Place the chicken pieces in a large pan with the water, onion quarters and ginger. Add seasoning, bring to the boil and then simmer for 45—50 minutes, until the chicken is tender. Remove from the heat. Lift out the chicken, remove the meat and discard the skin and bones. Cut the chicken into bite-size pieces. Reserve the stock.

Strain the chicken stock into a clean pan and make it up to 1.75 litres (3 pints) 7 1/2 cups with water.

Add the rinsed rice to the chicken stock and stir continuously until it comes to the boil, to prevent the rice from settling on the base of the pan. Simmer gently for 20 minutes, without a lid. Stir, cover and cook for a further 20 minutes, stirring from time to time until the rice is soft and rather like a creamy risotto.

Stir the chicken pieces into the porridge and heat through for 5 minutes. Serve as it is, or with any of the garnishes and accompaniments suggested in the introduction.