Passport & Plate - Prawn porridge
Vietnam | Thursday, March 5, 2015 | 4 photos
Ingredients
- 50g white rice, raw
- 150g prawn, fresh, rinsed.
- 50g mushroom (of your choice), halved.
- 1 small carrot, diced or cut into shapes.
- 4 small shallots, minced
- 1l of water
- Spring onion: to taste, finely chopped
- Beansprouts: fresh, to serve with porridge
- Persicaria odorata, or Vietnamese coriander ("rau ram" in Vietnamese): to taste, finely chopped.
- Seasoning: cooking oil, salt, pepper, fish sauce.
How to prepare this recipeA. Plain Porridge
1. Soak rice in cold water for 15'. Then rinse. In a pot, bring 1 tbsp of cooking oil to boil. Caramelize minced shallot, then pour rice in and stir fry until dry.
This step helps create the nice smell for the rice and keep them from dilating too much later.
2. Pour 500ml water into the pot. Bring to boil. Turn to low heat, simmer in 45'. Then heat off.
3. Cover the pot with a lid. Leave the mixture there in at least 1hour, while you prepare other ingredients.
The rice grains will dilate when stay long in warm water, and this helps create the right texture for porridge.
B. Prawn
4. Remove the heads, leave them aside. Peel and remove the back lines of prawns. Then finely mince the flesh. Add a pinch of salt and pepper while mincing.
C. Complete porridge.
5. Bring the mixture to boil again. This time, because the rice grains have dilated, you won't see a lot of water in the pot. Slowly pour more water into the pot, 100ml at a time. Whether it should be more or less condensed depends on your personal choice. But it should neither be too thick or too watery.
6. Season with 2 tbsp of fish sauce and 1/2 tsp of salt.
7. Add vegetable: first, carrot, bring to boil. Next, mushroom, bring to boil. Then turn back to low heat, simmer in 10' until the vegetable get cooked. Then add prawn heads and minced prawn in the pot. Bring to boil. Turn off heat.
8. To serve: In a big bowl, fill up to 2/3. Top with chopped spring onion and Vietnamese coriander, sprinkle with pepper. Serve with raw beansprouts. You can squeeze several drops of lime juice to boost the taste. Enjoy warm.
The story behind this recipeI close my eyes. A warm and pampering smell is slowly embracing the whole kitchen. Hungry in front of the freshly-cooked bowl of prawn porridge, I couldn't help the desire to indulge myself for spoonful and spoonful of this savory viscous soup.
Mmm!!! The first sip is so pleasant, I, all of a sudden, found myself that 10-year-old kid again, small and excited in the kitchen, right before her first lesson with Mom. I questioned why she would teach me porridge, not easier option for the first try. Mom asked back whether I knew what a hearty dish meant.
The second sip swallowed, warm and full of flavors. That combination of the not-so-thick and not-so-thin soup together with the smoothness of prawn, tenderness of vegetable, and the spicy burst of grinded pepper flows to my stomach while massaging my throat gently. I smiled, remembering the sight of that same kid, whole-heartedly cooking porridge for her sick mom, nervously waiting for reaction. Mom did not give any comment, rather simply explained, days later, how the bowl of love helped her get better
And from that moment on, little me learnt that cooking could bring the joy of not only creating delightful meals, but also that melting feeling of being able to take care of your beloved. All started in a humble bowl of porridge.
I have been cooking ever since. And have been a proud Vietnamese food lover ever since. But until now, there could be nothing better to me than a warm bowl of porridge, at any time of the day, cooked with whatever ingredients one can find. It is simple and tricky, comforting and bursting, shaped and creative at the same time. Everyone can make it, but not everyone makes it great. It can be boring and plain, but it can also be of a true culinary experience if done well.
Not merely a family recipe I adore, porridge is, but above all, the gratitude for good food made of simplicity, for how tiny acts can prove big love - like the way a humble bowl of warm porridge satisfies any hungry stomach.
