Jok (bouillie de riz thaïlandaise)

Rinse and crack the rice

Rinse the rice in a sieve under cold water until the water runs clear, then drain well. Pulse it 4–5 times in a blender or crush lightly in a mortar, just enough to break each grain into 2–3 pieces — this small trick is what gives jok its soft, creamy, almost dissolved texture instead of whole grains.

• 150 g jasmine rice

✅ C'est prêt quand : the grains look roughly broken, not ground to a powder

Simmer the porridge base

Put the cracked rice and chicken stock in a heavy pot and bring to a boil, then lower the heat to a gentle simmer. Cook uncovered for 30–35 minutes, stirring every few minutes so it doesn't catch on the bottom, until the rice breaks down into a thick, pourable porridge.

• 150 g jasmine rice (from step 1)
• 1.5 litre chicken stock

✅ C'est prêt quand : the porridge coats the back of a spoon thickly but still pours; grains are fully soft

Season the pork

While the porridge simmers, mix the minced pork with the soy sauce, fish sauce and white pepper in a bowl. Let it sit for 10 minutes so the seasoning works all the way through the meat.

• 300 g minced pork
• 1 tbsp light soy sauce
• 1 tbsp fish sauce
• 1/2 tsp white pepper

✅ C'est prêt quand : the pork looks glossy and evenly coated, with no dry patches

Fry the garlic

Heat the oil in a small pan over medium-low heat, about 150°C (300°F), and add the garlic. Fry gently, stirring often, until golden and crisp — watch closely in the last minute, as it can go from golden to burnt very fast. Lift it out onto a paper towel and save the garlicky oil to drizzle at the end.

• 4 cloves garlic
• 3 tbsp vegetable oil

✅ C'est prêt quand : the garlic is golden brown and crunchy, not pale and not dark brown

Cook pork with ginger

Drop the seasoned pork into the simmering porridge in small, loose clumps rather than one big lump, so it cooks through evenly and stays tender. Stir in most of the ginger, keeping a little back for garnish, and simmer for 4–5 minutes until the pork is fully cooked through with no pink left inside.

• 300 g seasoned pork (from step 3)
• 40 g ginger

✅ C'est prêt quand : the pork is opaque and fully cooked, and the porridge is back to a gentle simmer

Poach the eggs

Bring a separate small pot of water to a gentle simmer and add the vinegar, which helps the egg white hold its shape. Crack each egg into a cup first, then slide it gently into the water and poach for about 3 minutes, until the white is fully set but the yolk is still soft.

• 4 eggs
• 1 tbsp white vinegar

✅ C'est prêt quand : the white is completely set and the yolk still feels soft when pressed gently

Assemble and serve

Ladle the hot porridge into bowls and top each one with a poached egg, the reserved ginger, spring onions, cilantro and the crisp fried garlic with a spoonful of its oil. Bring extra fish sauce and white pepper to the table so everyone can season their own bowl.

• 4 spring onions
• 15 g cilantro
• to taste fish sauce, extra
• to taste white pepper, extra