Best Congee Recipes

CHICKEN CONGEE

Steps:

• Rinse and drain the rice.
• Put the rice in a pot with the chicken stock and bring to boil. Give the rice a good stir, scraping the bottom of the pan to prevent sticking, then lower the heat and half-cover the pan. Simmer gently for 1 1/2 to 2 hours, stirring every 15 minutes, until the grains have burst open and you have a thick congee. Keep an eye on the pot to make sure the rice doesn't stick to the bottom. Toward the end of cooking, when the stock has become integrated with the rice and is the consistency of oatmeal, season lightly with salt to taste.
• Serve the congee with a sprinkling of soy sauce, spring onion and ginger and a few drops of sesame oil to taste.

CHINESE PORRIDGE (CONGEE OR JOOK)

Steps:

• Place rice into a container and cover with several inches of cool water; let soak 8 hours to overnight. Drain.
• Soak dried mushrooms in a bowl of warm water until soft, about 20 minutes. Drain and slice into strips.
• Bring 4 cups water and drained rice to a boil in a pot. Cook until rice breaks down into a thick and mushy consistency, about 45 minutes. Transfer to a slow cooker.
• Bring 4 cups water and turkey carcass to a boil in a large pot. Simmer until broth forms, about 45 minutes. Skim fat from the surface of the broth.
• Strain turkey broth into the slow cooker. Pull meat off the carcass and shred; transfer to a bowl. Mix in soy sauce. Discard turkey bones.
• Stir mushrooms, 1 cup boiling water, garlic, salted turnip, and ginger into the slow cooker. Cover and cook on Low for 4 to 5 hours.
• Soak dried bean curd in a bowl of warm water until soft, about 10 minutes. Drain and rinse with running water. Break up bean curd into bite-sized pieces.
• Stir bean curd pieces into the slow cooker. Cook on High for 10 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.
• Spoon congee into individual bowls. Top with 2 tablespoons of turkey meat and peanuts.

CHINESE CHICKEN AND RICE PORRIDGE (CONGEE)

Steps:

• Bring chicken and water to a boil in a 5-quart heavy pot, skimming froth. Add wine, ginger, scallions, and salt and cook at a bare simmer, uncovered, 20 minutes, or until breast meat is just cooked through. Trasfer 1 breast half with tongs to a bowl and continue to cook stock at a bare simmer, skimming froth as neccessary, 2 hours and 40 minutes. Meanwhile, cool chicken breast long enough to remove skin and bones, returning skin and bones to stock.
• Cool breast meat completely and tear into shreds. Chill shreds, covered, and bring to room temperature before serving.
• Pour stock through a large seive into a large bowl and discard solids. (you should have about 8 cups: if less, add water; if more, cook longer after adding rice.) Return stock to cleaned pot and add rice. Bring to a boil and stir. Reduce heat to low and simmer, covered until consistency of oatmeal, about 1 3/4 hours, stirring frequently during last 1/2 hour of cooking. (Congee will continue to thicken as it stands. thin with water if necessary.)
• Season congee with salt. Serve topped with chicken and accompaniments.

CONGEE

Steps:

• Combine chicken stock, water, rice, 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar, fish sauce, ginger, salt, and sesame oil in a large stockpot; bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer until congee has thickened to the consistency of a light porridge, about 3 hours.
• Stir fish into congee and simmer until cooked through, about 10 minutes.
• Serve congee in bowls topped with pickled vegetables, roast pork, scallions, and peanuts. Drizzle 1/2 teaspoon vinegar and soy sauce over toppings.

VIETNAMESE CHICKEN AND LONG-GRAIN RICE CONGEE

Steps:

• Place chicken in a stock pot. Pour in enough water to cover chicken. Add ginger, lemon grass, and salt; bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover, and gently simmer for 1 hour to 1 1/2 hours.
• Strain broth, and return broth to stock pot. Let chicken cool, then remove bones and skin, and tear into bite-size pieces; set aside.
• Stir rice into broth, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium, and cook for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. If necessary, adjust with water or additional salt. The congee is done, but can be left to cook an additional 45 minutes for better consistency.
• Ladle congee into bowls, and top with chicken, cilantro, chives, and pepper. Squeeze lime juice to taste.

SLOW-COOKER CHICKEN CONGEE

Steps:

• Place chicken, stock, rice, chiles, ginger, garlic, and salt in slow cooker. Cover and cook on low 8 hours.
• Remove chiles and ginger. Stir, breaking up chicken into bite-size pieces. Divide congee among bowls. Serve with an assortment of toppings alongside.
• Do Ahead
• Congee can be made 3 days ahead; transfer to an airtight container and chill. Reheat in a large pot over medium, stirring in water as needed to loosen.

CONGEE (JOOK): ASIAN TURKEY RICE SOUP

Steps:

• Break up the carcass into a large soup pot or Dutch oven.
• Add the chicken broth and bring to a boil.
• Add the rice (it does not need to be washed first if it is American style).
• (The more rice you use, the thicker the soup will be.) Bring it again to a boil.
• Then turn down the heat and simmer until thickened (at least one hour).
• Remove the bones and scrape off any meat to return it to the pot.
• Add salt, pepper and soy sauce (sparingly) to taste.
• To serve: placed chopped green onions, soy sauce and sesame seed oil (a few drops) into a serving bowl.
• Ladle in the congee (jook) and use your choice of the garnishes to add flavor and color to the dish.

FILIPINO-STYLE CONGEE (LUGAW)

Steps:

• Bring water and rice to a boil in a large pot. Cook, stirring constantly, until rice is soft, about 25 minutes.
• Heat vegetable oil in a saucepan over medium heat. Cook and stir garlic in the hot oil until golden brown, 5 minutes. Transfer half of the garlic to a small bowl.
• Stir ginger into the garlic remaining in the saucepan; cook and stir until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add onion; cook and stir until softened, about 5 minutes. Add chicken; season with fish sauce and pepper. Cook and stir until chicken is no longer pink in the center, about 5 minutes.
• Stir chicken mixture into the rice. Dust annatto powder over rice using a strainer; stir until dissolved. Add hard-boiled eggs. Simmer on low, stirring constantly, until rice reaches a porridge-like consistency, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in spring onions.
• Garnish bowls of congee with reserved fried garlic.

EASY RICE CONGEE

Steps:

• Rice cooker: Dump all ingredients (except garnishes) into rice cooker, turn it on and stir occasionally, until congee is smooth and no longer grainy.
• Stovetop: Combine all ingredients (except garnishes) in a medium saucepan, bring to boil over medium heat then turn down heat and let simmer until water has been absorbed.
• Add more water/broth if necessary (for both methods)
• Sprinkle with black/white pepper, a few drops of sesame oil and chopped scallions just before serving.

CHICKEN-AND-MUSHROOM CONGEE

Steps:

• In a pot, bring chicken, broth, rice, half of ginger, scallion white and light-green parts, 1 1/2 teaspoons salt, and 4 cups water to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low; partially cover and simmer, stirring a few times, until chicken is just cooked through, about 20 minutes. Transfer chicken to a plate.
• Increase heat to medium and stir in mushrooms; boil, uncovered, until rice breaks down and mixture is creamy, about 20 minutes. Meanwhile, remove and discard skin and bones from chicken; shred meat into bite-size pieces. Remove ginger and scallions from congee; discard.
• Thinly slice scallion tops; thinly slice remaining half of ginger into matchstick-size pieces. Stir chicken meat and any accumulated juices into congee and serve topped with scallion tops, ginger, sesame oil, and chili sauce.

INSTANT POT® CHICKEN CONGEE (CHINESE RICE PORRIDGE)

Steps:

• Combine 1 1/2 cups chicken broth and rice in a bowl; set aside.
• Turn on a multi-functional pressure cooker (such as Instant Pot®) and select Saute function. Spray with cooking spray and add bacon. Saute until bacon is crisp, but not burned, about 5 minutes. Remove bacon to a paper towel-lined baking sheet to drain.
• Add onion, garlic, and ginger to the pot and cook in the bacon grease until onion is soft and translucent, 3 to 4 minutes. Remove 1/2 the onion mixture to a small bowl. Slowly pour in 1 cup chicken broth and scrape off any browned bits with a wooden spoon. Add chicken breasts to the pot and turn off Saute function.
• Close and lock the lid. Select high pressure according to manufacturer's instructions; set timer for 12 minutes. Allow 10 to 15 minutes for pressure to build.
• Release pressure carefully using the quick-release method according to manufacturer's instructions, about 5 minutes. Unlock and carefully remove the lid. Pour in rice and broth mixture. Close and seal the lid. Select the rice setting and cook for 12 minutes (should be preset).
• Release pressure carefully using the quick-release method according to manufacturer's instructions, about 5 minutes. Remove chicken breasts and shred with 2 forks. Return chicken to the pot. Add remaining onion mixture, chopped bacon, and sesame oil. Season with salt and pepper. Select the soup setting and add remaining chicken broth, 1/4 cup at a time (up to 1 1/2 cups), if desired. Simmer briefly until desired consistency is reached.

INSTANT POT CONGEE WITH CHICKEN AND MUSHROOMS

Steps:

• Combine 4 cups chicken broth, the rice, ginger, white and light green parts of the leek and 1/2 teaspoon salt in a 6-quart Instant Pot. Put on and lock the lid, making sure the steam valve is in the sealing position. Set the pot to pressure-cook on high for 20 minutes.
• Meanwhile, heat the vegetable oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the dark green parts of the leek and cook until they begin to soften, about 3 minutes. Add the mushrooms and 1/2 teaspoon salt and cook until the mushrooms are browned and the leeks are tender, about 5 minutes. Remove from the heat. Warm the remaining 3 cups chicken broth in the microwave.
• When the time is up on the Instant Pot, carefully turn the steam valve to the venting position and let the steam release. Carefully unlock and remove the lid. Stir in 2 cups warm chicken broth. Set the Instant Pot to sauté on normal and cook, stirring constantly, until the mixture has thickened to a porridge, 5 to 7 minutes. If the mixture thickens too much, stir in some of the remaining chicken broth. Season with salt, if needed.
• Divide the congee among bowls. Top with the shredded chicken, mushroom-leek mixture and soy sauce.

SLOW COOKER CHICKEN AND CORN CONGEE

Steps:

• Combine water, corn, chicken broth, jasmine rice, and chicken breast in a slow cooker.
• Cook on Low until chicken is very soft and rice is creamy, about 8 hours. Season with salt and white pepper. Drizzle sesame oil over each serving.

RICE PORRIDGE (CONGEE) WITH CENTURY EGG AND PORK (OR CHICKEN)

Steps:

• Soak the rinsed white rice, salt and vegetable oil in the cold water for 30 minutes.
• Add the ginger and chicken broth and bring to a boil, simmer for 25 minutes, stirring occasionally in the beginning and then more frequently near the last 10 minutes (to prevent sticking).
• Add the green onions, century eggs, and chicken or pork. Simmer for 5 minutes.
• Add the sesame oil and ground white pepper.
• Serve the congee in bowls and garnish with a tiny drizzle of the dark soy sauce (start with a tiny bit at first, add more later if desired) and garnish with some chopped green onions.
• Enjoy!

TURKEY AND RICE CONGEE (JOOK)

Steps:

• Put slow cooker liner into slow cooker.
• Place the rice, turkey wings, water, salt, ginger, carrots, celery, and mushrooms into the slow cooker.
• Stir well.
• Cover and cook on HIGH for 1 hour, then reduce the temperature to LOW and cook for 6 to 8 hours, until creamy, thick, and translucent white in consistency.
• Remove and discard the ginger.
• Remove the turkey wing and place on a plate to cool for 15 minutes.
• Remove and discard the skin.
• Pick the meat off the bones and discard the bones; return the meat to the soup.
• Taste test; add soy sauce and sesame oil.
• Keep WARM until ready to serve, with bowls of cilantro, green onion, and peanuts on the side for garnish choices.

INSTANT POT® CHICKEN CONGEE

Steps:

• Rinse rice under cold running water until the water runs clear. Set aside.
• Turn on a multi-functional pressure cooker (such as Instant Pot®) and select Saute function. Heat oil and brown chicken on all sides, about 8 minutes, making sure each side is browned before flipping. Add a few tablespoons of chicken broth to the Instant Pot® and scrape off any browned bits from the bottom with a wooden spatula. Turn off Saute function. Add drained rice, ginger, and remaining broth.
• Cut the kernels from the corn cob and break cob into 3 pieces. Add corn kernels and cob pieces to the pot. Close and seal the lid. Select Porridge function and set timer for 30 minutes. Allow 10 to 15 minutes for pressure to build.
• Release pressure using the natural-release method according to manufacturer's instructions, about 15 minutes. Open the lid and discard the corn cob pieces. Remove chicken breast. Shred chicken with two forks and return to the congee. Season with salt and pepper and mix well.
• Divide congee amongst 6 bowls. Top each bowl with equal amounts of sliced spring onions, sesame seeds, and chili crisp.

TURKEY CONGEE WITH CRISPY SHIITAKE MUSHROOMS

Steps:

• Bring turkey, onion, ginger, cinnamon, star anise, and 14 cups cold water to a boil in a large heavy pot. Reduce heat and simmer gently, turning turkey over halfway through, until liquid is reduced to 8 cups, 50-65 minutes. Discard carcass; strain stock through a fine-mesh sieve into a medium saucepan.
• Add rice to stock and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer, stirring occasionally, until soup begins to thicken, 35-45 minutes (make sure to stir the bottom of pot to prevent rice from sticking). Continue to cook, stirring constantly, until rice begins to break into smaller pieces and mixture resembles the consistency of oatmeal, 10-15 minutes longer; season congee with salt.
• Meanwhile, heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high. Cook mushrooms, tossing occasionally, until browned and crisp, 6-8 minutes. Remove from heat and add soy sauce; season generously with pepper.
• Divide congee among bowls. Top with crispy mushrooms and cilantro and drizzle with chili oil.

CHINESE FISH CONGEE

Steps:

• Combine water and rice in a large pot over high heat. Bring to a boil; simmer for 5 minutes. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer until rice is tender, about 30 minutes.
• Combine fish, ginger, spring onion, chicken bouillon granules, and pepper in a bowl. Let marinate for 15 minutes.
• Stir fish mixture into the pot. Simmer gently until rice is very soft and fish is falling apart, about 20 minutes. Season with parsley and salt.

THANKSGIVING TURKEY CONGEE

Steps:

• Place dried scallops and dried mushrooms in a bowl; pour in hot water to cover and let stand to rehydrate, about 10 minutes. Rinse and drain rice; set aside.
• Separate any meat from bones of turkey carcass; set aside. Place bones and 9 cups hot water in a large stockpot and bring to a boil. Drain mushrooms and scallops; squeeze out any excess water. Break scallops into smaller pieces; slice mushrooms thinly.
• Stir scallops, mushrooms, rice, and turkey meat into the stockpot; reduce heat to allow congee to simmer, partially covered, stirring occasionally for a smooth congee, until rice is tender and congee is thick, about 2 hours. If you like a thinner congee, stir in hot water a few tablespoons at a time.
• Ladle congee into individual bowls; top each bowl with cilantro, green onions, ginger, peanuts, red onion, sesame oil, and white pepper as desired.

PORK AND CENTURY EGG RICE CONGEE

Steps:

• Rinse the rice in several changes of cold water. Drain completely in a mesh strainer and place into a large pot. Stir the vegetable oil into the rice and set aside for 10 minutes.
• Stir 6 cups of water, the bouillon cube, char siu, and green onion into the rice. Bring to a boil over high heat; reduce heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer 1 1/2 hours. Stir frequently as the rice cooks to help break the rice grains apart and keep it from burning on the bottom.
• Stir in the remaining 2 cups of water and the century egg. Continue cooking another 1 1/2 hours, stirring frequently until the congee reaches your desired consistency. The congee is ready when the individual grains of rice are no longer discernable and have thickened the soup.