Sizzling Rice Soup is a classic Chinese soup recipe with light flavorful broth, a mixture of proteins and vegetables and crispy puffed rice that sizzles and pops when added to the soup.
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Sizzling rice soup recipe
If you can be lucky to find an authentic restaurant near you who serves sizzling rice soup be sure to check them out! But this sizzling rice soup recipe is a great alternative when you want to make it at home.
Sizzling rice soup is gluten free and super adaptable to whatever mix of fresh vegetables and proteins you have on hand. It’s traditionally served with a mixture of chicken and shrimp, mushrooms and a variety of fresh vegetables.
But you can make it with chicken, pork, vegetarian, or with any mix of ingredients you’d like.
This recipe was created for my local Genuine Skagit Valley farm stands to showcase the beautiful work of local producers and give an idea of what to do with the abundant bounty of produce available in the spring and summer. So I used loads of different garden fresh peas and prawns for sustenance.
The only thing you absolutely must have in your sizzling rice soup is the crispy rice. But knowing how to make the rice for sizzling rice soup is what prevents most people from making it at home.
But really it’s easy and a great way to use leftover rice to prevent it from going to waste. I just know once you learn how to make it you’ll see how easy it actually is and want to make sizzling rice soup all the time!
Ingredients
- Vegetables – the recipe calls for broccolini, carrots and a ton of mixed garden peas but any vegetable can be substituted. Make it with broccoli, carrots, cabbage, celery, zucchini, mushrooms, baby corn, whatever you have! Just make sure to keep it to around 3 cups of vegetables total.
- Shrimp – or prawns, cleaned, shelled and tails removed. Or substitute chicken, pork, or omit entirely to make a vegetarian soup instead.
- Liquid – this recipe calls for chicken stock and water but you can use vegetable stock, shrimp stock, broth or water if you’d like.
- Garlic
- Fresh basil
- Soy sauce
- Cornstarch
- Toasted sesame oil
- Red pepper flakes
- Light cooking oil
How to make rice for sizzling rice soup
To make crispy rice for sizzling rice soup simply dry cooked, cooled rice on a sheet pan then break into pieces and fry in hot oil until puffy. Add to the soup while still hot and listen to the sizzle!
Step by step instructions
- Make dried rice for sizzling rice soup up to four weeks ahead of time.
- Toss jumbo shrimp with cornstarch and soy to season and allow them to get velvety about 10 minutes.
- Then add velveted jumbo shrimp to a hot skillet with oil and cook over high heat, stirring constantly until opaque, about 1 – 3 minutes depending on size.
- Remove prawns and set aside for later.
- Wipe out pan and return to heat and repeat with vegetables again in a hot pan with oil.
- Meanwhile, whisk chicken stock, water and cornstarch smooth, add to pan with vegetables and bring to a simmer.
- Return shrimp to pan and stir in basil leaves and sesame oil. Season to taste with salt and pepper and reduce heat to low to keep warm while you make the rice for sizzling rice soup.
- In a large frying pan heat oil to frying temperature of 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Add pieces of the dried rice to hot oil and fry until puffy, flipping if needed.
- Add soup to bowls and immediately transfer fried puffed rice to the bowls of soup for maximum sizzle. It’s the hot oil hitting the warm soup that creates the most impressive sizzle. Or you can also store the puffed rice on a paper towel lined sheet until ready to serve and this soup will still be just as delicious.
- Enjoy!
How to serve
For the most sizzle and pop it’s best to keep the soup warm on low heat while frying the puffed rice. Then fill bowls and add the hot rice directly to the bowls of warm soup.
Or you can fry all the puffed rice squares and serve family style at the table. Although there will not be as much sizzle, it will still be a very delicious light soup recipe.
Yield
This sizzling rice soup recipe yields 4 servings. But can easily be adjusted to serve more or less in the recipe card below.
How to store
Dried rice can be stored for up to four weeks. It’s best to fry the dried rice immediately before serving. But puffed rice squares can be stored separately from the soup in an airtight container for up to three days.
The soup can be stored for up to three days covered in the refrigerator as well.
📖 Recipe
Ingredients
Crispy rice
- 1 cup white rice short to medium grain
- 1 ¼ cups water
- 2 cups canola oil or other frying oil
Sizzling Rice Soup
- 4 ounces shrimp or prawns, cleaned, peeled, tails removed
- 2 tablespoons soy sauce divided
- 2 tablespoons cornstarch divided
- 2 tablespoons canola oil or other light cooking oil
- 2 cups snap peas
- 1 large carrot cut into rounds or sliced into ribbons
- 1 bunch broccolini tops and stems separated and sliced into bite sized pieces
- 3 cloves garlic thinly sliced
- ⅛ teaspoon red pepper flakes
- 1 large scallion thinly sliced in rounds or ribbons
- 4 cups chicken stock
- 1 cup water
- 1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil
- ¼ cup fresh basil leaves
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Up to four weeks ahead of time make dried rice patties for puffed crispy rice. Cook rice according to package directions, then spread cooked rice ¼“ thick on a baking sheet. Cool then roughly divide into 8 rectangles before baking for an hour in a 300-degree Fahrenheit oven until dried. Cool then store tightly covered until ready to puff.1 cup white rice, 1 ¼ cups water
- Toss shrimp with half the soy sauce soy and half the cornstarch and allow to sit for up to 10 minutes to get velvety.4 ounces shrimp, 2 tablespoons soy sauce, 2 tablespoons cornstarch
- When ready to cook heat half the canola oil in a large saucepan over high heat until shimmering. Add velveted shrimp and cook, stirring constantly, until just opaque around 1 minute. Remove from heat and place shrimp aside for later. Wipe pan clean and return to stovetop over medium high heat.2 tablespoons canola oil
- Add remaining cooking oil to the pan and heat until shimmering. Then add carrots, broccolini stems and any other vegetables with longer cooking times, like mushrooms and cabbage (if using). Stir fry until slightly charred, about a minute, then add garlic and red pepper flakes. Cook until fragrant.1 large carrot, 1 bunch broccolini, 3 cloves garlic, ⅛ teaspoon red pepper flakes
- Combine remaining soy sauce and cornstarch with chicken stock and water in a large bowl. Whisk smooth then add to saucepan with vegetables and bring to a simmer.4 cups chicken stock, 1 cup water
- Meanwhile, start heating at least ½” of cooking oil over high heat so that the oil will reach frying temperature at roughly the same time that the soup is done.2 cups canola oil
- Once soup is simmering add broccolini tops and cooked shrimp and return to a simmer.
- Lastly add the peas, scallions, basil leaves and any other tender vegetables like leafy greens and herbs.2 cups snap peas, ¼ cup fresh basil leaves, 1 large scallion
- Stir in sesame oil and season to taste with salt and pepper and keep warm while the rice squares puff.1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil, salt and pepper
- Once frying oil reaches 350 degrees fry the dried toasted rice in preheated oil until puffed.
- Then serve by topping bowls of soup with the freshly fried puffed rice.
Nutrition
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