Hodu-juk (Walnut Porridge)

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •Heavy 3-quart pot
• •Blender
• •Fine-mesh sieve
• •Clean kitchen towel
• •Small paring knife
• •Wooden spoon or heatproof spatula

Instructions

1. 1

   Soak the rice

   Rinse the rice in several changes of cool water until the water runs mostly clear, then soak it in fresh cool water for 1 hour. Drain it well for 10 minutes before grinding. Soaked rice breaks evenly under the blender blade and cooks into a smooth juk (rice porridge) instead of leaving hard little flecks.

   You can soak the rice overnight in the refrigerator. That is a safe corner to cut on the day you cook; skipping the soak is not.
2. 2

   Blanch the walnuts

   Put the walnuts in a heatproof bowl and pour the boiling water over them. Let them sit 3 minutes, then drain. While they are still warm, rub them in a clean kitchen towel and pick away the brown skins with your fingers or a small knife. Reserve 1 tablespoon of the peeled walnuts and chop them finely for garnish.

   This is the labor of the dish. The skins carry tannin, and tannin makes the porridge bitter and gray. For a weekday breakfast, remove most of the skins. For an elder or someone recovering, be patient and remove nearly all of them.
3. 3

   Grind separately

   Blend the drained rice with 1 cup of the measured water for 20 to 30 seconds, until it looks like fine wet sand, not a paste. Blend the peeled walnuts with 2 cups of the measured water for 60 to 75 seconds, until milky and pale. Strain the walnut milk through a fine sieve, pressing gently, and scrape any fine cream from the underside of the sieve back into the bowl. Rice and walnuts are ground separately because rice needs longer cooking, while walnuts scorch and split if they are pushed too hard.

4. 4

   Cook the rice

   Put the remaining 2 1/2 cups water in a heavy pot and bring it to a gentle simmer. Whisk in the rice slurry, then lower the heat to medium-low and cook 18 to 22 minutes, stirring often and scraping the bottom of the pot. The raw, chalky smell should disappear, and the porridge should thicken enough that the spoon leaves a soft trail for one breath.

5. 5

   Add walnut milk

   Lower the heat. Stir in the walnut milk in three additions, mixing well after each one so the porridge stays smooth. Cook 8 to 10 minutes more, stirring almost constantly near the end. Do not let it boil hard. Walnut oil is delicate, and rough heat makes the bottom catch before the top looks done. If the porridge turns too thick, stir in warm water 2 tablespoons at a time.

6. 6

   Season and serve

   Stir in the salt and, if you want the faintly sweet breakfast version, the sugar. Taste after the salt dissolves. The salt should make the walnut clearer, not salty, and the sugar should barely announce itself. Rest off the heat for 3 minutes, then ladle into bowls. Top with the reserved chopped walnut, pine nuts, and jujube threads if using. Serve with dongchimi or mild kimchi, because a little clean acidity keeps the rich bowl from feeling heavy.

Chef Tips

• •Buy raw, unsalted walnuts and smell them before you cook. Old walnuts smell like bitter oil or paint, and no amount of sugar will fix that. Toasted walnuts make a darker, stronger porridge; for hodu-juk, use raw ones.
• •The blender is a modern vessel, and it is welcome here. The standard is not the tool, it is the texture: rice ground fine enough to cook smooth, walnuts ground fine enough to turn the water milky.
• •Season at the end. If you salt early, you will keep correcting a pot that is still reducing. Half a teaspoon is enough for this batch; add only another pinch at the table if the walnuts taste flat.
• •Finished juk thickens as it sits. Loosen it with warm water, never cold water straight from the tap, and stir over low heat until it returns to a spoonable cream.

Advance Preparation

• •The rice can be soaked overnight in the refrigerator and drained just before grinding.
• •The walnuts can be blanched and peeled 1 day ahead. Keep them covered in the refrigerator in an airtight container and use them before their oil turns stale.
• •Cooked hodu-juk keeps 2 days refrigerated. Reheat gently with 1/4 to 1/2 cup warm water per 2 cups porridge, stirring from the bottom so the walnut does not catch.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 390g)