When the days are cold or when I’m not feeling too well, there’s only one thing I want to eat: jok or Cantonese porridge. When I was living in Singapore, there was a strange month when it was raining daily and the days got so cold that it was reported that many people started wearing winter coats on the street. Me? I made a beeline for Sin Heng Kee, my favourite porridge joint in the city. Luckily, with a ricecooker, a porridge is never too far away, wherever in the world you may be. The combination of glutinous rice and jasmine rice to me is the secret to a smooth bowl of porridge. Glutinous rice has a higher ratio of amylopectin to amylose – the former is highly soluble in water, creating a creamier porridge.
Shredded Chicken & Century Egg Porridge
100g rice
50g glutinous rice
1 tablespoon sesame oil
1 teaspoon salt
Half a chicken
1 thick slice of ginger
2 century eggs, diced
White pepper and salt to taste
Combine the rice and glutinous rice. Wash well and drain. Combine with the rest of the ingredients except the century eggs in the ricecooker pot. Fill with water to the top of the ricecooker. Set to “cook” and allow to cook for 2 hours, lid set ajar to prevent water from spilling out of the ricecooker when the porridge comes to a boil. Remove the chicken and allow it to cool. Allow the porridge to continue to cook for another hour, adding more water if desired to adjust the consistency. Shred the chicken when it is cool enough to handle and add it to the porridge with diced century egg. Season with salt and white pepper to taste. Serve piping hot with a raw egg and fried shallots.