Also known as
Glutinous rice, Sweet rice, Waxy rice

Description

It is a type of short-grained Asian rice that is especially sticky when cooked. This rice isn't really sweet, nor does it contain gluten. It is, however, starchy and yields attractively sticky, dense rice when cooked. It contains high amounts of Amylopectin which is responsible for the sticky quality of glutinous rice. It is grown mainly in Japan, Korea, China, Phillipines, Thailand etc and is an integral part of their cuisine.

How to select

You get sticky rice in two varieties- milled and unmilled. The milled variety is white in colour and the unmilled variety is purplish or black in colour. Buy rice in the packaged grains section of grocery and specialty stores. Look for intact kernels that aren't broken, scratched, or damaged.

Culinary Uses

· Glutinous rice is also often ground to make glutinous rice flour. This flour is then used to make dumplings etc which are savoured during Chinese New Year. Chinese also use sticky rice along with chinese mushrooms, sausages and pork as a main course.
· It is used in the popular dessert "Eight treasure rice" which is steamed sticky rice combined and cooked with sugar and eight kinds of fruits or nuts.
· Japanese use sticky rice to make a traditional rice cake called "Mochi".
· It also sometimes used as a thickener and for baking.
· It is also used for the brewing of a Thai rice wine.
· Thai desserts include delicious recipes like sticky rice which is steamed in coconut milk and served with ripened mangoes, durian etc. Another alternative would be to steam sticky rice along with bananas and coconut milk and then serve as a warm dessert.
· Sticky rice covered in coconut leaf or banana leaves are steamed to make "suman" which have many variations. The dessert variations can be toppings of thick coconut jam etc.

How to store

Store sticky rice in a cool, dry area in an air tight container, away from moisture. Cooked rice can be refrigerated for up to seven days, or stored in the freezer for upto six months.
Health benefits
· Sticky rice is gluten free and thus a good option for gluten free diets.
· It also has considerable traces of selenium (which is an essential trace mineral). This mineral may help protect the body from cancer. It is also essential for healthy immune functioning.