Serves 2–4

If you take only one thing away from this book, it should be how to make great rice from scratch. No parboiled, precooked, or dehydrated rice would ever find its way into a true Thai cook's kitchen.

Basic Sticky Rice

1 cup glutinous rice

Water

  1. Place the rice in a bowl, completely cover it with water, and let soak overnight. Drain before using.
  2. Line a steamer basket or colander with moistened cheesecloth. (This prevents the grains of rice from falling through the holes in the colander.)
  3. Spread the rice over the cheesecloth as evenly as you can.
  4. Bring a pan of water with a cover to a rolling boil. Place the basket over the boiling water, making sure that the bottom of it does not touch the water. Cover tightly and let steam for 25 minutes.

illustration Sticky Rice Varieties

Sticky rice comes in white, red, and black varieties. If you choose either red or black, you will need to increase the steaming time to at least 1 hour.