Congee
By Shelly Rose Anti-inflammatory, Digestive Health, Fall, Gentle GI Dishes, Healing & Recovery, Winter
November 18, 2019
Congee is a soothing and savory rice porridge commonly served in Asian countries. You can certainly eat it just because any time of the year, but I especially like to make it on cold and slow wintery days, if a loved one is under the weather with very little appetite, or in a healing state (it's so gentle on the gut).
You can also serve this with a soft or hard boiled egg, shrimp, or fish. Some people even like to crack an egg into the congee and allow the egg to cook in that way. It really is a blank canvas so add whatever lights you up... like spices, roasted sweet potato, a splash of ume plum vinegar, gomasio seasoning, or seaweed.
If you want to make your own homemade Nourishing Bone Broth, try this recipe.
- Prep: 10 mins
- Cook: 1 hrs 30 mins
Ingredients
1 cup long grain white rice, well rinsed
6 cups bone broth or vegetable stock (or 2-3 more cups for soupier consistency)
3 inch knob of ginger, peeled, and thinnly sliced
3 cloves garlic, peeled and thinnly sliced
4 cups shiitake mushrooms, thinnly sliced
1 tbsp ghee, for cooking the mushrooms
2 cups raw spinach, torn with your hands
Directions
1Using a heavy-bottomed pot, like a dutch oven, combine: rice, water, ginger, garlic, and sea salt. Bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer, cover, and cook for about 90 minutes. Be sure to check on it and stir occasionally to make sure the rice isn't sticking to the bottom.
2Meanwhile, heat a pan over medium heat with fat of choice (ghee used here) and cook shiitakes for a few minutes, until crisp; add a pinch of sea salt. Remove from the pan and set them aside in a bowl as a topping.
3When congee is done, ladle into bowls, add a bit of spinach and stir to wilt it. Then add mushrooms, a splash of tamari, a drizzle of sesame or hot pepper oil, and a sprinkle of sesame seeds and fresh herbs to your liking.
4Store the rest in a sealed container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. Re-heat on the stop top by adding more stock and water as needed.