Lamb Steamed In Rice Powder

1 3/4 lb Piece of boneless lamb

2 ts Dark soy sauce

1 tb Light soy sauce

pn Salt 1/2 ts Sugar

5 sl Ginger

1 tb Ginger juice (see note)

4 Garlic cloves, crushed

2 Scallions, cut in half and

-smashed 2 sm Dried hot peppers, ground

1 c Uncooked long-grain rice

2 Star anise

Fresh banana leaves (opt, -see note) Cut the meat into "butterfly" slices by making one slice not quite all the way through and the second slice all the way through. Pound the meat lightly. Toss the meat with the soy sauces, salt, sugar, ginger, ginger juice, garlic, scallions and hot peppers; marinate for 30 minutes. Meanwhile, make the rice powder by putting the rice and star anise into a dry skillet and cook while stirring until the rice is brown. (It should be thoroughly browned but not scorched.) Spoon the rice and anise into a blender++a food processor won`t work++ and blend until it`s the consistency of fine sand. (Don`t blend it too finely.) Line two steamer sections with banana leaves cut to fit. Put half the rice powder into a bowl, reserving the rest in a jar for future use, and dredge the lamb pieces in the powder, coating them generously. Arrange them on the banana leaves and steam them for 25 minutes. At the end of 15 minutes, sprinkle them with a little water. Serve in the steamer. NOTES: Ginger juice is made by covering fresh crushed ginger with boiling water and letting it stand for 15 minutes or so. If you can`t get banana leaves, the lamb may be steamed on a plate. Posted by Stephen Ceideberg; September 28 1992.