Champorado (Filipino Chocolate Rice Porridge) (2024)

Champorado is a Filipino chocolate rice porridge that is traditionally served for breakfast.

Filipino Champorado

What is champorado?

Believe it or, champorado (Filipino chocolate rice porridge) is traditionally served for breakfast.

Chocolate for breakfast may sound like a dream, but there’s a caveat.

It’s typically served with tuyo (dried salted fish). I dare you to Google image search it!

As a result of the dried fish clause, I didn’t eat champorado as much as I wanted to as a kid.

On the occasions when the fish wasn’t around, I happily devoured bowls and bowls of this chocolatey goodness with a generous amount of sweetened condensed milk on top.

Is champorado sweet?

While chocolate is the main ingredient of this dish, it’s not very sweet.

Rather, this porridge highlights the complexities of dark chocolate.

Much of the sweetness and creaminess comes from the milk drizzled on top.

[P.S. Luckily, during my summer study aboard in the Philippines, I learned that champorado is also often enjoyed with pan de sal(Filipino bread rolls).]

Type of rice used

Champorado is made with glutinous rice (aka sweet rice, sticky rice or malagkit).

It’s a type of short grain rice known for its high starch content.

You can see the difference between jasmine rice (medium/long-grain rice) and glutinous rice in the photo above.

Short grain rice is less translucent in color because of its starch content.

It has been raining more than usual in Los Angeles.

I usually make a pot ofchicken arroz caldoto warm up. But when I need something more comforting, I turn to champorado.

To me, it tastes like childhood and feels like a giant bear hug.

Luckily, it’s SUPER easy and QUICK to make. 30 minutes max, I promise.

Type of chocolate used in Champorado:

Traditionally, this dish is made with cacao tablea.

You can find it at most Latin markets. They’re little disks of unsweetened or very dark chocolate.

It’s the same type of chocolate used to make Filipino hot chocolate (tsokolate).

Since I don’t normally have that on hand, I’ve found a great substitute. This mixture of dutch processed unsweetened cocoa powder and 90% dark chocolate is perfect.

As a child, I couldn’t understand why on Earth you’d want to eat chocolate rice porridge with fish.

It makes sense now. The rich dark chocolate pairs wonderfully with salted fish.

I’m still against adding fish.

However, I do like to sprinkle a little finishing sea salt on top before serving.

I also add cocoa nibs for a pop of crunch and textural variety.