Lotus leaf ✦

Feuille de lotus

What it is

The living leaf is waxy enough that water beads and rolls straight off it — the effect that gave lotus-effect coatings their name — and it is drying that leaves the surface porous enough to give its aroma up to rice. Dried leaves come folded into quarters by the packet in Chinese groceries, one leaf to a parcel of lo mai gai.

In the kitchen

Soak a dried leaf in hot water for about half an hour until it is pliable, wipe both faces, and cut out the hard central boss before folding. It flavours through steam over roughly forty minutes; less and you get the wrapper without the tea-and-hay note.

Goes with

Glutinous rice Chicken Dried shiitake (donko) Lap cheong Ginger Shaoxing wine

Same species

Lotus root Lotus seed Lotus seed paste

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