Quick Congee with Grilled Salmon
Posted in 30-minutes recipe, Chinese, Featured Articles, How to, porridge
Recipe for Quick Congee
Serve: 4
Adapted and modified from:
阿基師 偷呷步5分鐘煮出綿密稀飯 (Taiwan cooking show)
開心大發現-快速煲靚粥 (Hong cooking show)
ChowTimes.comIngredients:
120g frozen uncooked white rice (I used Thai fragrant rice)
1.5 litre water/ homemade stock (If the stock is not enough, fill the remaining with water.)Optional:
Carrots – chopped
Fresh corns
Cabbage – shreddedOther recommended ingredients:
Chicken balls (refer to link)
Any kind of meat of your preference: fish, chicken, prawn and pork. (Best to slice and marinate in advance.)
Egg (beat the egg and stir in immediately once the heat is off)
Toasted anchovies (refer to link)
Toasted peanuts (refer to link)
Chopped spring onions (for garnishing)
Sweet potatoes
PumpkinsMethods:
- Wash and rinse the uncooked rice for several times until the water turns clear.
- Soak the rice for 10-15 minutes (I skip this step but it still works well). Then, drain and store the rice in a container. Keep it in the freezer overnight, or at least 4-5 hours.
- To cook the congee: Fill a large cooking pot with 1.5 litre water. Bring it to a boil under high heat (not super high!!). Add the frozen uncooked rice and cook with the same heat until the rice grains break and turn into congee. It will take about 15 minutes. Keep stirring to prevent the congee from sticking to the bottom of the pot and over-spilling. Do not cover the lid for the entire process.
- Add carrots and corns to cook for another 5 minutes under medium low heat.
- Taste and season with salt, pepper and sesame oil, as needed.
- Add shredded cabbage to cook for another 30 seconds and turn off the heat.
- Serve with grilled salmon.
Notes:
- I had cooked brown rice using this method but it didn’t work.
- The ratio for rice and water is about 1:13 depending how thick you prefer the congee. Add more water if needed.
- Use a large pot with enough depth to avoid the congee to spill over during cooking. The water level must be at least 12cm/ 5 inches apart from the top of the pot.
- Place a wooden spoon across the top of the pot to avoid over spilling (Great tip from Mike of KongKay). This tip will not work if the water level is close to the top of the pot. It’s still best to stir the congee occasionally and keep an eye during the cooking process (refer to photo below).
- If you want have a creamier and smoother texture for your congee, continue to cook for another 10 minutes under medium low heat.
- You can use any homemade stocks of your preference such as chicken, pork, fish or anchovy. For fish stock, please refer to THIS POST. For short cut, you can mix 1 tbsp of Maggi Chicken concentrated stock with 700ml hot water.
- After the heat is off, if you cover the pot with lid and let the congee sit for another 5-10 minutes, the texture of congee will be thickened. If you prefer a more diluted consistency, stir in some hot water.
20 Comments
Leave a comment to Angie@Angie's Recipes
Fast, quick & healthy! 🙂
Alice: Yes, do give it a try. 😉
Wow,I’ve learnt about how formation of ice crystals can damage plant tissues but didn’t think of applying this knowledge to shorten congee cooking time. This is definitely very useful cooking tip. I love it! 😀 Thank you for experimenting and sharing your experience with us! You are the gem 🙂
BTW, I was thinking whether soaking the rice would quicken the cooking process as the presence of more water in the grains will result in formation of more ice crystals and hence the grains will break up more during cooking. Perhaps you have tried it already and it makes no difference? 🙂
Ling: Sharing is fun. Although it’s recommended, I have skipped this step as mentioned in my recipe. If you watch the two videos, they didn’t soak the rice in advance. If you have tried it out, please share with me your feedback. 😉
Hi Lai Kuan,
I just cooked congee 2 days ago with frozen, pre-soaked rice. It turned out perfect! I liked the texture better than cooking it from scratch. I let it cooked for about 12 mins (after boiling) before starting to add minced pork, then stir for 1-2 mins, and then added fish cubes before serving.
Thanks for sharing again!
Ling: So glad it works for you too! Thank you so much for your feedback! 😉
Wow, I did not know that about frozen rice cooking faster. Thanks for sharing.
Tigerfish: This is new to me too. 😉
Awesome! I will give this a go!
Mycookinghut: Hope it works for you too! 🙂
congee is so comforting and soothing,can have this tasty treat everyday 🙂
Kumar’s Kitchen: Yes, it’s our favourite meal. 😉
The congee looks so appetizing and comforting!
Angie: Thank you! 😉
I havent been using chinese rice wine (Huadiao jiu) nor mirin in my cooking as my 2 year old is eating.. so is it ok to use mirin?
Julesy: Mirin is frequently used in Japanese cuisine. For example, a real teriyaki sauce comes from soy sauce, mirin and sugar. Alcohol (some or all) will be evaporated during cooking or baking. Another option is you can cook the mirin for one minute and let it cool down first before adding to the rest of the ingredients. If you are still not comfortable, then you can omit it. Add more sugar and a bit water to dilute the miso. If you want to learn more about mirin, this post maybe be of some help – http://justhungry.com/answering-questions-sakemirin-redux-bulk-buying-japanese-rice-and-storing-japanese-ingredients. 🙂
Hi, so freeze the rice without washing first? Then wash before cooking?
Agnes: Wash and rinse the uncooked rice, freeze it and cook it straight away. It has been mentioned in my recipe. Hope your doubt is cleared! Happy trying! 😉
Haa…must hv missed it! Thx for clarifying. 🙂
Agnes: Hope it works for you too! 😉