Congee, Porridge & Oats · Chinese home cooking
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.
About this dish
Prawn congee lives or dies on the stock. Steeping the shells in the simmering water first pulls out a faint briny sweetness that plain rice and water cannot give. The prawns go in at the very end, long enough to turn coral and firm; a minute too many and they go rubbery. Ginger and white pepper do the quiet seasoning, while scallions added off the heat stay bright. You will know the base is right when a spoon leaves a slow, closing trail and the pot smells of the sea.
Before you start
Equipment: Pot. Tap the ingredient checkboxes as you go.
Method
6 steps · tick each one off as you finish it.
Steep the shells
Bring 1400 ml water to a boil over high heat with 200 g prawn shells for 6 minutes until the liquid turns faintly pink and smells briny, then strain and discard the shells.
Cook the rice
Return the stock to the pot over high heat, add 180 g rinsed rice and boil for 8 minutes until the grains churn, then lower the heat and skim off any grey foam.
Simmer to silk
Add 1/2 tsp salt and 1 tsp ginger, cover with the lid ajar over low heat and simmer for 30 minutes, stirring every 10 minutes, until the grains burst and the liquid turns creamy.
Poach the prawns
Slip 300 g prawns into the congee over low heat and poach for 3 minutes until they curl, turn coral pink and feel just firm, then lift the pot off the heat at once.
Season
Stir in 1 tbsp soy sauce and 1/4 tsp white pepper over low heat for 1 minute until the raw soy edge fades, then let the congee rest covered for 2 minutes off the heat.
Serve
Ladle into 3 bowls, drizzle 1 tsp sesame oil and scatter 30 g scallions, then serve within 2 minutes, when the prawns are still steaming hot and the surface carries a faint ginger aroma.
Tips that matter
- Keep the shells and heads for the stock; they are where almost all of the prawn flavour lives.
- Poach the prawns off a rolling boil, or the outside toughens before the centre turns opaque.
Easy variations
- Add 80 g diced carrot with the ginger for a sweeter, more colourful base.
- Finish with 1 tsp chilli oil and a squeeze of lime instead of sesame oil for a brighter bowl.
Questions that come up
My prawns turned rubbery. How do I fix that?
They cooked too long or at too high a heat. Poach over low heat for just 3 minutes and pull the pot off the burner the moment they curl and turn coral; residual heat finishes them.
Can I skip the shell stock?
You can, but the congee will taste flatter. If you must, add 1 tsp fish sauce with the soy sauce at the end to put back a little of the briny depth.
Nutrition, roughly
| Energy | 300 kcal |
|---|---|
| Protein | 24 g |
| Carbohydrate | 42 g |
| Fat | 4 g |
Estimated per serving from standard ingredients, rounded. Treat it as a guide, not clinical data.
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