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Chinese Sticky Rice (Meal Prep Friendly)

Discover how easy it is to make a pot of your own Chinese Sticky Rice. Serve it as a stuffing, a side dish, or as a meal in itself. This is a fabulous dish to make ahead of time; perfect for meal prep.

Chinese Sticky Rice in Bowl
Perfectly delicious Chinese sticky rice

Perfect Chinese Sticky Rice

Super tender, soft sticky rice is one of those dishes Hubby and the boys scarf down like there’s no tomorrow. They’re hardly alone in their affinity for savory sticky rice. A hot pot of steamy, deeply flavorful sticky rice means comfort food in kitchens around the world.

Thankfully, it’s pretty easy to track down short-grain glutinous rice (more on that below) either at major grocery stores or online these days. Other Asian pantry basics such as oyster sauce and sesame oil can be found in many grocery stores as well.

Once you’ve prepared your ingredients, it’s a one-pot meal deal from there. Toss it all together and cook. You’ll be happily astonished at the succulent flavors that emerge.

Sticky Rice Sweet Glutinous in colander
Sweet Glutinous Rice doesn’t actually taste sweet, nor does it contain sugar

Buying and Storing Short Grain, “Glutinous” Rice (Gluten-Free)

Chinese Sticky Rice is surprisingly easy to pull off at home. The key is buying the correct rice. Look for short-grain glutinous rice, which is sometimes also labeled sweet rice, despite the fact that it doesn’t taste noticeably sweet. Short-grain glutinous rice can be found at major grocery stores (in ethnic aisles) or Asian grocery stores, as well as online.

All uncooked rice keeps fresh longer when stored in an airtight container and in cool, dry spaces. If you have a small bag of uncooked rice and can manage to keep it in the fridge, that’s the ideal situation for keeping grains fresh for a long time. A cool/dry basement space works well as a storage for most of your grains as well.

Importantly, you’ll want to pre-soak the glutinous rice for a few hours before you cook it. The pre-soak helps soften the outer surface of the rice grains and allows for even cooking throughout

Despite the term glutinous rice, there is no gluten in the rice. The term glutinous refers only to the sticky soft texture. It’s a bit of a misleading term, but glutinous rice is like any rice…gluten-free all the way.

Shiitake Mushrooms and Chinese Sausage

I deviated a bit from traditional Chinese sticky rice in this alternate sticky rice with ground turkey (the commonly used Chinese Sausage or lap cheong isn’t normally stocked in my pantry.) I always have ground turkey on hand, and it’s an amazing protein choice for adding to sticky rice. That said, purist foodies may be partial to the rich flavor Chinese Sausage. Admittedly, there’s nothing quite like the sweet, savory, flavorful aroma of it.

Thus, today’s Chinese sticky rice recipe is done the traditional way with slices of luscious Chinese sausage strewn throughout the mounds of tender, sticky rice.  Plus aromatic Shiitake mushrooms, which is my personal favorite part of this rice dish.

Chinese Sticky Rice in Bowl
Sticky rice is comfort food in a bowl

Leftover Sticky Rice

Feel free to make a big pot of this savory sticky rice, as you’ll thank yourself for having leftovers. When you open the fridge to survey meal options the next day, that already-cooked, delicious sticky rice will be ready and waiting.

It’s super easy to reheat leftover sticky rice in a microwave-safe bowl with a lid. Always store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge, which helps to maintain its tenderness and flavor.

Freeze it, Meal Prep it

Want to freeze cooked sticky rice? Not a problem. Simply store it in an airtight container and freeze for up to a couple weeks; use meal prep containers for individual servings, if desired.

For the most convenient option, choose glass containers with airtight lids that are microwave/oven/dishwasher friendly. When ready to serve, simply defrost and reheat using your preferred method.


see this recipe in action:

Chinese Sticky Rice in Bowl

Chinese Sticky Rice

4.82 from 27 ratings
This sticky rice recipe is a fail-proof, super easy, and crowd-pleasing dish. Most of the ingredients can now be found in the Asian aisles of your favorite grocery stores.
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 1 hour
Total Time: 55 minutes
Servings: 10
Author: Amy Dong

Ingredients  

Instructions

  • Prep Ahead: Rehydrate dried Shiitake mushrooms by soaking in warm water for about 1 hour. Drain well and chop. Set aside.
    Chinese Sticky Rice Ingredients
  • Drain soaked rice in a colander and rinse with cold water. Set aside. 
    Sticky Rice Sweet Glutinous in colander
  • Heat up a heavy large pot (I use my All-Clad stock pot) with 1 TB oil until hot. Add ginger and stir fry for a minute. Add Chinese sausage and Shiitake mushrooms, stir frying for another minute. Add in rice wine, soy sauce, oyster sauce, sesame oil, white pepper, and rice. Stir to coat thoroughly. Add broth, stir to incorporate, and bring to a boil.
    Chinese Sticky Rice Ingredients
  • Once it reaches a boil, immediately reduce to simmer. Cover tightly and cook 45 minutes. Turn heat off and let it sit for at least 10 minutes, covered. Do not peak!
  • Carefully stir cooked sticky rice, from bottom to top throughout. Cover and let stand another 10 minutes before serving.
    Chinese Sticky Rice in Bowl
  • Garnish with freshly sliced scallions, if desired. Chopped cilantro or chives work well, too. 

Notes

  • You may use reduced-sodium chicken broth instead of regular strength.
  • If you can’t find authentic Chinese sausage, you can use other types of cooked sausage, such as kielbasa or andouille. 
  • Chinese sausage is somewhat sweet, and not overly salty. If you use a salty sausage, decrease tamari soy sauce to 3 TB. 
  • Prep/Cook time does not include pre-soaking of rice and shiitakes.
*If you enjoyed this recipe, please come back and give it a rating ♡

Nutrition

Serving: 1g | Calories: 222kcal | Carbohydrates: 32.6g | Protein: 9.3g | Fat: 7.2g | Saturated Fat: 2.3g | Cholesterol: 15.1mg | Sodium: 598.1mg | Fiber: 4.5g | Sugar: 3.2g
Course: Main Dish
Cuisine: Chinese
Diet: Gluten Free
Method: Stovetop

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Recipe Rating




52 comments

    • Jacqueline Debono
    • 5 stars

    I need to find or order some of that glutinous short grain rice and give this sticky rice recipe a go. It looks really good! I’ve eaten sticky rice in restaurants but never made it myself. On my to make and enjoy list!

    • Loreto Nardelli
    • 5 stars

    I absolutely love sticky rice! Your recipe is fantastic and do easy. Well done. Also so many great tips!
    Thanks for sharing!

    • GUNJAN C Dudani
    • 5 stars

    I had friends visiting us Last night and I served them this Chinese sticky rice with some tofu dish. They could not stop praising and my husband told me to make it again next week 🙂

    • anna
    • 5 stars

    Just looking at your photos makes my mouth water! Sticky rice is one of my favourites, so easy, but always full of delicious flavours and textures!

    • Heidy
    • 5 stars

    Your recipe for Chinese Sticky Rice was terrific! I cannot tell you how many times since this *New Normal Phase* I have ordered takeout from a favorite dining spot, and it is the worst I have had—odd because they usually have lovely Chines food. This really brightened my day, and it was such a fantastic tasting dish! Thank you for renewing my happiness with this beautiful recipe!

      • chewoutloud

      So happy to hear that, Heidy! 🙂 🙂 🙂

    • Mikayla
    • 5 stars

    Oh my gosh so good! I love sticky rice and I’ve always wondered how to make it, now I know and you can bet it’s going to be a regular in our house. I LOVED the mushroom and sausage with it, thanks so much!

    • Kathryn Donangelo
    • 5 stars

    Love this recipe! This was better than any other take out meal- full of flavor and easy to make too! Loved the mushrooms in this, yum!!

    • Aleta
    • 5 stars

    This!! Yes!! I love all the flavours you’ve got going on in this sticky rice. If I can’t find Chinese sausage, can I use any other types? Love that this is made in just one pot!

    • Lola Osinkolu | Chef Lola’s Kitchen
    • 5 stars

    The toppings totally give a restaurant style look!

    • BW

    As an asian, you should know about the taboo of sticking a pair of chopsticks in a bowl of rice. It symbolizes an offering to the deceased.

      • chewoutloud

      Thanks for letting me know. Guess I may need to reshoot some more sticky rice photos soon 🙂

    • veenaazmanov
    • 5 stars

    Full of delicious flavors and sauces and yummy combination of ingredients too. Thanks for such an amazing recipe. A tasty meal by itself.

    • Kevin L.

    Hello! I just devoured this recipe and packed the leftovers into my lunchbox for tomorrow! I have one clarification question. Do you cook the sausage before it’s added to the pot? I wasn’t sure, so I diced and steamed them for 15 mins beforehand, but it’s possible that it would cook all the way through whilst simmering. Thank you for a delicious recipe!

      • chewoutloud

      Kevin, if using Chinese sausage, it would already be cooked, so I add it without cooking first. If using any other raw sausage, definitely sauté on stovetop first before adding it in. Sounds like you did a great job with it. Glad you enjoyed this recipe!

        • Cuci

        Hi ! Excited to try this as a dry run for the holiday family spread. May i ask if cooking it in a paellera would work as well ? Thank you !

          • chewoutloud

          Are you referring to paella pan? That should work just fine. Enjoy and happy holidays!! 🙂

            • Dennis T

            We just tried your recipe for Thanksgiving dinner using a Ming Tsai wok and it turned out excellent! Ended up soaking the rice with the mushrooms overnight. I cooked the Chinese sausage a little longer for a bit of searing and did not turn the bottom layer of rice before the last 10 minutes for some crispier bits. The rice was perfectly cooked. The soft & chewy rice and the bits of sausage and crispier pieces of rice were a real treat! Thanks for this great recipe!

              • chewoutloud

              Yay, so glad to hear you guys liked it!! The bottom crust sounds amazing!

        • Julia

        Soy sauce and chicken broth aren’t gluten free usually. Do you use tamari or is there a good brand of gf soy sauce you use?

          • chewoutloud

          Yes, Tamari is GF and so are certain soy sauce brands. You just have to be sure the ones you buy are labeled. And you can easily get GF broth; just be sure to check the labels. I’m personally not a GF eater, but many of my friends are 🙂 Thanks for coming over, Julia!

        • rickfranceschini

        This was without a doubt one of the most wonderful rice dishes I have ever come across. I couldn’t stop eating it. I can’t wait to invite friends over just to cook this for them. Thank you so much for posting such an incredible dish. Really, if I could get up off the sofa I’d go back for more.

          • chewoutloud

          That is awesome to hear! So glad you enjoyed this as much as we do. 🙂

        • Diane

        I would like to try this tomorrow but I couldn’t find short grained rice. I have medium, arborio and pearl rice. Can I use one of those? Thanks!

          • chewoutloud

          I wouldn’t use medium or arborio. You can try the pearl rice, since it’s closest in structure and makeup to the glutinous “sweet” rice (isn’t really sweet, despite its name.) The reason short grained, glutinous rice works so well is that it produces that special stickiness/slightly gluey consistency after cooking. The pearl rice may work! Let me know how it turns out 🙂

        • James

        When do you put in the rice

          • chewoutloud

          Hi, James! It’s listed on instructions, #2. Hope you enjoy this one…it’s a keeper 🙂 Thanks for coming by!

        • gastronomiette

        I need to try this! Typically I’ve had sticky rice either plain, sweetened & cooked in coconut milk, or wrapped around pork belly in Vietnamese banh tet, but this sounds delicious 🙂

          • chewoutloud

          Yes, give it a try! It’s really easy, and this is SO yummy as either a side or a main dish 🙂 Leftovers are awesome, too! Thanks for coming over today.

        • Sariya

        Amy! You’ve inspired me. Going to try this dish next week. I just love your blog! I wouldn’t have had to subsist on ramen noodle in college if only I’d taken cooking lessons from you then!:p

          • chewoutloud

          Hi, Saryia! This sticky rice is super good, and I must say I wasn’t making nearly as many homemade, from-scratch meals back in college. Back then, ramen noodles with an egg was considered nutritious 😉 So glad you came over, and hope you’re doing really well!

        • AJ

        I hear that the Chinese think that it is bad luck to stick chopsticks in the rice like in your picture for this one.

          • chewoutloud

          Hi there, AJ! Hee hee…If that’s a myth, my Chinese family hasn’t heard of that one. Though, I’m not superstitious anyways 😉 Try the sticky rice… it’ll make you forget all about the chopsticks, I promise 🙂

          • Sakuraiiko

          Japanese feel it is bad luck, as a bowl of rice with chopsticks upright in it is for funerals

            • Criss Cross

            Couldn’t agree more with you sukaraiiko. My mum used to scold us whenever we stuck the chopsticks into the rice bowls. Said that was offering for the dead and it was rude to do that.

        • gottagetbaked

        I love this dish so much – my mother-in-law makes a killer version. I’ve never made it myself so I can’t wait to try your recipe. Your photos are gorgeous and they’re making me drool right now (even though I just ate dinner, lol).

          • chewoutloud

          Thanks for always bringing your encouraging comments, GGB! My MIL was able to make some pretty mean dishes, too, and I will probably never replicate her awesomeness!

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