Another recipe request

This time from Vanessa, for sticky rice in lotus leaves.

1. Steam a steamer of glutinous rice. Don't think you can use regular rice and it will turn out. It won't. I have tried to do this in a bamboo steamer according to directions with the recipe, but it turns out way better if you just put it in a rice cooker. It is easier too.

2. Soak 4 large lotus leaves in hot water for an hour or so. This takes some doing because they are so big. Cut them in half when they are ready. T&T doesn't carry these, so you will have to hit Lucky 97 in Edmonton, or another indie specialty grocer in the place where you are. They keep forever and they are dirt cheap,l so if you find them, get a couple packages if you really like these things. (One package will make a couple of double batches.

3. Soak 4 dried Chinese mushrooms and a couple of tablespoons of dried shrimp in boiling water for an hour or so. Chop them all up together.

4. Heat a wok. Ass oil, stir-fry 12 oz cubed chicken or ground pork until browned. Ass the shrimp and mushrooms, a clove of chopped garlic, 2 thinly sliced Chinese sausages, and 2 sliced green onions. Stir fry another 2 minutes. Add 1 TB oyster sauce, 1Tb light soy sauce, 1 Tb sugar and 1 tsp sesame oil. Mix well. Add 1 TB cornstarch dissolved in 3/4 cup water. simmer until thickened.

5. lay out a half a lotus leaf. put a generous handful of rice on the leaf and flatten it a bit. spoon a portion of the cooked mixture over the rice, and add another generous handful of rice on top. wrap up and lay aside. Repeat until you are out of something. If you are careful, you should run out of everything at once.

6. At this point, you can wrap and freeze, or you can steam them for 30 minutes. If steaming from frozen, steam longer.

7. You can double this recipe easily. I recommend it because doing it for a regular sized batch is a lot of work and soaking stuff, and doing it for a double batch is not that much harder. They freeze well, and they are super handy for an easy supper with some stir-fried veg or as part of a leisurely at-home dim-sum breakfast if you have some other dumplings in the freezer.