Staple family
Congee, Porridge & Oats
The soft side of the staple cupboard.
A bowl of congee asks for patience rather than precision. Rice breaks down slowly into something between a soup and a custard, and the stirring you do in the last ten minutes matters more than the exact amount of water. Oats work the other way round: they thicken in minutes and punish inattention. Here you will find both, plus millet, sweet potato and the sweet, mixed-grain bowl that appears on so many Chinese breakfast tables.
In this chapter
23 recipes
Plain Rice Congee
Long, gentle simmering breaks rice down into a silky, mildly sweet porridge with a glossy sheen, finished simply with scallions, sesame oil and a pinch of salt.
Century Egg and Pork Congee
Silky rice congee with marinated pork shreds and wedges of century egg, the dark amber yolks softening into the broth and a sharp scallion finish.
Sweet Potato Congee
Orange sweet potato simmered into rice congee until the cubes slump at the edges, thickening the porridge and lending a quiet, earthy sweetness with no added sugar.
Eight-Treasure Congee
Glutinous rice, red beans, peanuts, dates and dried fruit simmered slowly into a thick, faintly sweet porridge, darkened to a deep russet by the beans.
Creamy Stovetop Oatmeal
Rolled oats simmered in milk and water with a pinch of salt until thick and glossy, then finished with butter, berries and a spoonful of brown sugar.
Millet and Pumpkin Porridge
Hulled millet and pumpkin simmered until the squash melts into a golden, faintly sweet porridge with a soft, slightly grainy texture and a warm orange colour.
Beef Carrot and Millet Congee
Millet and rice simmer down into a thick, faintly golden porridge, while minced beef and diced carrot cook gently in the same pot until the grains turn creamy and soft.
Chicken and Pumpkin Congee
Pumpkin dissolves into the rice as it simmers, turning the congee a soft orange and lending a gentle sweetness that sits behind shredded chicken and a little ginger.
Chicken Carrot and Broccoli Congee
A plain rice congee is simmered until creamy, then dotted with minced chicken, sweet carrot and small broccoli florets that keep just enough bite against the soft grains.
Cod and Vegetable Congee
Flaky white cod is poached gently in a smooth rice congee with diced carrot and greens, so the fish stays in large, moist pieces rather than dissolving into the base.
Egg Yolk and Greens Congee
A smooth white congee is enriched at the table with a raw egg yolk that melts into a golden ribbon, while shredded greens and scallions keep the bowl fresh.
Fresh Prawn Congee
Whole prawns are poached briefly in a silky rice congee with their shells steeped first for a light seafood stock, then finished with ginger, scallions and white pepper.
Greens Congee
A minimalist pot of rice simmered until completely smooth, with a generous handful of leafy greens wilted in at the end and nothing more than ginger and sesame to finish.
Lotus Seed and Brown Rice Congee
Brown rice and soaked lotus seeds simmer into a nutty, faintly sweet porridge; ginger cuts the earthiness, goji berries add small tart bursts, and the grains stay distinct rather than collapsing into paste.
Pork and Carrot Congee
Lean pork shreds and sweet carrot matchsticks simmer into a soft rice base; a short marinade keeps the meat tender, while ginger and scallion added at the end give the bowl a clean, bright finish.
Potato and Pork Congee
Waxy potato cubes break down at the edges to thicken a pork-scented rice porridge, while a few firmer pieces stay intact; ginger, soy and scallion keep the soft, starchy bowl from tasting flat.
Red Bean Job S Tears and Black Rice Porridge
Red beans, job's tears and black rice simmer into a purple porridge; the beans soften to a mealy sweetness, the grains keep a slight chew, and rock sugar rounds off the earthy edge.
Salmon and Vegetable Congee
Flaked salmon is folded into a ginger-scented rice congee at the very end, so it stays in large moist pieces; peas and carrot add colour and a faint sweetness without turning the broth heavy.
Shiitake Carrot and Chicken Congee
Dried shiitake gives the rice broth a deep, woodsy base while carrot softens into sweetness; poached chicken shreds are folded in at the end so the meat stays tender rather than turning stringy.
Shrimp and Greens Congee
Shrimp are poached in the residual heat of a ginger rice congee so they stay curled and snappy; dark greens wilt in at the end, giving the pale bowl colour and a faint mineral bite.
Tomato and Fish Congee
Tomato is cooked down until it stains the rice broth red, then firm white fish is poached off the heat; the result is a light, tart congee that tastes clean rather than rich.
Tomato Potato and Chicken Congee
Tomato and potato simmer until both melt into an orange, slightly thick broth, while chicken is poached whole and shredded at the end; the bowl lands between a soup and a soft porridge.
Tong Ho Flour Porridge
A smooth wheat-flour slurry thickens a light broth into a silky porridge, then chopped crown daisy and egg ribbons are stirred in for a gentle, grassy supper that comes together in one pot.
A Staple Cupboard That Earns Its Space
A short list of grains, flours and dried noodles, how long they actually keep, and what each one can become once it reaches the pan.
Other staple families
Cooking porridge at home
The recipes above share a small set of ingredients and one or two pieces of equipment, so it is worth cooking them in sequence rather than at random. Make the simplest one first — it tells you how your pan, your flour or your rice behaves — then move on to the versions that build on it. If you are working from what is already in the kitchen, the full recipe index can filter every chapter at once by ingredient, equipment and time.