Taiwanese recipe

Taiwanese Oil Rice

Name: Taiwanese Oil Rice
Prep time: 6 h 30 min
Cook time: 1 h
Total time: 7 h 30 min
Yield: 8
Cuisine: Taiwanese cuisine
Ingredients: 600 g long-grain glutinous rice, soaked 6 hours; 300 g pork belly, 1 cm strips; 8 dried shiitake, soaked, sliced; liquid reserved; 45 g dried shrimp, rinsed and chopped; 25 g ginger, julienned; 60 g fried shallots; 60 ml light soy sauce; 15 ml dark soy sauce; 30 ml Taiwan rice wine; 12 g sugar; 3 g five-spice powder; 500 ml strained mushroom soaking liquid, hot

Steamed long-grain sticky rice is folded with pork belly, dried shrimp, shiitake, ginger, fried shallots, soy, five-spice, and mushroom stock.

Taiwan

Prep: 6 hr 30 min
Cook: 1 hr
Total: 7 hr 30 min
Servings: 8

Ingredients

600 g
long-grain glutinous rice, soaked 6 hours
300 g
pork belly, 1 cm strips
8
dried shiitake, soaked, sliced; liquid reserved
45 g
dried shrimp, rinsed and chopped
25 g
ginger, julienned
60 g
fried shallots
60 ml
light soy sauce
15 ml
dark soy sauce
30 ml
Taiwan rice wine
12 g
sugar
3 g
five-spice powder
500 ml
strained mushroom soaking liquid, hot

Method

01
Soak and drain the sticky rice
Rinse the long-grain glutinous rice until the water is mostly clear. Soak in plenty of cool water for 6 hours, then drain in a sieve for a full 30 minutes so excess water does not make the steamed grains mushy.
Cooking-step illustration, not a photograph
02
Steam the rice until translucent
Spread drained rice 3 cm deep in a damp-cloth-lined steamer and poke six steam holes. Steam over strong steady steam for 25–30 minutes until translucent, cooked through, and still pleasantly chewy.
Cooking-step illustration, not a photograph
03
Render the pork belly
Cook pork belly in a large wok over medium-low for 8–10 minutes until fat renders and edges colour. Spoon off all but 35 ml fat and keep the pork in the wok.
Cooking-step illustration, not a photograph
04
Fry the aromatic ingredients
Add dried shrimp and ginger for 60 seconds, then shiitake for 3 minutes until fragrant and lightly browned. Add half the fried shallots and stir 30 seconds.
Cooking-step illustration, not a photograph
05
Concentrate the seasoning liquid
Add both soy sauces, rice wine, sugar, five-spice, and 500 ml hot mushroom liquid. Cover and simmer 12 minutes, then uncover and reduce until 220–250 ml concentrated liquid remains.
Cooking-step illustration, not a photograph
06
Fold rice through the sauce
Add hot steamed rice in three additions, folding and breaking clumps without mashing grains. Continue over low heat 3–5 minutes until every grain is glossy and all visible liquid is absorbed.
Cooking-step illustration, not a photograph
07
Final steam and rest
Return the mixture to the lined steamer and steam 10 minutes. Turn off heat and rest covered 10 minutes, then fluff gently and finish with remaining fried shallots; serve with sweet chile sauce separately if desired.
Cooking-step illustration, not a photograph

Practical notes

Tips

Brown aromatics and protein before adding liquid; this keeps the final sauce fragrant instead of merely salty.
Keep the braise at a bare simmer and judge tenderness with a skewer or chopstick; a hard boil dries meat and clouds broth.

Common mistakes

Do not reduce a salty braise before the meat is tender; add hot water if needed, then concentrate only at the end.
Measure soy sauce rather than pouring by colour; dark soy changes appearance much faster than salt level.

Substitutions

Diced chicken thigh can replace pork belly; add 30 ml neutral oil and cook chicken to 74°C before adding aromatics.
For a shellfish-free version, omit dried shrimp and add 20 g finely chopped dried shiitake; the flavour changes but the rice method remains.

Storage

Cool within 2 hours and refrigerate airtight for up to 3 days. Reheat once to a steady simmer and at least 74°C throughout.

Cultural context

Oil rice appears at Taiwanese celebrations, temple events, and family tables, including traditional one-month baby gifts. Its name refers to aromatic fat coating the grains, not greasy pooled oil.

Sources and photo credit

This standardized method was independently rewritten after cross-checking the references below. Recipe Nest Vault does not claim that the credited photographer cooked from this exact version.

Recipe references

Mushroom & Glutinous Oil Rice — Photograph by Ralff Nestor Nacor; CC BY-SA 4.0.

Step illustrations: Original illustrations created by Recipe Nest Vault with OpenAI image_gen.

Back to Taiwanese recipes

Taiwanese Oil Rice

Ingredients

Method

Soak and drain the sticky rice

Steam the rice until translucent

Render the pork belly

Fry the aromatic ingredients

Concentrate the seasoning liquid

Fold rice through the sauce

Final steam and rest

Sources and photo credit

Recipe references

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