Something in this Bon Appetit recipe called out to me and I yearned — not an exaggeration at all — to eat it, even though I wasn’t sure why. It was only when I was stirring the thickened broth at the end that I realised — in essence, this was the angmoh version of my mother’s chok. And it was belly-warmingly, soul-nourishingly good.
Serves 4 to 5
Ingredients
For the garlic-chilli oil
1/4 cup vegetable oil
6 cloves of garlic, with the centre sprout thingy removed, then thinly sliced
2 teaspoons red chilli flakes
For the soup
1 small onion, diced
200 grams brown button mushrooms, sliced
4 slices of ginger
⅔ cup white rice (short grain), rinsed and drained
4 cups chicken stock
4 cups water
500 grams skinless, boneless chicken thighs
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon soya sauce
2 bunches of bok choy, cut lengthwise into about four parts, keeping the leaves and stems separate
1 lemon
Spring onions for garnish
Start with the garlic-chilli oil. Heat up the oil in a large pot over medium-low heat. Add the garlic slices and keep them moving, watching carefully so they do not burn.
After 3 to 5 minutes, when they are golden (not brown), pour into a heat-proof bowl where they will continue cooking. Reserve 1 tablespoon of oil back into the pot.
Add the chilli flakes to the hot oil in the bowl and stir, then let it cool while you prepare the soup.
Heat up the oil and add the onions, frying them until they are soft, about 5 minutes.
Add the mushrooms and ginger. Continue frying until the mushrooms have softened.
Add the rice and stir, making sure to coat everything in the oil.
Add the water and chicken stock, then plonk in the chicken and salt.
Bring to a boil, then simmer uncovered for 20 minutes, until the chicken is cooked through.
Remove the chicken from the pot and shred it while the soup continues to simmer and thicken. Add soya sauce to taste.
Add the bok choy stems to the soup for about 2 to 3 minutes, followed by the shredded chicken, to reheat. Finally, stir in the bok choy leaves and serve immediately.
Garnish with the garlic-chilli oil, a generous squeeze of lemon and spring onions.
Note: If you are too lazy to make the garlic-chilli oil — which is awesome and you should make double even — you can add a dollop of Lao Gan Man crispy chilli oil.
Recipe adapted from Bon Appetit.
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