This Chinese sticky rice dish is loaded with ground pork, shrimp, Chinese sausage, shiitake mushrooms, and a flavorful sauce that's all cooked up in the rice cooker! It's an easy way to make this deliciously popular Chinese dish!
Reader Testimonial: "I've looked at many recipes for Loh Mai Fan, but your recipe, utilizing the rice cooker, is by far, the easiest. It is also the closest to the way my mom made it and brought back many precious food memories. I have made this a few times for my family, and even my picky son gives it two thumbs up! Thank you so much!" - Reen
When one thinks about Chinese food, one automatically envisions a bowl of plain white rice.
But you never see white rice served alone because...well, it's really plain!
By itself, a bowl of white rice leaves you asking, "What's there to go with it?"
It's kind of like a blank canvas that needs some color...or flavor in this case.
Chinese sticky rice, on the other hand, is anything but plain...it is a flavorful work of art, ready to be enjoyed!
My Chinese sticky rice, or "lo mai fan", is loaded with tasty ingredients like Chinese sausage, Chinese mushrooms, ground pork, and shrimp, all cooked up in a delicious, yet mild sauce.
Add some Thai glutinous rice to the mix and you have a bowl of perfection.
A couple of notes about Thai glutinous rice:
1) It contains no gluten, despite the sound of the word. The "glutinous" in this case merely means "like glue", or simply...sticky!
2) It might also be called "Thai sweet rice"...but it's not sweet!
3) When you go looking for it in the store, it may not say "Thai" at all. You might see it labeled as simply "glutinous rice" or "sweet rice".
And just for some added insight into this recipe, the first thought might be to put the rice in the rice cooker first and then top it with all the filling. I tried this method a few times and every time I did, the rice came out too mushy. Mushy is never good for rice.
The rice in lo mai fan is meant to be steamed, not boiled, but if you don't have the whole steamer set-up (like me), this is the way to make it work in the rice cooker!
The grains of rice are tender with just the right amount of stickiness...no mushy rice or wet clumps!
This recipe really hits the spot for flavor, texture, and balance of all the ingredients. As my niece, Deanna pointed out, "It looks like Grandma's!"
And while I couldn't officially name this recipe "Mom's Chinese Sticky Rice", it is my own creation that definitely makes me think of my childhood and how my mom made it!
So if you've got a rice cooker, this is the perfect recipe to try and cook up something more exciting than plain white rice!
~ Lisa.
Watch How To Make It!
Recipe
Rice Cooker Chinese Sticky Rice
Ingredients
- 2 cups Thai glutinous rice (see note below)
- ½ lb. (225g) ground pork
- ¼ lb. (115g) shrimp, deveined and shells and tails removed (about 12 medium-sized)
- 2 Chinese sausages
- 2-3 medium sized dried shiitake mushrooms
- 1 ¼ cups water
Sauce:
- 3 tablespoons oyster sauce
- 1 tablespoons soy sauce (tamari for gluten-free)
- 1 teaspoon grated ginger
- 1 clove garlic, minced or grated
- ½ teaspoon tapioca starch (cornstarch okay)
- ½ teaspoon sesame oil
- ¼ teaspoon white pepper
Equipment
Instructions
Soaking:
- Place dried mushrooms in a bowl with hot water and let soak for at least 2 hours until softened. (See note below)
- Run cold water through the rice in a strainer. Stir the rice with your hand to wash and rinse it well until the water is mostly running clear.
- Soak the rice in a bowl of water for at least 2 hours.
When ready to cook:
- Combine the 3 tablespoons oyster sauce, 1 tablespoon soy sauce (or tamari), 1 teaspoon grated ginger, minced garlic clove, ½ teaspoon tapioca starch, ½ teaspoon sesame oil, and ¼ teaspoon white pepper in a bowl and mix well to make the sauce. Set aside.
- Drain the rice through a colander, discarding the water.
- Remove mushrooms from soaking liquid and gently squeeze out some of the water. Cut of and discard tough stems. Cut mushroom caps into slices or chunks.
- Slice Chinese sausages into disks.
- Heat a skillet over medium heat. Add Chinese sausage and ground pork and cook until pork is mostly cooked through.
- Add mushrooms and sauce to the pan and stir. Heat through.
- Add shrimp and cook until just starting to turn pink and remove from heat.
- Transfer Chinese sausage mixture to the rice cooker pot and level out.
- Add drained rice on top and level out.
- Add 1 ¼ cups water to the rice cooker.
- Cook until rice cooker button pops, or for about 25 minutes. Let sit for another 5-10 minutes. Rice should be completely cooked and slightly translucent.
- Fluff rice with chopsticks, stirring well to mix the rice and filling ingredients.
- Garnish with chopped green onions, if desired.
Notes
- I used a 5.5 cup capacity rice cooker for this recipe.
- The longer you soak the dried shiitake mushrooms, the better so you can slice into them very easily and do not see any dry area inside. Soaking overnight is the easiest thing to do.
- I find larger shiitake mushrooms tend to hydrate faster than small ones, but they do cost more.
- You can use fresh shiitake mushrooms, but they will not have the same deep umami flavor as the dried mushrooms.
- When buying the rice, the bag will either say "Thai glutinous rice" or "Thai sweet rice", or the word "Thai" might be excluded.
- Use a regular 1 cup measuring cup to measure the rice; do not use the plastic measuring cup that comes with your rice cooker.
- Some Chinese sausages have a dry casing that should be removed before slicing the sausage, depending on the brand and how they made it.
- The dry shiitake mushrooms can be omitted, if desired.
- You can use chicken thighs cut into small pieces, or cha siu in place of the Chinese sausage and/or shrimp.
- I use frozen shrimp and thaw them in cold water for about 30 minutes before cooking.
- To reheat any leftovers, place in a dish and steam, or microwave with a bit of water in the dish. Microwaving may dry the rice out a little, but works in a pinch.
- This serves 8 people as a side dish, but that can vary depending on how much people actually want to eat!
Nutrition
Thanks for stopping by! If you make this dish or any of my other recipes, I would love it if you could take the time to comment and rate it below. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did!
Dagmar Chan says
I discovered this recipe in 2021and have made it at least a hundred times.. it's the best!! I've tried it with ground pork, ground turkey, and also diced chicken, with and without shrimp! Personally, I prefer without shrimp.. tend to become rubbery, but all-in-all perfect every time! I also cook mine in Instant Pot.. easy peasy one pot to clean up.
Hi Dagmar! I'm so glad you have made this recipe on repeat so many times...thank you so much! Good to know that it also works in an Instant Pot!
Jenna says
Would it be possible to make this in an instant pot instead of a rice cooker?
Thanks for the question, Jenna! I'm not familiar with using an instant pot, so I'm not sure. It might work if you have made rice in an instant pot before. Sorry I can't be of more help.
Dagmar Chan says
It works beautifully in the Instant Pot using the saute and then rice functions. Perfect every time!
JJ says
OMG, I love how easy this recipe is. With the step by step and pictures, you really can't fail. Made this for the first time and my son absolutely loved it. Thank you so much for this. I will be making this regularly.
Thanks so much, JJ! I'm so glad you and your son liked it and that you want to make it again!
Shari says
This is the best meal I've ever made! Easy, perfect proportions and instructions, and absolutely delicious! My new favorite!
Thanks so much, Shari! I'm so glad you enjoyed it!
Gigi says
Would it be possible to do this on the stove? My rice cooker is small as there are only 2 of us. Thanks!
Hi GIgi! Yes, you should be able to make this on the stovetop. I think using a pot with a nonstick surface would work best since the rice is quite sticky, or alternatively, you could steam all the ingredients in a dish, which would definitely work. Thanks for the question and I hope this helps!
Jill-Joy says
Thank you for this recipe! My husband bought glutinous rice by mistake and I really didn’t know what to make of it.
I’m going to try this recipe as soon as I can!
Question though, can I substitute the tapioca starch with corn starch? I’m allergic to cassave, and the tapioca is one of the many things I’m not allowed to eat.
Hi Jill-Joy! Yes, you can substitute the tapioca starch with cornstarch with no issues. I'm glad you found my recipe as a possible solution to all your glutinous rice and I hope you like it! Thanks for the question.
Amy says
Hi, I've made this recipe exactly as written. However, was thinking if I can substitute 1 cup of the glutinous rice with 1 cup jasmine or long grain rice instead? Just to lessen the stickiness of the rice. Thanks!
Hi Amy! Yes, you can do half glutinous rice and half long-grain or Jasmine rice with this recipe; I have made it like that before successfully. Thanks for the question!
Tracy says
My kids love this recipe! It's their favorite special occasion homemade meal. They are grown and off to college but I can always bribe them to come for a visit if they know this is on the menu!!
Thanks so much, Tracy! I am so happy that your kids love the recipe!
Ami says
On the back of my glutinous rice package, it says to use 1.25 cups of water for 1 cup of rice, so I assumed I would need 2.5 cups of water for 2 cups of rice. However, in the recipe calculations it says 2 cups of rice only needs 1.25 cups of water. Would 2.5 cups of water for 2 cups rice be too much?
Hi Ami! Yes, 2.5 cups will be too much for this recipe and will make the rice soggy. The idea with this recipe is the rice is steamed versus boiled. Thanks for the question!
Jay Tray says
Just a quick question, when you say 2 cups of rice, is it 2 "real" cups or 2 cups of the rice cups that come with rice cookers? Those tend to be smaller.
Just making sure!
Hi Jay! Thanks for checking! Yes, as noted in the Recipe Notes below the recipe, I specify to use a regular 1 cup measuring cup for the rice and not the cup that comes with the rice cooker. I hope you like the recipe!
Kevin says
I like to use the mushroom water to cook the rice, instead of plain water, giving that umani fragrance. Oh and i use dry shrimps too to reduce crowded bowl eh.
Hi Kevin! Yes, that's a great idea...to use the mushroom water to help flavor the rice!
ihojin1234 says
Hi. I loved the taste of this, but it definitely does not make enough for 10 people.
Thank you! I was being conservative when I said the recipe served 10, but I understand that people are likely eat more. I've adjusted the recipe to say that it will serve 8 as a side, which is more reasonable...but it can still vary depending on how much people want to eat! Thanks again for making the recipe!
Janie says
Found this recipe and easy to make. First attempt came out perfect. I surprised myself. 😝 I also used ground chicken as the replacement. Thanks for this easy recipe.
Hi Janie! Thanks for giving the recipe a try and for sharing that it worked with ground chicken! So glad you liked it!
Coryne says
This recipe is fantastic!!! My family and friends love it! Thank you so much for sharing!
Thanks so much, Coryne!
Qi Lun says
My favorite recipe for me and my wife's dim sum dish of choice! This is so easy, and reheats really well. Shrimp is a no-go in our house, so I just rehydrate a couple extra mushrooms. I usually reserve about 1/4c of mushroom rehydration water for the 1.25c of water at the end, for a little umami boost. So so delicious, and much easier than rehydrating lotus leaves and wrapping up crumbly handfuls of rice!
Thank you so much, Qi Lun! I'm so glad you and your wife like it!
Jenny says
I've tried 3 or 4 different rice cooker sticky rice recipes and always had an issue with undercooked rice until I tried this recipe! I was a bit skeptical of cooking the rice on top but it worked perfectly! The rice came out fluffy, cooked, and delicious. The filling was also delicious. I used dry shrimp instead of frozen or fresh shrimp. Excited to make this again in the future!!
Thanks so much, Jenny! I'm so glad the recipe worked out for you and that you liked it!
Dina says
Looking forward to trying this recipe. I’ve made a few and am still on the hunt for a simplest/easiest weeknight recipe. Would putting the mixture on top of the rice change anything? Thanks!
Hi Dina! Putting the filling on top would just make the rice more wet since it is cooked in the liquid versus being steamed. Both are okay! Thanks for the question, and I hope you like it!