I think that pine nut porridge is the queen of all the porridges! Beautifully white, mild in taste, warm and satisfying, I’ve never seen anybody who doesn’t like this porridge. The recipe is also very simple, made with just a few ingredients, and it’s super-nutritious! Pine nuts contain lots of protein, iron, magnesium, and are good to increase your energy level. They are made with a combination of protein, fiber, and healthy fats that are good for you.
Koreans have always considered jatjuk as a very precious dish, not only for the reasons above but because for a long time pine nuts have been very expensive in Korea. Also, grinding them into a porridge takes lot of labor in a mortar and pestle. For a long time it’s been a dish we give to our loved ones when they’re recovering from an illness or are in the hospital. It’s a wonderful thing to bring some jatjuk to someone in a thermos and say “This is for you.” It always makes them feel better.
Of course these days jatjuk is so much easier to make with a powerful, modern blender. I used to separate the tips from my pine nuts when I made this porridge, because the idea of them bothered me. But these days the blenders are so strong it just doesn’t make a difference. You can still see the old way I used to do it in my old video for this recipe from 2011.
I really like creamy jatjuk, it goes down smoothly. It looks soupy, but I recommend spooning it instead of drinking it, because I want you to enjoy the aftertaste. 1 spoon after, pause! And close your eyes just as I did in the video, to savor the taste. Oh yummy oh yummy. Do you taste a bit of the pine tree aroma there? Then start another spoon!
Ingredients
Serves 2
- ½ cup short grain rice (aka sushi rice) soaked in cold water for 1 hour
- ¼ cup pine nuts, rinsed and drained
- 3 cups water
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- 2 large jujubes and several pine nuts for garnish (optional)
Directions
- Drain the soaked rice and add it to your blender. Add the pine nuts and water. Blend for 1 to 2 minutes until smooth and milky.
- Transfer it to a medium heavy pot on the stove. Turn on the heat to medium high heat.
- Cook for about 5 minutes, stirring with a wooden spoon, until bubbles pop up and it gets thick.
- Add the salt and keep stirring for about 1 minute, until the porridge gets thinner and semi-translucent.
- Transfer it to a bowl and add the jujube garnish (if used) to the top of the porridge. Serve immediately, while it’s hot.
How to make a jujube garnish
- Put a jujube on your cutting board and press the blade of your knife into the jujube until you can feel it touching the seed.
- Pick up the jujube and use your knife to separate the fruit from the seed, turning the jujube around as you work.
- Flatten the jujube fruit onto your cutting board, sticky side up.
- Put some pine nuts into the jujube and press them in. Roll the jujube around the nuts.
- Squeeze it tightly in your fist a few times so it holds together.
- Cut the rolled up jujube crosswise into slices, to make little flowers.
Maangchi's Amazon picks for this recipe
It's always best to buy Korean items at your local Korean grocery store, but I know that's not always possible so I chose these products on Amazon for that are good quality. See more about how these items were chosen.
This has definitely become my favorite porridge. I have made it three times already.
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Awesome! It’s so easy to make and delicious!
My back yard had 2 pine trees :-)
This and the tongbaechu kimchi is an amazing pairing. Once again, you made our family happy and saited :-)
Thank you Maangchi!!!
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That looks awesome! Where did you find the pine needles? : )
I have a question:
Can I use glutinuous rice flour instead of rice? If so, how do I use it?
Thanks in advance!
Maangchi! Thank you for this recipe and your very clear instructions. I have been thinking about this dish since I first watched your video, and I finally made it last night. I used walnuts instead of pine nuts — would I call that “hodujuk”? — so it wasn’t the beautiful creamy color yours was, but the flavor and texture was very good. I will definitely make this again.
Sounds like you invented a new Korean dish!
I’m eating juk right now as I type this. I used your recipe, but modified it a little using my rice pudding recipe (because I didn’t have pine nuts). I followed your instructions, but rather than adding salt, I added three tablespoons of sugar, a 1/2 teaspoon of vanilla extract, and a teaspoon of cinnamon. And rather than 2 cups of water, I used 1 1/2 cups of water and 1/2 cup of cream. After the juk thickened up (anyone that tries this recipe, be patient, it does thicken quite nicely). I put in a bowl and garnished it with raisins, slivered almonds, and another dash of cinnamon. I’m in heaven right now! Thank you for this recipe. I plan to experiment more with it!
Maangchi, thank you so much for this site!! I had to comment when I saw this recipe for jatjuk. A few months ago, I watched a Korean drama called Jewel in the Palace/Dae Jang Geum (Korean: 대장금) and that really got me interested in Korean cuisine. There is a part in the show where the main character, Jang-Geum, is in a competition to see who can thread the most pine needles and pine nuts in the dark. This video made me think of that! I hope I can try out one of your recipes very soon. I just need to pick one and get the ingredients. Thank you for sharing your talents with us!
You are so ready to start Korean cooking now!
Good luck with your Korean cooking! Let me know how it goes.
Hi Maangchi,
Why do you remove the tips?
It looks better that way. You can leave them in if you want to.
Hi, for the Rice, can i use normal or even calrose rice (sushi rice)?
short grain rice is the same as sushi rice.
Very tasty! I added some honey in my plate and it was even better :)
I think this porridge can taste funny with some chocolate or vanille.
Loved it!
Thank you, Maangchi! :)
Great! ^^
This was AMAZING! Perfect flavor and consistency!
I have been using this recipe for many years. I can make jatjuk very easily. I’m glad to hear that you enjoyed this recipe, too! Happy cooking!
I just made this after a really bad day, and it is so good and calming! That you, Maanchi. :) It was also a really good arm work out – I will have biceps in no time if I make this regularly! Mine came out a little thick – I made two servings, so maybe I measured out too much rice! The taste is great, though. I now have a substitute for kongguksu when it gets cold outside. :) (I eat your kongguksu recipe every day! I love it so much, and I never get tired of it!) I am so glad you share your recipes with the world!
Thank you for your update! Check out the step 7 in this recipe please.
“It’ll get thicker in about 3 minutes. Add ½ ts of kosher salt, lower the heat to medium low, and stir for 5 more minutes. The porridge will get thinner and a little soupy.”
Hey, this look really good and easy. Reminds me of a rice soup my mom used to make long time ago. She makes it with rice, milk, water, salt. You add the milk after the rice has cooked, about 30 minutes and then you add the milk. It is also served for people who are sick with an upset stomach, children and babies. Ahhh, brings back memories. ☺
I made this using long grain rice and Italian pine nuts. I had a hard time finding pine nuts, by the way. I eventually found some at a Food Emporium on the Upper West Side.
Anyway, I wanted a thicker porridge so I didn’t grind the rice and pine nuts too fine. I ended up with a porridge the consistency of rice pudding. It was also a little beige, but that might be because I used long grain instead of short grain rice.
Thanks a bunch, Maangchi!
Next time if you make it again, use short grain rice. It will be more delicious.
안녕하세요.. Hi maangchi.. Thank you for creating this blog.. I found your blog yesterday and I almost read everything in this blog since then,,haha.. I think I’ll try one that easier to make this weekend,,wish me luck.. :)
Sure, I wish you tons of luck! : )
Could you use milk in this instead of water? How much would you use?
Adding milk instead of water? Good thinking! But I can’t give you the answer because I have never used milk in jatjuk. Leave your question on the forum. https://www.maangchi.com/talk/forum/general-discussion
You can probably do it with the same amount – tarakjuk is an old Royal porridge made very much like jatjuk but it uses milk instead of water
I guess I need a real blender. All of the shredded rice was left at the bottom. And the water wouldn’t thicken, just evaporate.
It was also very salty, but that was probably because it was mostly water with some starch probably. Thank you for the recipe though.
Hi! I was wondering should i add more pine nuts if it’s a little to small? Oh, and also wondering do i decrease all the ingredients portion size if i don’t need to much?
Maangchi,
Will this soup taste good a few hours later, if it’s kept in a thermos?
Thanks,
Anna
Anna, yes, you can keep it hot in a thermos and eat it in a few hours. It will still be delicious.
This soup is definitely a great meal for someone who is ill or recovering from an illness. It is very smooth, mild, and comforting.
The batch I made today was a lot thicker than Maangchi’s. I’m thinking that this is because either a.)I was too impatient, and/or b.)the only short-grain rice I had available was risotto rice, which is super super absorbent.
I feel like having the porridge now! Delicious!
Wow!! Just seeing this porridge, make me wanna cook it immediately and know what the feeling when im eating this spoon by spoon :). But suddenly i dunno where i can find the pine nut in my place. can i use almond or ginko or other recommended nuts to replace it? is the taste still good?
Using almond sounds good to me!
I want to make it one day. Right now I have a son, who is almost 5months old. He doesnt like instant rice cereal, been trying to feed him for 2 weeks now. He keep pushing the spoon away and it’s a big MESS every where!
But he loves fresh mixed fruits and home-made smash vegetables.
So I wanna make porridge, but your recipe has salt. But if I dont add salt would the “soup” get thinner or just thick?
Do you have any korean recipe for “baby food” I can make for my baby?
by the way how do I upload my picture on my profile? I dont see the link :(
Check out my porridge recipes here: https://www.maangchi.com/recipes/porridge
My doctor said not to feed babies anything but breastmilk (or baby formula) for at least 6 months!
Hi Monica.. If you see the comment posted by joolicious,, it is correct what the doctor said.. Actually,, it’s best for a 1-6 months old baby to eat nothing but breastmilk.. It’s called exclusive breastfeeding.. A gradual increase on the baby’s bodyweight (compare to bodyweight of other baby with same age) shows that you already gave him/her enough ammount of breastmilk..
But since you already gave him smashed vegetable you can try to give him this pine nut porridge little by little using spoon.. If he eat it well,,then it’s okay to continue.. And about the salt,,what’s the problem? Does your baby have an allergic to it? Maybe you can add sugar or milk to replace salt..
I hope it’ll help.. :)
Maangchi,
I just tried this recipe for my dad but my blender is not very good so it left chunks of nuts and rice :\ does the texture change the overall taste?
“..it left chunks of nuts and rice :\ does the texture change the overall taste?”
As long as the porridge is well cooked, it will be tasty.
I can’t go to the store until tomorrow to get pine nuts, but I really want to try this porridge right away! I think I will wait though, I don’t think the porridge will taste right without the pine nuts :( When I make it tomorrow I will take pictures and let you know how it turns out!
this would have been good to make when i had sore throat this past week , but either way , it looks delicious , and easy , and i am going to try making it sometimes soon .
:)
Hi my name is Top . Nice 2 meet u . I always watch u video on Youtube . I like u cooking style so much.
What a tasty, satisfying, handy and simple recipe. I like the subtle taste from the pine nuts. I use brown rice instead of white rice, and it turns out just right with this kind of rice.
oh, brown rice worked well? Great!
I made this last night immediately after viewing the video. So good! I ended up sprinkling a little sugar on top and we had small bowls for “desert”.
What are the little green balls in the photo?
awesome! The green balls are tomatillos.
Thanks for showing this recipe, I didn’t know how to make it. Have you ever tried it with short grain sweet brown rice? Maybe it takes slightly longer to cook. The pine needle and nut garnish is beautiful. Does it leave a pine taste?
I always think the best jatjuk is white, creamy, and a little soupy, but if you want to use brown sweet rice, go ahead, why not. : ) “Does it leave a pine taste?” if you try to feel the subtle fragrance, you may get it.
It never crossed my mind to blend rice to create a smooth porridge consistency. Thats a brilliant idea! A wild thought. I think if modified this recipe a little by adding in condensed milk or something, it might turn into a delicious desert too.
cute thought!
I’m curious if you can toast the pine nuts. Will it give the porridge a more pine nut flavor? I’ll give this recipe a try after going to the market to look for pine nuts. Thanks for sharing this recipe.
What a great idea!
It’s like Dae Jang Geum! This reminds me of the scene where the girls have to put the pine nuts on the end of the pine needles. Yum! I look forward to trying this recipe out.
totally! i also thought of Dae Jang Geum! ^_^
That looks sooo delicious and pretty, I can’t wait to cook it :).
I was wondering when you would post this recipe, but finally you did! :D
Thank you really much, and a happy new year (maybe a little bit late :D)!
yes, go ahead. Let me know how your jatjuk turns out. Never late to give a good wish! . Happy New Year to you! : )