Arroz Caldo Recipe

Rice Soup with Chicken, Ginger and Garlic

For this Arroz Caldo recipe, you will find ingredients that are readily available in your pantry and fridge.

Literally translated as rice soup, it is a favorite Filipino breakfast item.

Served with chicken and boiled egg, the hot soup is flavored with ginger and topped with fried garlic and spring or green onions.

The base soup is called Lugaw, or just plain rice soup, which is similar to the Chinese's Congee.

It becomes 'fancy' when meat is added to flavor the soup, like Arroz Caldo con Pollo (Chicken) or Goto (Beef innards or Laman-loob).

A famous side dish with this is Tokwa't Baboy, or fried Firm tofu and boiled and fried pork, served with Vinegar, Soy Sauce and Garlic sauce.

Lugaw, by itself, is also served for when one is sick or not feeling well and has no appetite to eat a rice meal.

YOUR SHOPPING LIST:

• Chicken
• Green Onion
• Knorr Chicken Cubes

IN THE PANTRY:

• Rice Grains (Bigas)
• Garlic
• Ginger
• Fish Sauce or Patis
• Onion
• Ground Black Pepper
• Cooking Oil

INGREDIENTS

• 1 1/2 cup Rice Grains (Bigas)
• 2 pounds Chicken legs and thighs, cut in serving pieces
• 1 head Garlic, minced and fried
• 2 thumbsize Ginger, shredded or chopped finely
• 1 medium Onion, chopped
• 2 tablespoons Fish Sauce or Patis
• 2 pieces Knorr Chicken Cubes
• 12 cups water
• 2 tablespoons Cooking Oil, for sauteing
• 1 teaspoon Ground Black Pepper
• 2 stalks Green Onion for garnishing, sliced

Arroz Caldo

1  Boil about 12 cups water in a big pot.

2 In a separate pan on medium low heat, fry the garlic until slightly browned. Leave about a quarter of the fried garlic on the pan and set aside the rest.

3 Add the onion and ginger and saute for a minute. Try to watch the garlic making sure they don't burn.

4 Add the chicken pieces, rice grains, fish sauce and Knorr cubes and cook for about 3 minutes.

5 Transfer everything carefully to the boiling pot of water, turn the heat down and simmer for 24 - 30 minutes, stirring every now and then.

6 Once the soup had thickened, season with pepper.

7 Garnish with fried garlic and sliced green onions. Serve hot.

BENG'S TIPS

• Boil and shell chicken or quail eggs and add to step 7.
• Try to chop or shred the ginger finely so it melds in the soup and you won't get to bite chunks of ginger.
• Fried Garlic is not just for garnish, it's more for flavoring the Lugaw. If available, use the packed Fried Garlic sold in containers, it's more convenient and better tasting than doing it from scratch.

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