Alright guys, today I finally got around to testing all those “simple methods” for dim sum steamed rice. Total experiment, but hey, let’s dive right in.
Prepping the Mess
First off, dug into my pantry for long-grain rice – basmati was all I had. Dumped one cup into my biggest bowl. Realized halfway through washing it that my sieve’s hole was way too big, lost a bunch of grains down the drain. Great start. Splashed cold water on it like the guides said, swirled it around, poured out cloudy water, repeated like five times until the water wasn’t totally milky. Not crystal clear though, let’s be real.
The Soak Session Disaster
Alright, covered the damp rice with fresh water for soaking. Supposed to soak 30 minutes? Yeah right. Got distracted fixing a leaky tap and came back like an hour later. The rice felt bloated, kinda squishy. Drained it again, splashed some more water around.
- Steamer setup: Pulled out that bamboo steamer basket thing buried at the back of a cupboard. Dug around for the liner – cheesecloth? Didn’t have any. Used a paper towel instead. Mistake vibes already. Laid it inside the basket, dumped all the soaked rice on top.
- Water level panic: Filled my big pot with water – guide said inch below steamer. My pot was deep, so poured maybe two inches? Put the steamer basket on, slapped the lid on. Turned the burner on high.
Steam City
Water started boiling crazy fast. Steam billowed out from under the lid like a sauna. Loud. Turned the heat down to medium-high, set my timer for 20 minutes like the guides suggested. Walked away, smelled the kitchen starting to get that starchy steam smell. Came back at 20 minutes, lifted the lid cautiously. Poked a finger into the middle. Hard as pebbles still. Seriously?
- Added another splash of water around the edges through the steam.
- Resolved to ignore “20 minutes”, let it blast for another 15 full minutes.
Finally Edible?
Poked again after the extra time. Top looked okay, finally tender. Dug a spoon deep. Success! Mostly soft, a few stubborn kernels near the bottom but hey, good enough for me. Fluffed it with chopsticks like they show in the videos. Didn’t look as pretty, but separated alright. Scooped some into a bowl, sprinkled soy sauce on top. Taste test: Chewy, dense, kinda stuck to the teeth – total dim sum rice vibe.Worked!
Honest take? Took way longer than advertised, looked kinda scrappy, but got that chewy texture you want for a base. Paper towel liner ripped, some water dripped down – but the rice itself tasted legit. Would I do it again? Maybe after buying cheesecloth and setting proper timers.
