The last time I posted a recipe, I was pregnant and in my third trimester. Baby girl came a few months ago, and my life has turned upside down! Now that I’m a new mom, I have to consider quick meal options while taking care of baby girl. Growing up, we always had homemade sauces and seasonings around for snacking and occasional lazy lunch options. This incredibly easy to make savory and sweet seasoning is made of pan toasted sesame seeds, salt, and sugar. It’s is as easy as it gets folks, and I’m pretty sure it’s kid friendly, as I quite enjoyed it as a child. We sprinkled it on a bowl of fluffy white rice (I prefer short grain rice), but it can also be sprinkled on a variety of dishes of your liking to add a little extra flavor (think noodles, salads, etc). I did a ratio of 2:1 for sugar:salt (which I think is perfect), but it’s totally your call on how you want to adjust it if desired. I would write a little more about this seasoning, and why I like it so much, but my baby girl is calling. Hopefully I will be back with more gourmet recipes, but for now, it’s gonna be quick and easy. Gotta go—bon apetit!

SAVORY AND SWEET TOASTED SESAME SEASONING

Degree of difficulty: 1 ( on a scale of 1-5 )

Preparation time 2 min

Cook Time: 5 minutes

 YOU’LL NEED

• A small pan

• A food processor

 INGREDIENTS

• 1/4 cup of sesame seeds

• 1 TSP sea salt

• 2 TSP sugar

 DIRECTIONS

1. Toast the sesame seeds in a small nonstick pan on medium heat until it reaches a medium golden brown. Stir around gently with a wood spoon to avoid burning. This should only take a few minutes.

2. Remove from heat, and transfer the sesame seeds to a food processor. Do a quick 10 second grind, and transfer to a bowl.

3. Stir in salt and sugar. Taste and adjust as needed (some like it sweeter, some like it saltier).

4. Sprinkle on a bed of fluffy rice. Enjoy!

So I was going to start off writing ‘This is one of my mom’s specialties’, and then I realized how many times I’ve said that on this food blog thus far. I really have to give my mom credit for being so amazing in the kitchen, as her tips and tricks have taught me so much about being a good and efficient cook. Sticky rice and Chinese sausage is one of her go-to’s to make and bring to someone’s house. Why? Because it’s so incredibly easy and delicious. My recipe is a “quick” one, as many recipes require you to soak your sweet glutinous rice overnight (makes the texture more sticky), but from what I can remember, my mom actually will soak it for a good 4-5 hours for a quick ‘whip-it-up-early-in-the-day-and-bring-it-to-a-party’ version. Another time saver—I also cook my sticky rice in my simple and small (3 cup capacity) Tiger brand rice cooker. I’ve learned that some rice cookers tend to burn the rice (especially the larger ones), but I’ve never had that problem with my reliable mini one. As far as Chinese sausage, my mom’s favorite brand to use is California Sausage Inc, so I’ve come to prefer this brand as well, but feel free to use whichever brand works best or is available to you. Again this recipe is a simplified version, but you can also add pork or chicken floss (which I do quit often), Vietnamese sliced ham, or thin strips of egg omelette for a very fancy version—lots of texture and extra yumminess. In the end, the combination of the sweet Chinese sausage with the texture of the sticky rice is good enough to be a star on its own.

STICKY RICE AND CHINESE SAUSAGE (XÔI LẠP XƯỞNG)

Degree of difficulty: 1 ( on a scale of 1-5 )

Preparation time 4-5 hours (for sticky rice to soak; optional: if you have more time, feel free to soak the rice for longer if desired. Overnight is optimal.

Cook Time: 15 minutes for the sticky rice, 8-10 minutes for the Chinese sausage, additional time for other toppings (fried shallots/roughly 10-15 min, scallion oil/5 min)

 YOU’LL NEED

• A small rice cooker

• A medium/large frying pan

 INGREDIENTS

• 1 cup of sweet glutinous rice, soaked in water for 4-5 hours

  ( Tip: want it stickier? Soak for an extra hour or two. Want it extra sticky? Soak it overnight )

• 1/4 TSP sea salt

• 2 TSP neutral cooking oil (for the sticky rice)

• 1 TPS neutral cooking oil (for the Chinese sausage)

• 1/2 cup of sliced Chinese sausage

• Pork or chicken floss (optional topping)

• Scallion oil

• Fresh fried shallots (I recommend prepping this before hand or even the day before)

 DIRECTIONS

1. After your cup of sweet rice has soaked for about 4-5 hours (or more), strain the rice, wash it thoroughly, and transfer it to your rice cooker pot. Give the pot a nice shake to even out the rice, and add just enough water to barely cover the surface (since it has been pre-soaking, it does not need that much water). Add 1/2 TSP of salt and 2 TSP of cooking oil. Turn on your rice cooker (it should automatically cook for about 15 minutes).

2. Once the rice has finished cooking, immediately remove it from heat, and use the rice cooker spoon/spatula to mix the rice well. Allow the sticky rice to cool.

3. While the rice is cooling, heat up 1 TSP of neutral cooking oil in a non-stick frying pan on medium heat. Allow the oil to heat up for about a minute or two, the add in your slices of Chinese sausage in an even layer across the pan.

4. Using cooking tongs, turn the sausages every minute to get a nice and even cooking (you want to avoid burning the surface of the sausage slices). It should take about 8-10 minutes to finish cooking. Remove from heat and set aside.

5. Now transfer the sticky rice to a plate. If you are using pork or chicken floss, add it on top of the rice. Arrange your pieces of Chinese sausage directly on top of the rice (or if you’re using the pork/chicken floss, place the sausage on top of that). Gently spoon your scallion oil on top of the Chinese sausage, and then finally, sprinkle some fresh fried shallots on top. Enjoy!