Treat Your Cold With a Big Bowl of My Mom’s Thai Soup
I recently spent an unglamorous time moping around my Brooklyn apartment while battling a viral infection. It’s winter now. Colds happen. But damn, being sick sucks. There is little that gives me comfort during an attack of illness: the blankets are either too hot or not warm enough, tea dries out my throat, and it is difficult to sleep. Luckily, I can always count on the healing presence of my cats and my mom’s Thai Jock.
Since I don’t want to lend you my cats, let me tell you how I make my mom’s comforting rice porridge for a week to eat until I feel better. This is a nourishing, warm soup perfect for when you’re feeling your worst.
What is jok (โจ๊ก)?
Thai jok (pronounced a bit like “jo-g”) is a comforting rice porridge similar to dishes from other Asian countries (Chinese congee or lugaw from the Philippines). In Thailand, it is served in restaurants specializing in this dish. Jock is mostly eaten for breakfast, but I also like to have it for lunch, especially when I’m sick and have trouble sleeping.
The base of the soup is made from broken jasmine rice and chicken broth. You can buy bags of broken rice at some Asian grocery stores for this purpose, but I just grind the regular rice myself. Breaking it is the key to success. You’ve probably added grain-free rice to soup before; this rice swells and stays at the bottom of the bowl. Rice in jock works differently.
When you break the grains of rice, the inside is exposed to the broth. When water boils, starches swell and burst. Since the grain structure has already been broken down, more of the available gelatinized starch is released into the broth, making the soup silky and sticky.
Once you’ve made the basic porridge, poach an egg in hot liquid, add shredded meat, shrimp or meatballs and top with fresh herbs and aromatics – cilantro, fresh chopped ginger, fried garlic and chopped green onions. You can combine any or all of these additions, but when I’m feeling down myself, a combination of chicken broth, eggs, cilantro and ginger is a must-have in my bowl.
How to make a joke in a simple way
Cooking from scratch is the last thing you want to do when you’re sick, and while making this soup isn’t as easy as cracking open a can of Progresso, it’s light years more enjoyable. To make it a little easier than the classic prep, I like to prep the ingredients ahead of time to make a soup that will last me a week—I just need to reheat it and add a couple of eggs when I’m hungry. This makes the process much more manageable and it still tastes just as good as the one my mom makes.
1. Cook rice
Cook a large amount of rice or just use leftover rice you already have. I usually pour a cup and a half of jasmine rice and water into the rice cooker and press cook, but if you like to cook your rice in a pot, do your thing. When the rice is cooked and cooled, transfer it to a container with a lid and store it in the refrigerator.
2. Chop the vegetables.
Peel the ginger and finely chop or julienne one to two inches of the root. Store this in a small container with a lid. Make sure the pieces are not packed too tightly or they will freeze into a brick. Thinly slice three or four onions and store them in a small container with a damp paper towel. Do the same with a handful of cilantro. You can store them separately in separate containers or do it with a roommate like I did in the picture. Place the ginger in the freezer and the other two in the refrigerator.
3. Make a joke
When you’re ready for the soup, you can puree the rice using an immersion blender, food processor, or regular blender. I use an immersion blender: pour two cups of chicken broth into a medium saucepan and add about a cup of cooked leftover rice. (Once you get the hang of this, you can adjust the thickness of the soup by adjusting the amount of rice.) Break up the lump of rice with a spoon. Use an immersion blender and pulse the mixture in the pan, working in different areas, about 10 to 15 times. If using a blender or food processor, add broth and rice to blender and pulse 10 to 15 times. You want to break the rice into small pieces, but you don’t want to puree it. Add the mixture to the pan.
Turn the burner to medium-low and let the porridge heat through, stirring occasionally as it heats and thickens. Let simmer for two to three minutes. It will continue to thicken as it cools.
4. Add toppings
If you add eggs, and I highly recommend you do, crack them and toss them directly into the gently simmering jock. Turn off the heat and cover with a lid. Let the eggs sit for about 15 minutes, which will leave you with a runny yolk that will cool the porridge to the perfect temperature to soothe a sore throat. If you like your eggs to cook further, you can always turn the heat back on for a few minutes.
Pour the soup into a bowl, carefully placing the poached eggs on top. Add a pinch each of frozen ginger (it will melt once you stir it), green onions and cilantro.
This recipe serves two and includes toppings that add a mild flavor and are soothing to the stomach and throat. Of course, you can eat it at any time of the year and change the filling to suit your mood. Try adding fried garlic chips, chili chips, leftover cooked beef or chicken strips, and a little soy and fish sauce if you want to up the saltiness and umami. Store batch-prepared ingredients in the refrigerator and freezer so they’ll be ready for you when you need a boost during the week.
Quick jock recipe
Ingredients:
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1 cup remaining cooked jasmine rice
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2 cups chicken broth
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2 eggs
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2 teaspoons chopped fresh or frozen ginger
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2 teaspoons chopped fresh cilantro
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2 teaspoons chopped green onions
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Salt and pepper as desired
1. Add rice and chicken broth to a medium saucepan. Break the rice into smaller pieces with a spoon. Using an immersion blender, blend the mixture about 10 times. The goal is to break the rice but not destroy it. Use a spoon to scoop out some rice and check how it cooks. The rice pieces should be small but distinguishable. A few whole grains of rice will do just fine.
2. Heat the mixture over medium-low heat, stirring occasionally. Let the soup simmer for a minute or two. The mixture will thicken towards the end of cooking and will continue to thicken as it cools.
3. Just before turning off the heat, crack the eggs and throw them directly into the jock. Cover the pan with a lid and turn off the heat. Leave the eggs to cook for about 15 minutes. Divide the porridge into two bowls, one egg each, and distribute the ginger, cilantro and green onions. Add salt and pepper if desired.