Kao Tom (Thai Breakfast Soup)

(2 servings)

  • 2 cups light chicken stock
  • 1/4 cup ground pork
  • 1/2 cup cooked rice
  • 2 eggs
  • nam pla (a salty fermented fish sauce) - to taste
In a medium saucepan, bring chicken stock to a rolling boil. Add pork. Let mixture return to a boil, breaking up pork with a fork as it does. Reduce heat to low. Stir in the cooked rice. Cover and allow to simmer up to five minutes - stirring occasionally. Add nam pla to taste. Increase heat and bring soup back to boil.

(Warning from Mr Breakfast: This next step isn't recommended from a food safety standpoint. It's the authentic way to make this Thai dish. You may want to play it safe and pre-poach your eggs to assure they are fully cooked.)

Take 2 serving bowls and carefully break a whole egg in each dish. Ladle boiling soup over the eggs.

Add any of the following ingredients according to your tastes: Thai chili, ginger, green onion and/or cilantro.

Cover the bowls and allow soup to stand for two minutes.


Basically a thick and spicy chicken soup over poached eggs, kao tom is a traditional breakfast dish in Thailand.


Mr Breakfast would like to thank chinho for this recipe.

Recipe number 1631. Submitted 1/15/2006.