Congee: the gentle porridge
Congee is a savory porridge that has been prescribed for centuries as a traditional therapeutic food in parts of Asia to those recovering their health after taxing illnesses. In East Asian Medicine practices, acupuncturists and herbalists often recommend this food as a supportive lifestyle shift alongside their clinical treatments. I have been a big fan ever since my early twenties when my own practitioner instructed me on the basic guidelines and encouraged me to begin incorporating the meal into my weeks.
Congee (pronounce “con”/“gee” like gee-wiz!) is served steaming hot and can have a wide array of ingredients depending on the season, taste preference, as well the person’s unique “pattern of disharmony” we seek to bring into balance . I often enjoy congee for breakfast and no two bowls will look or taste the same! I may get a bit carried away with my condiments , but I always aim to keep the dish as a whole easy to digest.
One of the main principles of congee is to ‘warm the middle’, alleviate strain on the digestive process, and tonify the Spleen. The Spleen is the organ who transforms our food into available energy so that our body can build enough Blood and Qi (energy) to circulate and support a resilient state of health. Just as you wouldn’t want to throw cold water onto a fire or a furnace that keeps a kitchen warm and thriving, the Spleen dislikes the shock and challenge of cold foods and drinks. The warm, nourishing bowls of congee are a welcome change from many of the foods we like to consume on the daily: cold smoothies, iced coffees, ice cream, raw salads...
Congee is not only recommended for those who are recovering from illness, though it could certainly give chicken noodle soup a run for its money! It is a helpful dish for those who are generally blood deficient (your’s truly), have poor digestion, bloating or loose stools, as well as those who often feel tired with low energy, feel foggy headed, or where physical stamina is diminished. If you play with enjoying this meal several mornings a week instead of your cereal or cold smoothie, see if you notice any changes in how you feel over time!
Congee, jook, savory porridge…variations of this dish appear in many traditional food cultures alongside many names and methods of preparation. It is very forgiving, so give it a try! Below, you will find a simple congee recipe that roughly follows my own methods of preparation. You are welcome to try it out for yourself, share with others, and make changes. I love assembling all the elements in a bowl as if it were a piece of art before mixing it all together. There have certainly been some mornings where arranging the toppings feels like creating a wabi sabi breakfast mandala.
Cailin’s Congee Recipe
The Porridge:
1/4-1/2 cup short grain white rice*
5 cups liquid (water or mild broth of your choosing. I like bone broth or a low-sodium chicken broth)
1 inch nubbin of fresh ginger root, sliced
(Pot with a nice-fitting lid OR a small crockpot)
Optional:
Dried astragalus root. Huang Qi (five small pieces/pinches)
Dried red jujube dates, or medjool dates (with the pits in). Da Zao (2-3)
Goji berries, also called wolf berries . Gou Qi Zi (small handful)
Whole chicken, chicken breasts or thighs (make sure there’s enough liquid to cover the meat in the cooking vessel)
Instructions:
Rinse the rice in water until the water is no longer cloudy. Add the rice, water, and ginger root to your cooking vessel of choice. If you want to add some foods that have therapeutic properties of supporting Spleen Qi and nourishing Blood, you can add the optional ingredients at this time as well. Just remember if you are adding dates with pits in them, you will be mindful of finding them in your porridge come breakfast time. The pits have therapeutic properties themselves, so I like to keep the dates whole during the cooking process. If I am wanting more protein to the congee meals, I will add chicken at the beginning, later shredding the meat and returning it to the pot.
Stove-top: bring to a boil, cover the pot and reduce to a simmer and leave on low for 1.5 to 2 hours, checking occasionally to stir if you think of it. As the grains cook and begin to absorb the liquid, they will eventually swell and burst. Cooking low and slow will result in a somewhat sticky or “gloopy” porridge consistency that is very easy to digest.
Crockpot: This is the approach I use the most. Before going to bed, I add all of the porridge ingredients, cover and set to LOW. In the morning, I wake to find a nice, thick congee already warm and ready for toppings.
*Substitute or mix grains in with the rice such as millet, ground corn, or oats. When looking at qualities of rice, look to see that the grains are intact and not many are cracked. I also tend to look for rice varieties that have even just slightly higher protein quantities. For this reason I will sometimes use sushi rice or Arborio, but starting off with a standard short grain white rice is nice.
The Toppings:
You could easily enjoy a bowl of the congee without toppings once it is done cooking. It is a mild base that you may find a bit bland, which is where chicken stock or bone broth can do a nice job adding more depth to flavor. My recommendation with toppings is to start simple and progress from there if you desire more complexity and if your digestion can accommodate it.
For simple toppings, sprinkle these on top before mixing in and enjoying your congee:
Tamari or soy sauce. 2 tsp or to taste
Black sesame seeds. 1 tbsp
Toasted sesame oil. 2tsp- 1 tbsp
Some personal favorite toppings that go beyond: (mix and match)
1-2 eggs, cooked over-easy or poached
Sweet potato or squash (baked or roasted)
Steamed dark leafy greens such as spinach or kale
Well-cooked Azuki or black beans
Chili oil such as Eden’s toasted sesame chili oil
Ume plum vinegar or mirin
I strongly recommend that the toppings be added to the bowl with a sense of play or art, constructing a little world atop your congee porridge or mountains, rivers and lakes with features of color and shape. This is a particularly pleasing aspect of congee for me, personally. And when the eyes enjoy what is about to be eaten, the Heart is nourished as well.