Glutinous Red Rice Dessert with Lychees

Name: Glutinous Red Rice Dessert with Lychees
Yield: 2
Cuisine: Vietnamese
Ingredients: ½ cup (100g) glutinous red rice; 2 tablespoons castor sugar; 1 tablespoon water; 200ml coconut milk; 50g palm sugar, shaved; Pinch salt flakes; 12 lychees, peeled, seeded and halved; 1 teaspoon sesame seeds, toasted

I love glutinous rice desserts and have always wanted to experiment with them so, inspired by a red rice dessert that Mark Jensen served me several years ago, I came up with this easy, tasty glutinous red rice with lychees. As long as you get organised and soak the rice the day before, it’s quick too. Glutinous red rice (nép den in Vietnamese) is sometime labelled black rice; in Chinese it’s called ‘blood rice’ because of its deep burgundy colour. I find an off-dry Sherry, such as Gonzalez Byass Elegante Medium, balances the caramel in this dessert really well. I’ll step you through how to make the caramel here and in the video below.

Serves 4

Ingredients

½ cup glutinous red rice (100g/3½oz)
2 tablespoons castor sugar (36g/1¼oz)
1⅓ cup water (330ml)
¾ cup coconut milk (180ml)
50g palm sugar, shaved (1¾oz)
Pinch salt flakes, crushed
12 lychees, peeled, seeded and halved
1 teaspoon sesame seeds, toasted

Method

Soak rice in cold water overnight.
Combine castor sugar and 1½ tablespoons (30ml) of the water in a small saucepan over medium heat and cook, without stirring, until it’s a rich caramel colour (see further details here and video below).
Quickly add ⅓ cup (80ml) of the coconut milk (take care as it may spit) and stir over a low heat until the caramel completely dissolves into the coconut milk and it just comes to the boil. Set aside.
Drain rice, place in a saucepan with remaining water and bring to the boil.
Reduce heat and simmer for about 15 minutes, until tender; most of the water should be absorbed but add a splash more if it looks like it’s going to catch.
Stir in remaining coconut milk, palm sugar and salt and cook for a further 5 minutes or so, until it thickens and most of the liquid is absorbed.
Spoon glutinous red rice into bowls, top with lychees and the caramel sauce, sprinkle with sesame seeds and serve.