Korean•healthy

Jatjuk (Pine Nut Porridge)

Made with finely ground rice and pine nuts, jatjuk (잣죽) is a nutritious porridge that's creamy, delicately nutty, and comforting!

Ingredients

Quantities are shown as originally provided.

1 cup short grain rice
1 cup pine nuts (more for optional garnish) (You can use 1/2 or 2/3 cup if you like. )
3 cups water
salt
1 daechu (대추, jujube) - optional garnish

1
Rinse the rice, soak for an hour or longer, and drain.
2
Rinse the pine nuts under cold water. Toast them in a dry pan over medium low heat, shaking the pan often, for 3 to 4 minutes for a light toasting. Don't brown them. You can skip this process if you like.
3
In a blender, blend the soaked rice and pine nuts with 2 cups of water until it turns like milky liquid, about 30 seconds. It can be longer, depending on the blender.
4
Pour the rice and pine nut water into a pot. Use the remaining 1 cup of water to to swish out the remaining rice and pine nut sediments and add to the pot.
5
Turn the heat to medium. Stir gently but frequently along the bottom of the pot for about 6 minutes. The mixture will clump and thicken significantly.
6
Reduce the heat to medium low. Let it simmer, stirring occasionally, for 15 minutes or longer. The clumps will gradually break apart, and the porridge will develop a smooth, thick texture, eventually becoming thinner with a nice, flowy consistency. Don’t cut down the cooking time. Wait until the last 3 or 4 minutes to add more water to thin the porridge, if needed.
7
You can salt at the last minute if you’re serving the entire pot. Otherwise, serve salt on the side so the diner(s) can add at the table.