Lo mai gai (糯米雞) is a classic dim sum dish like siu mai, congee with pork and century egg, turnip cake, cheung fun, custard buns and pineapple buns that served in the morning for breakfast among Chinese dim sum restaurants. This is a simple and tasty dim sum instant pot lo mai gai recipe. Now, you can enjoy this sticky rice chicken in lotus leaf wrap at home!
Love Chinese food? Check out these scallion pancakes, soy sauce noodles, soy sauce chicken wings, beef chow fun, lo mein and sweet and sour pork recipes.
What is lo mai gai (糯米雞)?
Lo mai gai (糯米雞) is glutinous rice and chicken filling wrap in a lotus leaf. In general, lo mai gai is larger than jan jyu gai (珍珠雞). They are the same thing, but just different in sizes. Therefore, it named them differently.
What's inside of lo mai gai (糯米雞)?
Generally, lo mai gai contains glutinous rice filled with chicken, Chinese mushrooms, Chinese sausage, dried shrimp or salted egg. The rice and fillings are wrapped in a dried lotus leaf and steamed.
In this lo mai gai recipe, I mainly used chicken, Chinese mushrooms, sausage and dried shrimp. However, you can use other ingredients such as dried scallops and salty egg yolk depending on what you like to eat in the lo mai gai.
What is different between lo mai gai (糯米雞) and zong (糭) ?
In fact, the ingredients are quite similar. But, the different between zong (糭) and lo mai gai (糯米雞) is zong use bamboo leaves and boiled in water. And, you often see zong wrapped and tightened by a string.
On the other hand, lo mai gai is wrapped by lotus leaves without a string and steam in a bamboo basket . Then, it serves as a dim sum item for breakfast or lunch in Chinese dim sum restaurants.
Cooking tips for how to make chicken glutinous rice in lotus leaf wrap:
Dried mushrooms:
- Wash and soak the dried Chinese mushrooms a few hours before. The best is to soak it for 4-6 hours until it’s soft. Normally, I soak dried Chinese mushrooms the night before I need to cook them.
Lotus leaves:
- Wash and soak the lotus leaves for around 45 minutes to an hour until it's soft enough for wrapping.
Rice:
- Use an instant pot pressure cooker to cook the glutinous rice because it’s faster and easier.
Wrap and steam:
- Brush some vegetable oil on the leaves before wrapping the glutinous rice and chicken fillings, so it can prevent the rice stick on the lotus leaves.
- Steam them in a bamboo basket for 15-20 minutes before serving. The aroma of lotus leaves will come out after steaming the lo mai gai.
FAQs:
It is best to eat lo mai gai when they are hot and straight out from a steamer. Then, unwrap the lotus leaf and eat the glutinous rice with chicken fillings together.
Freeze or refrigerate them. When you freeze them, it will last longer (at least a couple months).
Normally, I use an instant pot, add a cup of water and a rack manual for 5 minutes, especially when they are straight out of the freezer. Or, you can use a top stove to steam frozen lo mai gai for 20-30 minutes.
Instructions for how to make lo mai gai in instant pot:
Preparation:
- Wash and soak the 8-9 lotus leaves in water for around 45 minutes to an hour until it's soft. (In case some are broken.)
2. Wash and soak 5 pieces of small medium sized dried Chinese mushrooms for 4-6 hours until it's soft. (Normally, I soak them the night before I need to cook them.)
3. Rinse and soak ½ cup of dried small shrimp for 10-15 minutes. Then, drain the water and set a side.
4. When the mushrooms are soft, slice them into strips.
5. Cut 2 links of Chinese sausage into slices.
6. Then, cut 2 pieces of boneless and skinless chicken thighs into strips.
7. In a bowl, add chicken, 2 tablespoons of oyster sauce, 1 tablespoon of soy sauce, 1 tablespoon of dark soy sauce, ¼ teaspoon of salt, ½ teaspoon of garlic powder, ⅛ teaspoon of white pepper and ½ teaspoon of sugar. Then, mix it well and let it marinate for 15-20 minutes.
Cooking sticky rice:
8. At the same time, cook glutinous rice in a pressure cooker instant pot, add 1 cup of water and a rack.
9. Put a bowl into the instant pot and add 3 cups of washed and well drained glutinous rice and 2 cups of water. Remember to level the rice and make sure the water covers every rice.
10. Close the lid and vent, then push the manual button to adjust time for 30 minutes at high pressure and natural release pressure.
Cooking filing:
11. While waiting for glutinous rice, start cooking the filling. Pour 1 teaspoon of vegetable oil into a non-stick pan, turn on medium high fire, add soaked dried small shrimp, Chinese sausage and mushrooms. Stir fry them for a minute or two.
12. After that, add the marinated chicken and stir fry them. Then, add ½ cup of water, stir them a little bit and cover with a lid and let it cook for a few minutes until the chicken is cooked.
13. Next, add another ½ cup of water stir fried and pour the cornstarch mixture (corn starch 2 teaspoons and water 2 teaspoons). Keep stir frying until the sauce is a little thicken. Now, everything is ready for wrapping lo mai gai.
Wrapping lo mai gai:
14. Brush some vegetable oil on lotus leaves to prevent the glutinous rice stick on the leaves.
15. Put a layer of cooked glutinous rice on the lotus leaf like a rectangle shape.
16. Scoop some filling on the cooked glutinous rice. Personally, I like to add more filling.
17. Next, put the other layer of cooked glutinous rice on top of the filling. Then, fold it. You can see the video below for how to fold them.
Steam chicken glutinous rice lotus wrap:
18. After that, put lo mai gai into a bamboo basket and steam them over the top stove for 15-20 minutes, so the aroma of lotus leaves will come out. Besides, you can use an instant pot to steam them as well.
Enjoy this yummy homemade dim sum instant pot lo mai gai (糯米雞) recipe! Also, check out these braised beef radish, Mango sticky rice, taro ice cream, Chinese steamed pork patty and Hong Kong borscht soup recipes.
You May Also Like These Instant Pot Recipes:
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Lo Mai Gai (糯米雞)
Video
Ingredients
This amount yield around 8 lo mai gai (糯米雞)
- ½ cup Dried small shrimp
- 2 links Chinese sausage
- 5 pieces Dried Chinese mushrooms
- 2 pieces Chicken thighs
- 8-9 Dried lotus leaves (In case some are broken)
- 1 cup Water (Add ½ cup first and ½ cup later when cooking the filling)
- 2 teaspoons Vegetable oil (1 teaspoon for stir fried Chinese sausage, shrimp, mushroom and chicken, 1 teaspoon for brushing lotus leaves)
THICKEN SAUCE:
- 2 teaspoons Corn starch
- 2 teaspoons Water
COOK GLUTINOUS RICE:
- 3 cups Glutinous rice
- 2 cups Water
CHICKEN MARINATED SAUCE:
- 2 tablespoons Oyster sauce
- 1 tablespoon Soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon Dark soy sauce
- ¼ teaspoon Salt
- ½ teaspoon sugar
- ½ teaspoon Garlic powder
- ⅛ teaspoon White pepper
Instructions
- Wash and soak the 8-9 lotus leaves in water for around 45 minutes to an hour until it's soft. (In case some are broken.)
- Wash and soak 5 pieces of small medium sized dried Chinese mushrooms for 4-6 hours until it's soft. (Normally, I soak them the night before I need to cook them.)
- Rinse and soak ½ cup of dried small shrimp for 10-15 minutes. Then, drain the water and set a side.
- When the mushrooms are soft, slice them into strips.
- Cut 2 links of Chinese sausage into slices.
- Then, cut 2 pieces of boneless and skinless chicken thighs into strips.
- In a bowl, add chicken, 2 tablespoons of oyster sauce, 1 tablespoon of soy sauce, 1 tablespoon of dark soy sauce, ¼ teaspoon of salt, ½ teaspoon of garlic powder, ⅛ teaspoon of white pepper and ½ teaspoon of sugar. Then, mix it well and let it marinate for 15-20 minutes.
- At the same time, cook glutinous rice in a pressure cooker instant pot, add 1 cup of water and a rack.
- Put a bowl into the instant pot and add 3 cup of washed and well drained glutinous rice and 2 cups of water. Remember to level the rice and make sure the water covers every rice.
- Close the lid and vent, then push the manual button to adjust time for 30 minutes at high pressure and natural release pressure.
- While waiting for glutinous rice, start cooking the filling. Pour 1 teaspoon of vegetable oil into a non-stick pan, turn on medium high fire, add soaked dried small shrimp, Chinese sausage and mushrooms. Stir fried them for a minute or two.
- After that, add the marinated chicken and stir fry them. Then, add ½ cup of water, stir them a little bit and cover with a lid and let it cook for a few minutes until the chicken is cooked.
- Next, add another ½ cup of water stir fried and pour the cornstarch mixture (corn starch 2 teaspoons and water 2 teaspoons). Keep stir frying until the sauce is little thicken. Now, everything is ready for wrapping lo mai gai.
- Brush some vegetable oil on lotus leaves to prevent the glutinous rice stick on the leaves.
- Put a layer of cooked glutinous rice on the lotus leaf like a rectangle shape.
- Scoop some filling on the cooked glutinous rice. Personally, I like to add more filling.
- Next, put the other layer of cooked glutinous rice on top of the filling. Then, fold it. You can see the video below for how to fold them.
- After that, put lo mai gai into a bamboo basket and steam them over the top stove for 15-20 minutes, so the aroma of lotus leaves will come out. Besides, you can use instant pot to steam them as well.
Notes
Cooking tips for making lo mai gai (糯米雞):
Dried mushrooms:
- Wash and soak the dried Chinese mushrooms a few hours before. The best to soak it for 4-6 hours until it’s soft. Normally, I soak dried Chinese mushrooms the night before I need to cook them.
Lotus leaves:
- Wash and soak the lotus leaves for around 45 minutes to an hour until it's soft enough for wrapping.
Rice:
- Use an instant pot pressure cooker to cook the glutinous rice because it’s faster and easier.
Wrap and steam:
- Brush some vegetable oil on the leaves before wrapping the glutinous rice and chicken fillings, so it can prevent the rice stick on the lotus leaves.
- Steam them in a bamboo basket for 15-20 minutes before serving. The aroma of lotus leaves will come out after steaming the lo mai gai.
Chris says
Thank you for this tasty looking recipe! I have an instant pot Ultra, so it doesn't have a manual setting, but I can set it to pressure cook. Should I select high or low pressure? Thank you!!
Tracy O. says
Thank you Chris for your comment!
You can adjust time for 30 minutes at high pressure and natural release pressure.
Thank you!