Congee, a quintessential comfort food with many regional variations across China, is an ideal dish if you’re feeling under the weather or want to prepare a one-pot meal with leftovers that will never disappoint. Cooked on a stovetop in water or broth until the rice breaks down and turns the liquid into a thick, creamy porridge, congee can take hours to prepare. So Betty Liu came up with a clever trick for this congee recipe: Rinse the rice and freeze it overnight. The frozen rice breaks down quickly, cutting your cooking time in half. Since the heart of the dish is the rice, take care in choosing your grains. If you don't have jasmine, reach for a short- or medium-grain white rice (like sushi rice), knowing you may have to adjust the cooking time and the amount of water.
You can replace that water with stock for another layer of flavor and experiment with the toppings; congee is infinitely adaptable. But keep in mind, it’s not meant to be overwhelmingly flavorful but rather delicate, nourishing, and easy to digest, so be gentle but creative with your variations. In the spring, dress a bowl up with green garlic oil and in the fall, Turkey Congee With Crispy Shiitake Mushrooms is a great way to use up the leftover turkey from your Thanksgiving meal.
Editor’s note: This recipe was originally published on January 19, 2020.
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What you’ll need
Measuring Cups
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Sieve
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Plastic Bag
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Spoon
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Medium Bowl
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Chef's Knife
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Cutting Board
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Large Saucepan
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Wooden Spoon
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Ingredients
4 servings
1
4
1
1
3
4
4
Preparation
Step 1
Place 1 cup jasmine rice in a fine-mesh strainer and rinse in several changes of water until water runs clear. Drain. Transfer rice to a freezer-safe container and freeze overnight. If you use a plastic bag, don't toss it when you're done: Just rinse it out, let it dry, and save it for the future. (This step helps the rice break down faster when you’re cooking it, which dramatically reduces its cooking time. If you don’t have time to freeze your rice, that’s okay; you’ll just cook it longer in step 8.)
Step 2
Prepare your ingredients: Mix 4 oz. ground pork, 1 Tbsp. finely grated peeled ginger, and 1 Tbsp. soy sauce in a medium bowl and let sit 10 minutes. Trim woody ends of 4 oz. shiitake mushrooms, then cut into thin slices. Trim root ends off 4 scallions and thinly slice crosswise.
Step 3
Heat 2 Tbsp. vegetable oil in a large saucepan over medium-high. Add sliced mushrooms and cook, stirring occasionally, until golden and crisp, 6–8 minutes.
Step 4
Reduce heat to medium-low, add half of sliced scallions (reserve remaining scallions for serving), and cook, stirring, until scallions are aromatic and fragrant but not browned, 1-2 minutes. Transfer mushrooms and scallions to a plate.
Step 5
Heat remaining 1 Tbsp. vegetable oil in same saucepan over medium. Add marinated pork and cook, stirring once, just until it turns from pink and translucent to lightly browned and opaque, about 1 minute. Transfer pork to plate with mushrooms and scallions. It won’t be fully cooked through but that's okay—you'll return it to the congee later on.
Step 6
Add 7 cups water to saucepan and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Add frozen rice (or unfrozen rice, if using) and return to a boil, stirring to prevent sticking. Scrape up any brown bits that have stuck to the bottom of the pan—there's great porky flavor there! Reduce heat to low and simmer, stirring occasionally, until thick, porridge-like, and rice has broken apart, about 20 minutes for frozen rice, and 1½ hours for unfrozen rice. If you are using a short- or medium-grain white rice (as opposed to jasmine), this time might vary.
Step 7
Stir in pork, mushrooms, and scallions and let simmer, stirring occasionally, until flavors have melded, another 5 minutes. Check the texture: If you want a thinner congee, add more water. If you want a thicker, more oatmeal-like texture, continue to cook, stirring frequently, until it reaches the desired consistency. Season soup with kosher salt and white or black pepper.
Step 8
Divide congee among bowls. Top with reserved scallions and chili oil, if using.
Leave a Review
Reviews (59)
Back to TopWhole Foods did not have chili oil so I got Mexican chili crisp that had pineapple, mango and pumpkin seeds and sesame seeds in it that has a tiny bit of spiciness. It was very earthy and delicious, more so than with the chili oil. I have made this recipe many times, and it should only be made on a gas stove if possible. Next time ai will add a Serrano possibly pickled.
Wonderful with Flavored Chili Crisp and possibly pickled serrano.
9/21/2023
This was delicious. I did add a couple extra ounces of ground pork at the recommendation of another reviewer. Also, the bit of uncooked arborio rice I had on hand was arborio. I was feeling a little pressed for time, so I made a batch of that in my rice cooker, using poultry stock for about half the liquid. When it came to the step where you add the water and rice to the pot, I put in the cooked rice and added enough extra water (nowhere near seven cups, because the rice had already soaked up water in the rice cooker) to take it to an oatmeal-y consistency. I cooked that for 10-15 minutes, adding splashes of water from time to time to keep it loose and maintain a porridge-y consistency. Did everything else according to the book. The result was delicious and pleased everyone at the table.
EJuhl
Minnesota
9/5/2022
Do not underestimate the simplicity of this recipe. It is SENSATIONAL. It is so comforting, nourishing, and flavorful. I have made it every week (sometimes multiple times) since I discovered it. If I don't have it every week, there is a congee-shaped hole in my heart. The key is to cook the various ingredients separately, as the recipe instructs. When I'm pressed for time I just cook everything in one go and it is not the same. It is also equally delicious with beef or extra-firm, crumbled, crispy tofu. You need this in your recipe rotation!
Sasha
Jersey City, NJ
3/3/2022
To Anonymous who changed the recipe and then said it was a miss. Go back and try it the way it was supposed to be made.
Chuck F.
Palo Alto, CA
1/28/2022
I don't usually alter recipes the first time making them, but in this case, it made sense. Ground pork didn't sound too great to me, so I got a cheap pork tenderloin and sliced it thin. I also added garlic to the marinade and used 8oz of pork and about 10 oz shitake and oyster mushrooms, and cooked them in half sesame oil, and half toasted sesame oil. I cooked it the long way, with about 3/4 chicken stock and chicken bone broth, and 1/4 water. It absolutely needed the chili oil. I don't think it's optional at all. I also topped it with sesame seeds. Even so, this recipe was kind of a miss. It just wasn't satisfying enough.
Anonymous
San Diego, CA
1/24/2022
This is a fantastic recipe, and super easy. Congee is very much a blank palate, and these ingredients go incredibly well together. The freezing of the rice makes it quite simple, and I agree with the other reviewers... add a bit more pork ;)
Ray
London, UK
11/14/2021
This was fabulous. We made it the long way without freezing the rice. It turned out great. There are only two of us who are going to eat it so we are looking forward to having it around for a couple of more days. I would consider adding more pork next time.
Rudresh
Montclair, NJ
10/4/2021
I don’t know why this is so good, but it is. I also doubled the pork (and the marinade), but otherwise followed the recipe. Easy and tasty. I rarely cook the same thing twice, but I keep thinking about this one so I probably will.
Sunny
10/1/2021
I also make mine with extra pork and mushrooms and I like to use dashi instead of water for some wonderful extra umami flavor. Torn nori also makes a tasty additional topping for your bowl.
Jen
Philadelphia
9/19/2021
Great dish, especially as comfort food. Have made it twice now & after reading previous comments, I can agree that adding more pork (I usually do 1lb) & mushrooms (8-12oz) is a must. Instead of adding all 7 cups of water, do half water & half stock/broth. I top it all off with kimchi, sesame seeds, & sambal oelek. I love it even more because there are always leftovers after initially serving my boyfriend & I. Making it again tonight & will try adding a bit of miso.
Connor D
Chicago, IL
4/20/2021
I love this dish! I bet it was used for kids with sick tummies because it is so soothing...I like spicing it up with some jalapeño and chili oil at the end. I tried doubling the pork and mushrooms but found it was too much pork. I do like the extra mushrooms, though. Yummy.
Ruthie
1/2/2021
This is a great recipe. After making it a few times, I decided I like it best by doubling the amount of the pork mixture and using half chicken stock/half water instead of the full 7 cups of water. (I've tried all stock and thought it was too rich.) Also, I once forgot to freeze the rice ahead of time and froze it for only 1 hour--and it still cooked up super fast. Will keep coming back to this recipe!
s92359
Arlington, VA
12/8/2020
Tip for anyone that has a japanese rice cooker like I do. I do 1 cup rice (soaked in water for an hour) to 4 cups liquid and usually split between water and chicken broth with slices of ginger and lemon peel thrown in to amp up the flavor. Some of the nicer rice cookers have a porridge setting which makes congee EASY PEASY to make. It yields a thicker congee than this recipe, but is oh so delicious. Love this topping suggestion of shiitakes and ground pork.
h.wong
Chicago, IL
9/15/2020
I highly recommend adding miso to boost the flavor a bit. I love this recipe and find myself craving it often!
Anonymous
Minneapolis
4/16/2020
I make this recipe at least once a week (my body now craves it.) I even do it without pork and it's still flavorful and delicious. Would definitely recommend!!!
Anonymous
New York, NY
3/26/2020