Thai black rice soup (khao tom)
At our home a favorite breakfast staple. Whereas the Chinese version, congee, is sort of a porridge, Thai rice soup is more soupy.
I love to flavor with black pepper and ginger, which makes a rich, fragrant soup that will warm your stomach, and I love the grains super soft, somehow broken. So feel free to adjust when adding pepper or to reduce cooking time if you like a more intact texture. Refrigerate overnight, so the water can absorb all the flavors.
(btw, another favorite comfort food is black rice cabbage soup)
INGREDIENTS (Serves 4)
3 cups cooked black rice or riceberry
200g king oyster mushrooms, cut into small cubes (or any mushroom you like)
1 firm block tofu, cut into 1/2 inch cubes
1 carrot, cut into small cubes
50g ginger, cut into very fine julienne
1 onion, cut into thin wedges
1 tbs black pepper, grind
3 coriander root, roughly grind and cut into 1/2 inch long
10 clove garlic, roughly grind and chop
1/4 cup fried onion
1/2 tsp salt
2 tbs soy sauce
a small bunch celery, cut into 1 inch long
1 and 1/2 litre water
1 tsp fried onion per serving dish
a few celery leaves per serving dish
PREPARATION
First, cook the rice as described in let's cook black rice.
Then the soup:
Bring water to a boil in a medium-sized pot over medium heat
Add coriander root, garlic, black pepper, ginger, onion and salt.
Boil for a few more minutes.
Add the cooked rice, carrot, tofu and king oyster mushroom.
Let it cook at medium heat for another 5 minutes, then lower the heat to medium-low and add soy sauce.
Maintain a gentle simmer for another 15-20 minutes, so the rice can absorb the water.
Stir now and then.
Remove from heat.
Add fried onion and celery and stir well together.
Let the soup cool down for 5 minutes.
Pour the soup in a bowl and garnish with a bit of fried onion and celery leaves on the top.