Hokkien fried rice dumplings

Ingredients:
2 kg glutinous rice, washed and soaked
500g chicken with skin, cut into thick chunks
100g lean chicken, sliced
30-40 small dried shiitake mushrooms
30-40 dried Chinese chestnuts
10 cloves garlic, chopped
Soy sauce, five-spice powder, salt and pepper to taste
20 salted egg yolks, cut into halves
3 to 4 bundles bamboo leaves, plus reeds or raffia to tie


Method:
1. Drain glutinous rice and place in a colander to dry.

2. Marinate both chicken and lean chicken with 2 tablespoon light soya sauce, 2 tablespoon dark soya sauce and plenty of salt and pepper.

3. Heat up oil in a large frying pan and fry garlic till lightly golden. Add drained rice and season with more dark soya sauce and a little five-spice powder. Just toss enough to mix in garlic and seasoning. Remove to big mixing bowl.

4. Make a cone with two bamboo leaves and add a spoon of rice. Add the two types of pork, chestnut and mushroom, and half an egg yolk.

5. Cover mixture with more glutinous rice.

6. Fold over bamboo leaf to make a pyramid and secure with a piece of reed or raffia.

7. Tie dumplings into bundles of 10 or 12 and thread onto a wooden spoon or long rolling pin. Hang over a pot of boiling water and cook for at least three to four hours. Keep adding boiling water to keep the heat constant.

8. When dumplings are cooked, they come away from the leaves easily and the rice will stick together. If they break apart into loose grains, you have to cook it longer.

9. Store cooked dumplings in a cool place, preferably in the fridge. Do not keep more than a week.