Easy porridge in a rice cooker (Vietnamese Chao)

When I’m not feeling well or need a quick, nutritious meal, I make porridge (chao, or porridge in Vietnamese). But these days, this recipe has become more sentimental than comfort food.

As my son graduated high school and prepared for college, I found myself collecting the recipes he needed to survive independently. This rice cooker porridge is my number one so far.

It’s the ultimate college student or poor man’s meal. It’s incredibly simple, but with a few extra ingredients, you can easily transform it into an incredibly hearty meal.

If I could bring him into the world with anything, I hope it would be the ability to create a taste of home whenever he needs it.

3 reasons why this recipe is great

It’s easy. No need to stand over a hot stove and stir endlessly to prevent rice from sticking or burning. Just put your ingredients in, press a button, and walk away (more on that later). Skip washing the rice. If you live in a dorm or have limited kitchen space, you may not have a convenient sink or additional cooking utensils on hand. Therefore, this recipe skips the rinsing. In addition, the starch left in the grains creates a creamy texture and provides a slight calorie boost for lean youngsters. Use a 1:11 ratio. I tried a few ratios and found that 1 part rice to 11 parts water quickly gave me the right consistency. If you prefer it not too thick or thin, it’s very easy to adjust later to your liking.

what you need

Rice Cooker: I use a Tiger rice cooker that I bought at Costco for a very reasonable price, but any standard rice cooker will work. White Rice: This recipe uses long grain white rice. I believe other methods would work as well, but the water needed may be different. Water: Provides a liquid base. Replacing the water with stock will give it even more flavor. Salt: This is the simplest option if you only have a few seasonings.

Even better additional options:

Bouillon powder: Adds the umami flavor familiar to Vietnamese home cooking. You can use pork, chicken, or beef broth. If you want a vegetarian option, choose mushroom seasoning powder. Fresh aromas: Ground black pepper, green onion, coriander and ginger instantly remove the dullness of the porridge. Drizzle with a little toasted sesame oil for a wonderful aroma. Hearty toppings: You can enjoy your favorite toppings here. Chicken floss (Chà Bông) or other meat floss (Vietnamese dried meat cut into thin, fluffy strips), century egg, or cured egg, is a traditional and delicious Asian/Vietnamese dish.

tips for success

Watch the Vent: Remember when I said you could leave? Well, sort of. Due to the high ratio of water to rice in an enclosed space, the porridge may bubble out of the rice cooker vent even on the porridge setting. Sometimes this happens to me, sometimes it doesn’t. I don’t know why. However, if you hear vigorous gurgling or see boiling starting from the vent, open the lid slightly while the water is boiling vigorously. Once it stabilizes towards the end of the cooking cycle, you can close it again or leave it open until cooking is complete. Adjusting the viscosity: It is much easier to thin the porridge than thicken it. If it’s too thick, add a little hot water and stir until it’s the perfect consistency. Don’t overthink the settings: I don’t like changing the settings on my rice cooker. I forget to put it back every time! So, it will take a little longer than cooking regular rice, but I will cook this using the normal settings.

Storage and reheating

This recipe makes enough for one serving, and you can make as many as you want. If you have leftovers that need to be stored overnight, cover the inner pot and transfer to the refrigerator.

You can reheat it in the inner pot using the keep warm setting on your rice cooker, or simply transfer it to a microwave-safe bowl and heat it there. If necessary, add a little water before heating to restore the desired consistency.

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