Lemang (Coconut Sticky Rice)
Glutinous rice cooked in coconut milk inside banana leaf, the Hari Raya classic usually smoked in bamboo, made easy at home.
← Nouns Cooking · Malaysian & Singaporean
Ingredients
- 500 g Glutinous (sticky) rice, rinsed and soaked for 3 hours
- 500 ml Coconut milk
- 1½ tsp Salt
- 1 tsp Sugar
- 2 Pandan leaves, knotted
- banana leaves, softened over a flame
Method
- Drain the rice. Warm the coconut milk with the salt, sugar and pandan in a pan, stirring, until it just starts to steam.
- Stir in the rice and cook over low heat for 8–10 min, stirring constantly, until the rice has absorbed most of the liquid and is thick and sticky. Remove the pandan.
- Lay out sheets of banana leaf, spoon the rice along one edge in a log about 4 cm thick and roll up tightly, folding the ends. Wrap again in foil.
- Steam the rolls over high heat for 40–45 min, until the grains are fully soft. For a smoky edge, finish them on a hot grill pan for 2–3 min per side.
- Cool for at least 30 min, then unwrap and slice into thick rounds. Serve with rendang, serunding or kuah kacang.
Tips
- Lemang firms up as it cools, which makes for neat slices; once cool, keep it covered in the fridge for up to 2 days and re-steam or grill it before serving, as cooked rice should not sit out for more than a couple of hours.
- In kampungs it is cooked in bamboo tubes over an open fire; the banana leaf lining gives the same perfume.
Sources
Written in our own words after cross-checking these recipes:
Open Lemang (Coconut Sticky Rice) in Nouns Cooking