A preparation of cooked jasmine rice (usually leftover) simmered in a clear pork or chicken broth until the rice grains have swelled and partially dissolved into the broth, producing a clean, soft, porridge-like consistency — garnished with ginger, spring onion, fried garlic, white pepper, and a poached egg. Khao tom is the Thai breakfast soup and the dish eaten by hospital patients and those recovering from illness — its blandness is a form of gentleness, its clarity a form of precision. Thompson's treatment in Thai Street Food covers the Bangkok street food version, served with small side dishes of preserved vegetables and fried fish.
**The rice:** Day-old rice is preferred — its firmed starch structure breaks down more gradually in the simmering broth, producing a more controlled consistency than freshly cooked rice. **The broth:** - Clean, clear pork or chicken stock. - Seasoned with fish sauce and white pepper only — no other aromatic additions. - The broth must taste deeply of the stock's natural flavour. Khao tom does not compensate for a weak stock with seasonings. **The simmering:** 1. Bring stock to a gentle simmer. Add the cooked rice. 2. Simmer for 10–15 minutes — the rice grains will swell and some will begin to break down into the broth, slightly thickening it. 3. The correct consistency: each spoonful holds together slightly from the released starch but the broth is still clearly liquid — not porridge, not soup with intact rice grains floating in clear broth. Between both. 4. Season with fish sauce. 5. Serve in a bowl with ginger (raw, finely cut), spring onion, fried garlic (crisp), white pepper ground at the table, a drizzle of sesame oil (optional), and a poached or coddled egg on top.
David Thompson, *Thai Food* (2002); *Thai Street Food* (2010)