Roast Duck Jook
Jook is a savory rice porridge that hails from Southern China and it’s magic is in its simplicity— it’s rice and water cooked to a creamy tender consistency. My Grandma would make jook regularly and it was also the first thing suggested when feeling under the weather (“I’ll make you some jook”). For me, its comfort food— one spoonful and I’m transported right back to my Grandma’s dining table.
This particular recipe takes advantage of leftover roast duck or Peking duck carcasses— their flavor will infuse into the jook while cooking and create an intoxicating aroma. I’ve also swapped out the water for chicken stock for more flavor, however you can definitely use water or a mix of the two. It’s all about getting the proportion of water and rice correct and then adjusting it accordingly (as the jook sits the rice will continue to absorb water so it’ll be necessary when reheating to add a bit more liquid).
There are a myriad of ways to change things up— if you don’t have duck carcasses leftover from your Peking duck or roast duck feast (and yep I know not everyone does), use chicken, or add slices of duck or chicken at the end for serving, or omit them altogether. Jook is also a blank— albeit delicious— canvas for a myriad of toppings. Traditional fried dough sticks (youtiao) or dried pork floss (yuk sung) are favorites and are available online or in Chinese markets or delis, but most often a seven minute egg, some chili crisp, a drizzle of soy sauce and some scallions will do just fine.
Also, this recipe serves 16— I like to make a lot and freeze some, so feel free to halve or reduce amounts accordingly.
Serves 16
INGREDIENTS
2 cups jasmine rice
4 quarts chicken stock or water, plus more as needed
1-2 roast duck carcasses, cut into large pieces
1 tbsp salt
3 scallions, thinly sliced, plus more for garnish
½ tsp white pepper
1 tsp soy sauce
2-3 slices ginger
Sesame oil, for finishing
Chili crisp, for serving
Soft boiled eggs, optional
METHOD
Rinse rice until water runs clean. Add rice to a large pot or Dutch oven along with stock. Add duck pieces and ginger. Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer. Simmer for 34-45 minutes, uncovered until rice is soft. Add more stock as needed if jook becomes too stiff. Stir in scallions, white pepper and soy sauce. Fish out duck pieces and scrape meat off bones— discard bones and return meat back into to the congee. Serve warm with eggs, drizzle of sesame oil, chili crisp and garnish with scallions.
