Cook: Garlicky Chicken & Rice Porridge

Most Asian culture have their own version of porridge. Japanese people call theirs okayu, Chinese porridge is known as congee or shi fan. Korean versions are often called jook. These all involve making a rice-based porridge and topping it with various seasoned proteins, vegetables and condiments. Funnily enough, this one is more of an Americanized version but delicious nonetheless. I saw this recipe in Bon Appetit and tailored it to what I had in the kitchen, including my newly preserved Meyer lemons! They add a hint of brightness to the savory chicken and spicy chili garlic oil that goes on top.

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Ingredients:

• 1 small to medium yellow or white onion

• LOTS of garlic (I used 7-10 cloves)

• 1 cup white rice (uncooked - but washed)

• 2 cans of chicken broth

• 1/4 cup plus 2 tbsp vegetable or canola oil

• Crushed red pepper flakes

• 1lb skinless, boneless chicken thighs

• Kosher salt (to taste)

• 5-6 leaves of Tuscan kale

• 1 lemon or a few slices of preserved lemon peel

• Dill

• Freshly ground black pepper

• Scallions (thinly sliced for garnish)

The garlic should go from uncooked to a deep brown!

Add in the chili flakes for spice!

Directions:

• Dice your onion. Peel and thinly slice your garlic.

• First, we’ll make the garlic chili oil. I LOVE garlic, So I used one whole garlic bulb for this. Up to you depending on how much chili oil you want. You can also use the version they sell at the Asian market if you don’t want to make your own. But, fresh garlic oil is worth it! Heat the oil in a large pot or ceramic pot over medium heat (After you dump the garlic out, you’ll use this to cook the remainder of the porridge. Add the garlic and swirl frequently for about 4-5 minutes. 3-4 minutes if you’re using less oil. The garlic will continue to brown after you’ve cooked it, so take it off once it’s a golden brown. Remove from the heat, add into a bowl and mix in the crushed chili peppers.

• Using the same pot, cook your onions in the remnants of the garlic oil until they get color, 5-6 minutes. Stir occasionally.

• Pour in 2 cans of chicken broth plus 4 cups of water. Pour in the uncooked rice, put your chicken thighs in plus a pinch of Kosher salt. Mix everything and bring this to a boil, reduce the heat to low and then simmer uncovered for about 20 minutes. Stir occasionally so the rice doesn’t get stuck to the bottom. You’ll want the chicken to be cooked all the way through.

• Remove the chicken - let it cool and then shred it in bite sized pieces with a fork. Let the soup mixture continue to simmer. Add in some freshly ground pepper for more flavor.

• Using clean kale leaves, pull the leafy part away from the rib until you have enough. Roughly chop. This shrinks down quite a bit so use more than you think you need.

• Add the kale and chicken back into the pot and let it simmer for another 5 minutes. The kale should turn bright green.

• Squeeze in some lemon juice or you can simply garnish it with the sliced preserved lemon peels. Stir in more salt to taste, if needed.

• Divide your soup into bowls and spoon the garlic chili oil on top. Top each bowl with fresh dill, green onions and some more freshly cracked black pepper.

Cook everything in one pot for an easy meal.

Your kale should look bright green in color and chicken should be cooked all the way through.