I also drew this picture for you to show you what the garnishes on arroz caldo should look like. If you don't have calamansi, Philippine native lime, you can use lime or lemon.

On cold winter days, my Tito Maro — who used to pick my sister and me up after school — would surprise us with a big pot of arroz caldo waiting for us in the kitchen.

Min Min and I would eat about three bowls each and absolutely ruin our appetites for dinner, but we couldn’t stop.

Arroz caldo, a fragrant rice porridge with chicken, saffron and ginger, garnished with lime, fried garlic, scallions and fish sauce, just really hits the spot, no matter who you are or what culture you come from.

A little about the history of arroz caldo: it’s originally derived from the Chinese rice porridge dish, congee — and in Tagalog, it’s called lugau. But the Spanish settlers adapted it to their taste by adding saffron and renamed it something that they could understand — hence, arroz caldo — rice broth.

Recipe after the jump.

Recipe:

2 chicken thighs, cooked and shredded
1 qt chicken stock (hopefully, saved from the aforementioned chicken)
1 tsp saffron (a.k.a. “the good shit”)
2 tbs ginger, cut into large pieces (so people will see it while they’re eating it and take it out)
1 onion, sliced
2 cups of jasmine rice, cooked
fish sauce (to taste)
salt
pepper
olive oil (or chicken fat)
1 tsp peppercorns

Garnish:
6 cloves of garlic, minced and pan-fried until crisp
2 tbs chopped scallions
fish sauce
calamansi or lime

In a dutch oven (or a large pot, whatever), heat the oil (or chicken fat) and dump in the onions and garlic and peppercorns over medium heat and stir it around until the onions are soft and translucent. Season with salt and pepper.

Add in the rice, saffron, chicken and chicken stock. Bring to a boil, and then reduce to a simmer. Cover partially with the pot cover. Cook for an hour,  but every ten minutes, stir and add more liquid as necessary (at this point, if you’ve run out of chicken stock, add water).

The consistency should be like a creamy risotto — that’s why it’s key to KEEP STIRRING and adding liquid. Season to taste. Be liberal with the salt, pepper and fish sauce. The fish sauce shouldn’t be in-your-face, but it should give the dish a subtle depth.

To serve, put the garnishes on the table so everyone can put as much or as little as they’d like on top of their arroz caldo. Serve piping hot.