{Nourish}

Slow food.

Slow food begins with enjoying the creative process of imagining a meal. We taste the food in the process of planning, shopping, and preparing. Digestion has already begun! Buy the freshest, most beautiful ingredients available to you. Let the ingredients magnetize your attention. Feast on them with your eyes, your nose, and your hands. When preparation is done, take a moment to savor the meal with your senses. Then eat with an appreciation for the textures, colors, smells, and how the food feels inside of you. When you are finished eating, relax and enjoy a few moments of contentment.

Congee from Shambhavi’s kitchen to you 
Congee from Shambhavi’s kitchen to you

Congee is a savory or sweet rice porridge that is enjoyed all over Asia and in Asian communities and restaurants around the world. The earliest known reference to congee is from 1000 BCE in China. 

I learned how to make congee from a Taoist teacher in California, but I've also encountered congee in restaurants in the oldest neighborhood in Varanasi, India and in many Chinese restaurants. 

Affordable, soothing, and easy to digest, congee is often the healing meal of choice for people with minor illnesses or digestive problems. It's served as a component of dim sum. Savory congee may be eated for any meal or as a snack. 

I love eating this flavorful and nutrient-dense porridge for breakfast. Congee is one of those foods that is infinitely variable. Feel free to change it up. There is no one right way to make congee!

Congee aka Jouk or Jook or Kanji

Serves 4 ● Cooking time approximately 45 minutes depending on the method.

Ingredients

  • 1 lb bone-in chicken without skin or 1/2 lb ground pork

  • 1 cup short-grain white rice, not washed

  • 4 cups chicken broth or chicken bone broth

  • 2 - 3 cups water depending on how thick you like your congee

  • 1 large slice ginger

  • 1.5 tablespoons goji berries (optional)

  • 1/4 cup lotus seed soaked overnight (optional)

  • Vegetables of your choosing. I like to add green beans, cut into thirds. (optional)

  • 2 scallions, sliced including the green

  • Handful of chopped cilantro

  • Toasted sesame seeds garnish (optional)

  • Salt and pepper to taste

  • Ghee or toasted sesame oil

Steps

  1. Put the meat, unwashed rice, broth, water, ginger, optional items, and the white part of the sliced scallions into a rice cooker, instant pot, or stovetop pot.

  2. Set rice cooker to "porridge." Set instant pot to "porridge" and 30 minutes cooking time. Stovetop cooking will take about an hour and requires frequent stirring.

  3. When congee is done, remove the chicken. Debone and pull the meat apart into strands or chop roughly. Put the chicken back into the pot.

  4. Add salt and pepper to taste and ladle into bowls.

  5. Top with green part of sliced scallions, chopped cilantro, and optional items. Drizzle with ghee or toasted sesame oil.

  6. Serve and enjoy!

Additional options

Toppings:
sliced, sauteed shitake mushrooms;
drizzle of balsamic vinegar;
furikake; and/or
hard boiled egg, cut in half.