Arroz caldo always takes me back to those days when my mom would make it at home, or my dad would come back from the palengke with lugaw or arroz caldo in a clear plastic bag. Now, whenever my kids are sick, this warm and gingery rice porridge is one of the first things they ask for.
This easy version uses rotisserie chicken, so you skip the raw chicken prep but still get that slow-simmered flavor. Toss in the bones too, that’s where the broth gets its real richness.
One pot. About 40 minutes. Breakfast, snack or dinner, sorted, even better with pandesal on the side. If you're into chicken and rice comfort food beyond the Philippines, my Hainanese chicken rice is another one-pot favorite worth trying.
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Jump to:
- What Is Arroz Caldo?
- Why Rotisserie Chicken Works Here
- Ingredients
- How to Make Arroz Caldo with Rotisserie Chicken
- The Toppings Matter
- Variations
- Storage and Reheating
- Recipe FAQs
- More Leftover Rotisserie Chicken Recipes
- More Filipino Soups and Comfort Food
- Did you try this recipe?
- Easy Arroz Caldo with Rotisserie Chicken
What Is Arroz Caldo?
Arroz caldo (ah-ros kal-do) literally means “broth rice” in Spanish, but the dish is Filipino. It’s based on Chinese congee and made Filipino with ginger, garlic, fish sauce, and calamansi, with the Spanish name sticking from the colonial period.
It’s part of the lugaw family of rice porridges. Plain lugaw is basic rice porridge, arroz caldo is the chicken and ginger version, and goto is made with beef tripe.
People eat it for breakfast, late-night comfort, cold weather, and sick days.
Why Rotisserie Chicken Works Here
Purists will say arroz caldo should start with raw chicken so the flavor builds from the beginning. This version makes a different trade.
Rotisserie chicken is already roasted and seasoned, and the bones release collagen fast, so you get a rich broth in about 30 to 40 minutes instead of an hour plus. It’s also practical. One Costco chicken feeds dinner and leaves enough meat and bones for a full pot the next day.
Bone tip: Use the big pieces like the carcass and thigh or drumstick bones. Skip tiny rib bones since they’re annoying to fish out. Remove bones before serving.
Ingredients
- Garlic - Crushed, not minced.
- Onion - One medium onion, chopped. Builds the sweet base alongside the garlic.
- Ginger - Three thumb-sized pieces, cut into matchsticks. Ginger is non-negotiable in arroz caldo - it's what separates it from plain lugaw. Use fresh, not ground.
- Rotisserie chicken - About 2 cups of shredded or bite-sized meat, plus the large bones from the carcass. Pull the meat while the chicken is still slightly warm - it shreds more easily. Reserve the bones separately.
- Chicken broth - Two cans (about 4 cups). Low-sodium is better here since both chicken powder and fish sauce will add salt - starting with full-sodium broth and adding both seasoning agents can make the final dish very salty. Taste before adding any seasoning.
- Jasmine rice - Three-quarters cup. Long-grain jasmine rice cooks into tender grains that partially dissolve and thicken the broth without becoming completely smooth. It's the backbone of the porridge's body.
- Glutinous rice - One-quarter cup. Also called sticky rice, sweet rice, or malagkit in Filipino. In US grocery stores, look for it labeled as "sweet rice" or "mochiko" in the Asian foods aisle, or find it at any Asian grocery store.
- Chicken powder - Intensifies the broth.
- Patis (fish sauce) - The essential seasoning in Filipino cooking. Patis adds saltiness and umami depth that regular salt doesn't replicate.
- Green onions - Chopped, stirred in at the end and used as garnish. Fresh, not cooked through.
How to Make Arroz Caldo with Rotisserie Chicken
- Fry the garlic for topping. Before building the porridge, fry half your garlic in oil over medium heat until golden and crisp. Remove and set aside on a paper towel. This is the fried garlic topping - it finishes every bowl and matters more than it seems. Don't skip it.
- Sauté the aromatics. In the same pot over medium heat, sauté the remaining crushed garlic, chopped onion, and ginger matchsticks until the onion is soft and translucent and the ginger is fragrant, about 3-4 minutes. The kitchen should smell noticeably good at this point.
- Toast the rice. Add both the jasmine and glutinous rice to the pot and stir continuously for about 5 minutes. This is an important step: toasting the rice in the aromatic oil coats the grains and develops a light nuttiness, and it means the starch releases more gradually into the broth as it cooks - giving you a creamier, more cohesive porridge rather than a gluey one. Don't rush this step.
- Add broth, water, chicken, and bones. Pour in the chicken broth and water. Add the rotisserie chicken meat and the large reserved bones. Stir to combine. Bring to a boil, then reduce to a steady simmer over medium heat.
- Simmer until thick. Cook uncovered, stirring occasionally, for 20-25 minutes until the rice is fully cooked and the porridge has thickened to your liking. Stir more frequently toward the end to prevent the rice from sticking to the bottom. The porridge should be thick enough to coat a spoon but still pourable - it will continue to thicken as it sits.
- Season. Sprinkle in the chicken powder and add the fish sauce. Stir and taste. Adjust: more fish sauce for saltiness and depth, more water if too thick, a few more minutes of simmering if too thin.
- Remove bones and finish. Fish out and discard the bones. Stir in the chopped green onions.
- Serve. Ladle into bowls and top with reserved fried garlic, additional green onions, a halved jammy egg, and a wedge of calamansi or lemon.
The Toppings Matter
Arroz caldo isn’t complete without toppings. They’re part of the dish.
- Fried garlic: Non-negotiable. Fry sliced garlic until light golden, then drizzle a little garlic oil on each bowl.
- Jammy egg: A 7-minute egg is ideal, but hard-boiled works.
- Calamansi: A squeeze brightens and cuts the richness. Don’t skip the citrus.
- Patis (fish sauce): Serve on the side so everyone can season to taste.
- Chicharrón (pork cracklings): Optional, but adds a great crunch.
Variations
- Goto-style - Substitute half the chicken with cooked beef tripe (goto). This is a distinct dish in its own right in the Philippines, but the base technique is the same.
- Saffron or safflower arroz caldo - Traditional restaurant arroz caldo is often a golden yellow color from safflower (kasubha) or saffron added to the broth.
- Lemongrass arroz caldo - Add 2 stalks of lemongrass (bruised and tied in a knot) with the broth.
- Instant Pot version - Sauté aromatics and toast rice using the Sauté function. Add remaining ingredients, seal, and cook on High Pressure for 15 minutes. Quick release. The porridge will be thicker than stovetop - add water and stir on Sauté mode until it reaches the right consistency.
Storage and Reheating
Fridge: Up to 4 days airtight. It thickens, so add water or broth when reheating and stir until loosened.
Freezer: Up to 2 months. Thaw overnight, then reheat with extra liquid.
Remove bones before storing.
Recipe FAQs
The name is Spanish ("broth rice"), but the dish is Filipino - evolved from Chinese congee brought to the Philippines and adapted with local aromatics. The Spanish colonial period gave it the name; the cooking tradition is distinctly Filipino.
Lugaw is the umbrella term for Filipino rice porridge - plain, simply seasoned, often served with a soft-boiled egg. Arroz caldo is lugaw made with chicken and ginger, giving it a richer, more aromatic broth. Goto is the version made with beef tripe. All three are comfort food in the same family.
Glutinous rice (also called sticky rice, sweet rice, or malagkit) is a short-grain rice variety that becomes very sticky and slightly translucent when cooked. Despite the name, it contains no gluten. In US grocery stores, look for it labeled "sweet rice" or "mochiko" in the Asian foods aisle. Any Asian grocery store carries it. It's what gives arroz caldo its thick, clingy texture - regular jasmine rice alone won't produce the same result.
Yes, but the texture will be different - looser and more soup-like rather than thick and creamy. If glutinous rice is unavailable, sushi rice (short-grain Japanese rice) is the closest substitute.
Patis is Filipino fish sauce - fermented fish liquid that adds saltiness and deep umami to dishes. It smells strong in the bottle but mellows completely when cooked. Rufina Patis is the classic Filipino brand; Three Crabs (Thai) is a good alternative. Substitute with regular salt plus a splash of soy sauce if unavailable, though the depth won't be quite the same.
Calamansi is a small Filipino citrus - about the size of a kumquat, tasting like a cross between lime and mandarin. A squeeze over arroz caldo is traditional and important: the acidity brightens the whole bowl and cuts through the richness of the porridge. Substitute with lime (closest) or lemon. Find calamansi at Filipino and Asian grocery stores, or order via Weee!.
Yes, and it's specifically eaten for this purpose in Filipino households. The ginger is warming and anti-inflammatory, the broth is hydrating, and the rice is easy on the stomach. It's the Filipino version of chicken soup as medicine.
The glutinous rice continues absorbing liquid even after the heat is off. This is normal - just add water or broth and stir when reheating. There's no way to prevent it; adjust consistency each time you serve.
More Leftover Rotisserie Chicken Recipes
More Filipino Soups and Comfort Food
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Easy Arroz Caldo with Rotisserie Chicken
Equipment
- 1 medium pot
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon garlic crushed
- 1 medium onion chopped
- 3 thumbs of gingers sliced match sticks
- 2 cups rotisserie chicken cut into bite size pieces
- 4 cups Chicken broth
- 2 cups water
- ¾ cup jasmine rice
- ¼ cup glutinous rice
- 1 tablespoon chicken powder
- 2 tablespoon patis/ fish sauce
- 3 stalks of green onions
- 2 tablespoon olive oil
Instructions
- In a pot over medium heat, heat the oil, then sauté the crushed garlic, chopped onion, and sliced ginger until fragrant.1 tablespoon garlic, 1 medium onion, 2 tablespoon olive oil, 3 thumbs of gingers
- Add the rice and glutinous rice and stir for 5 minutes.¾ cup jasmine rice, ¼ cup glutinous rice
- Pour in the chicken broth, water, rotisserie chicken and bones (use only the large pieces so it's easier to remove it later). Let it simmer over medium heat until the rice grains are cooked and the mixture thickens.2 cups rotisserie chicken, 4 cups Chicken broth, 2 cups water
- Sprinkle chicken powder over the simmering mixture and add fish sauce (patis) for seasoning. Adjust the seasoning according to your taste preference.2 tablespoon patis/ fish sauce, 1 tablespoon chicken powder
- Once the rice is fully cooked and the porridge reaches the desired consistency, stir in chopped green onions.3 stalks of green onions
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Notes
- Use Quality Broth: For the best flavor, opt for high-quality chicken broth or homemade stock.
- Adjust Consistency: If you prefer a thinner consistency, add more broth as needed.
- Let It Rest: Allow the arroz caldo to sit for a few minutes before serving; this helps the flavors meld together.
Roselle says
This is easy to cook and best for cold weather. Flavorful and tasty, great recipe!
Rose Sioson says
Thanks Roselle!