I took one of my favourite childhood dishes and made it easier to execute!

what makes it easier? not having to soak sticky rice overnight and using short grain taiwanese white rice instead. it cooks just as jasmine would but has a much better chew—that sought after ‘qq’ quality that all us a-z-n’s love so damn much. they’re often sold in smaller packages at asian grocery stores, and are almost always organic.

if you can’t find it, jasmine works great too.

this one’s for my fam.

Serves 2 as a main, 4 as a side dish

Ingredients

1 rice cooker cup (equivalent to 3/4 standard US cup) uncooked white rice (we LOVE the organic taiwanese rice as the grains are shorter and chewier)
~ 1 1/2 cups water
4 dried shiitakes, soaked in room temperature water for 30 minutes, sliced thinly
neutral oil, anything with a high smoke point
2 links chinese sausage, small diced (T&T carries a house brand sausage that doesn’t contain wheat or soy sauce, double check ingredients of other brands)
1/4 cup dried shrimp
1/2 medium onion, small diced
2 cloves garlic, minced or grated
1-inch knob ginger, minced or grated
1 1/2 tsps. sesame oil
1 tbsp. gf tamari
green onions, chopped for garnish
black sesame seeds, for garnish
cilantro, chopped for garnish
toasted pine nuts, for garnish

Instructions

Cook rice following the 2:1 water-to-rice ratio in your rice cooker or in a pot on the stove.

Once rice is cooked, spread out on a baking sheet until cool and slightly dry.

Bring a wok to medium-high heat. Add enough oil to barely coat the bottom of your pan. The chinese sausage will release some fat as well when it is heated. Turn the heat up to high. Do not walk away from the wok!

Add chinese sausage, dried shrimp and shiitakes, and sauté for 2-3 minutes, until slightly blistered. Stir frequently. Toss in onions, garlic and ginger and sauté until fragrant, about 1-2 minutes.

Add cooked rice and toss until well incorporated. It helps to break it apart with a spatula.

Finish with sesame oil and gf tamari and toss a couple more times to combine.

Top with garnishes and serve immediately.