallots, finely sliced

Seasoning For Toppings
▢ 2 tsp sugar, or to taste
▢ 1 tsp chicken bouillon powder
▢ 1 tbsp light soy sauce
▢ 1 tbsp cooking oil

For The Spring Onion Oil
▢ 1 spring onion, finely chopped
▢ 3 tbsp cooking oil with a high smoking point
▢ 1/4 tsp salt

Instructions

Cooking The Sticky Rice

Wash, rinse then soak the rice in hot water for 1 hour.
Drain the water from the rice and let it drip dry in a colander as you set up the steamer.
Steam the rice on high heat for 1 hour. Check on it every 20 minutes and sprinkle drops of water on top if you find it gets too dry. Tip: Line the bottom of the rice with a thin cloth to stop the grains from clumping or a banana leaf for extra flavour.

Preparing The Toppings

Lightly grease the pan with some oil and pour a thin layer of egg mix in to cook on a low heat. When cooked, fold each side into the centre to make three parts. This will help with slicing the omelette into thin strips.
Boil or pan fry the chicken until cooked then drain and shred it.
Add the oil to a pan on a medium heat and fry the red shallots, rehydrated shrimps, Chinese sausages, shredded chicken and Vietnamese ham for 1 minute.
Pour in the sugar, chicken bouillon powder and soy sauce to season the toppings then stir for 2 minutes.

Making The Spring Onion Oil

Put the spring onion and salt in a heat-proof dish then heat up the cooking oil to smoking point.
Pour the hot oil over the spring onion and mix well.