Arroz Caldo

Everyone knows that eating chicken soup is an effective remedy for the common cold. For centuries, the Chinese have been treating all sorts of illnesses with chicken soup. While Americans have Chicken Noodle Soup, our version back home is called Arroz Caldo or Arroz Con Pollo (meaning: Chicken and Rice Soup). This is what I cooked for P yesterday:

Ingredients:

2 chicken breasts (bone-in)
ginger, sliced thinly
small onion, chopped
5 garlic cloves, chopped
1 chicken bouillon
1/2 cup white rice (Jasmine or Goya or any medium-grain rice)
5 cans 10 1/2 oz chicken broth, or homemade chicken stock
vegetable oil
2 tablespoons fish sauce (patis)
scallions, chopped
salt to taste
pepper to taste
optional: dash of yellow food coloring powder

Wash chicken thoroughly. Cut each chicken breasts into 4 or 5 pieces. Season with salt and pepper. Heat up oil in large pot . Saute garlic first. Take them out as soon as they turn golden brown and set aside. This is to be used for garnishing. Saute ginger next. Take ginger out as soon as it turns brown and discard. Drop in the chopped onion and saute till tender, about 2 minutes. Add the chicken, fish sauce and yellow food coloring. Brown chicken. Add just enough water to cover chicken and drop in the chicken bouillon. Cover pot. Bring to a boil then simmer for about 20 minutes. Take out the chicken and set it aside. Let soup cool for a bit then remove any excess oil/fat from the soup. (Quick & Easy Tip: Gently dip thick paper towel flat on the soup's surface. The fat/oil will adhere to the paper. Discard paper). Return chicken to the pot. Add chicken broth/chicken stock and rice. Cover pot. Bring to a boil, then let simmer for about 40 minutes or until the rice starts to "open up" (shown above).

Adjust the seasonings - add more fish sauce, black pepper or salt as needed. Garnish with chopped scallions and fried chopped garlic. Serve plain or with crackers. Serves 4-5 people.