How to Make Vietnamese Corn Sticky Rice

Prepare Ingredients

Rinse the sticky rice and green beans, then soak them in water for 6-8 hours or overnight. If you're short on time, soak them in warm water (around 60°C) for 2-3 hours. During soaking, change the water 2-3 times to prevent the rice and beans from becoming sour.

You can use sáp sticky rice or nếp cái hoa vàng depending on your preference. Sáp sticky rice is common in the South, while nếp cái hoa vàng is popular in the North.

After soaking, drain the rice and green beans and set aside.

Peel the husks and remove the silk from both the sweet corn and sticky corn. Rinse them thoroughly, then shave off the kernels. You can keep the corn silk and cobs to make a refreshing tea.

If using pandan leaves, rinse and tie them into bundles.

Fry Shallots

Peel the shallots and slice them thinly and evenly. This ensures the shallots fry evenly without some pieces burning while others are still undercooked.

To avoid tearing up from the shallot fumes, wet your knife before slicing, or chew gum to reduce eye irritation.

Add cooking oil to a pan. To achieve crispy and golden fried shallots that aren’t too greasy, use plenty of oil—enough to fully submerge the shallots.

The key to crispy fried shallots is to add them to the oil while it’s still cold and fry over medium heat. This allows the shallots to cook evenly. If you add them to hot oil, they may cook too quickly, browning on the outside but remaining raw inside.

When the shallots begin to turn golden, watch closely as they can burn quickly. Remove them from the oil just before they reach the perfect golden brown, as the residual heat will continue to cook them even after they’re removed from the pan.

Drain the fried shallots on a plate lined with paper towels. Once cooled, store them in an airtight container in a cool, dry place.

Mix Ingredients

After preparing all the ingredients, mix them in a large bowl before steaming. Combine:

• Soaked and drained sticky rice
• Green beans
• Shaved corn
• 1/2 tablespoon of coarse salt

Steam the Corn Sticky Rice

For the best results, use a two-tiered steamer to cook corn sticky rice. While a rice cooker can be used, the texture won’t be as light and fluffy as when using a steamer.

Technically, cooking sticky rice in a rice cooker is closer to making sticky rice than proper steamed sticky rice, which should be cooked using steam, not boiling water.

First, add water to the bottom tier of the steamer. If you have pandan leaves, add them to the water for fragrance. If not, add 2-3 tablespoons of coconut milk for extra flavor.

Fill the steamer with water up to about one-third of the height of the bottom tier. To avoid the water drying out, you can place a metal spoon at the bottom of the pot. If the water level gets too low, the spoon will rattle against the pot as a warning sign.

Once the water is boiling, add the sticky rice, corn, and green beans mixture to the steamer. This will ensure the rice cooks evenly without the bottom layer becoming too mushy while the top remains undercooked.

To make steaming easier, place the sticky rice mixture in a thin cloth bag (such as muslin or cheesecloth). This way, you can easily lift the rice out and clean the steamer afterward.

When placing the rice in the steamer, spread it out evenly and poke a few holes with chopsticks to allow the steam to circulate, ensuring the rice cooks evenly.

To achieve perfectly cooked sticky rice, Cookbeo recommends steaming it twice. The first steaming should take about 20-25 minutes, and the second steaming should take about 15-20 minutes. Keep the heat at a gentle simmer. Depending on the hardness of the corn, you may need to adjust the steaming time slightly.

After the first steaming, when the rice is 80-90% cooked, gently stir it to ensure even cooking.

After the first steaming, remove the rice from the steamer. Drizzle a little cooking oil over the rice (using the oil from frying shallots for extra flavor) and mix gently. Let the rice rest for 10 minutes before returning it to the steamer for the second steaming.

Once fully cooked, remove the rice from the steamer. If you prefer sweet sticky rice, mix in some sugar. If you plan to serve it with fried shallots and dried pork floss, there's no need to add sugar.

Serve the corn sticky rice on a plate or in a bowl. It's best enjoyed while hot. There’s something wonderful about the experience of eating warm, fragrant sticky rice with the chewy texture of sticky corn, the crispness of sweet corn, and the rich flavors of green beans, crispy shallots, and savory pork floss—it’s a dish you can’t get enough of.