Vietnamese Cháo Lòng Recipe

Instructions

1. Bring a pot of water to a boil.
2. Wash the pork bones under running water.
3. Put the bones into the boiling water, then wash the rice grains and add them into the water along with the onion.
4. Season with the fish sauce, chicken bouillon powder and salt.
5. Let it simmer on medium heat while the offal is prepared.
6. Stir the rice every 15 minutes then turn the heat down as it reaches the preferred consistency.
7. For the heart, remove then discard all the tough white parts and leave the deep red sections.
8. Rub 3 tbsp salt through the heart pieces and wash it off under cool water. Repeat 3 times.
9. Cut the kidney in half along its length and using a small knife slice off the webbing in the middle.
10. Add 2 tbsp salt and rub it into the kidney. Rinse under cool water, then repeat another 3 times.
11. Slice off the clumpy bits around the edges of the pig’s stomach. If the stomach is unclean, knead 1 tbsp salt into it for 30 seconds, then rinse and repeat 5 times.
12. Invert the stomach and wash it under hot water before scraping off any loose fat.
13. Flip it back to its original form and rub 1/4  cup vinegar through for another 2 minutes before washing it off with hot water.
14. As the offal is cleaned, place them in a colander to drip dry.
15. For the small intestines, pour 2 tbsp salt over them and knead it through.
16. Rinse using cold water and repeat 3 more times.
17. Bring a large pot of water to a boil and add all the offal.
18. Let them boil for 15 minutes, then pour everything out and rinse it thoroughly with cool water.
19. Clean the pot, refill it with fresh water and bring it back to a boil.
20. Repeat the boiling and rinsing another 2 more times with the small intestines and pig stomach but leave the heart, kidney and liver aside to cool.
21. On the third water change, let the intestines and stomach simmer on low-medium heat for another 1 hour or until tender.
22. When soft, drain them in a colander and let them cool.
23. Meanwhile, pour the 17 cups of water into a pot with 1/2 tsp salt.
24. Slice the blood jelly into rectangular prisms and pour the contents into the water.
25. Turn the heat up to high and let it come to a slow boil without the lid.
26. As soon as a layer of bubbles forms on the top, turn the heat off and put the lid on. The remaining heat will cook the blood jelly.
27. Scoop and discard the floating scum off the blood jelly water, then pour 2 cups of the remaining liquid into the pot of cooking congee.
28. This will slightly darken the Cháo lòng and add a layer of flavor.
29. Gently take each blood jelly piece out and cut them into smaller pieces.
30. Put them into the congee.
31. Thinly slice the heart, liver, kidney and pork stomach.
32. Cut the small intestines into 1 inch segments and snip off the white webbing.
33. Bring the heat up to high and pour all the offal into the cháo Lòng.
34. Stir it until well combined.
35. Serve hot.