BREAKING NEWS!!!
Did you know that you can make delicious congee with slow-cooked flavor from scratch in 20 minutes? I’m not talking about getting it done in a pressure cooker either. This extremely exciting cooking technique I am about to reveal will cut the usual congee cooking time by at least two thirds, if not more. Anyone who has made congee before knows that this statement is verging on lies and deception, but hear me out.
So listen to this, my cousin in Shanghai knows that we have a food blog. Once in a while, she’ll send me information or dishes that might interest me. Recently she sent me this 15-minute congee recipe and it immediately caught my attention, because I–like you right now–thought that there was NO way that anyone could make a decent congee in 15 minutes–let alone a really good one! So it was definitely worthy of the 15-minute investment to find out. My conclusion is that the congee did not cook to the right consistency in 15 minutes, but 20 minutes was the right amount of time to reach the texture that you see in our pictures.
The technique for this 20-minute congee recipe is in FREEZING the rice ahead of time: wash the rice, drain, and put the washed rice in a zip-loc bag (or freezer-safe container), and leave it in the freezer for at least 8 hours. The science behind it is that the moisture in the rice freezes, expands, and breaks the rice kernel into tiny pieces to dramatically reduce the cooking time. I also tried this method with grains like barley, brown rice, red rice, and black rice, and it works beautifully. The cooking time for grains other than white rice is just slightly longer. Now I always keep a bag of washed rice in my freezer. I don’t have to plan ahead and invest an hour or more to make congee anymore. I can have it any time I want: breakfast, lunch, or dinner.
It’s a whole new world, people.
While this newfound cooking technique is a game changer, this congee with pork and thousand year old egg is a dish with a long history and is a favorite Cantonese comfort food. The elephant in the room is, of course, the thousand year-old egg. I don’t know how it earned this awful name–one that inspires equal parts terror and horror. That scene from Fear Factor comes to mind: the poor girl who was asked to eat a thousand year-old egg, gagging with tears in her eyes. I would be like…hand me some soy sauce and bring it along with my $50,000 check!
For all of you health nuts out there (that’s if you’re still reading), skip this post–it’s not for you. For you daredevils, thrill seekers, and Andrew Zimmern types, give this recipe a try. And for people who grew up eating this congee or are nostalgic for authentic Cantonese flavors, this one is a big welcome home with minimal effort, from me to you!
You’ll need:
- ¾ cup white rice
- 4 ounces pork shoulder, julienned
- ½ teaspoon cornstarch
- 1 teaspoon oyster sauce
- 1 teaspoon vegetable oil
- 7 cups water or chicken broth
- 2 thousand year-old eggs
- 3 slices ginger
- ¼ teaspoon ground white pepper
- Salt to taste
- Chopped scallion and cilantro, to garnish
Wash the rice, drain, and transfer to a zip-loc bag or freezer-safe container. Leave it in the freezer for at least 8 hours.
Marinate the pork with the cornstarch, oyster sauce, and vegetable oil for about 15 to 20 minutes.
In a medium pot, bring 7 cups of water to a boil. Add the frozen rice (no need to defrost) and bring it to a boil again, stirring the rice to prevent sticking. Reduce the heat to a low simmer, and cover and cook for about 15 minutes. Periodically check and stir the congee. It’s important to stir from the bottom to prevent sticking, as the rice texture thickens quickly.
While that’s cooking, dice the thousand year-old egg and set it aside. Very thinly julienne the ginger. Don’t prepare this ahead of time, as we want the flavor of freshly cut ginger.
After 15 minutes, it’s time to add the julienned ginger, pork, and thousand year-old egg.
Stir and simmer for another 5 minutes or so. Finally, stir in the white pepper and salt to taste. Serve piping hot with chopped scallions and cilantro.
It’s that easy, folks!
- You’ll need:
- ¾ cup white rice
- 4 ounces pork shoulder, julienned
- ½ teaspoon cornstarch
- 1 teaspoon oyster sauce
- 1 teaspoon vegetable oil
- 7 cups water or chicken broth
- 2 thousand year-old eggs
- 3 slices ginger
- ¼ teaspoon ground white pepper
- Salt to taste
- Chopped scallion and cilantro, to garnish
- Wash the rice, drain, and transfer to a zip-loc bag or freezer-safe container. Leave it in the freezer for at least 8 hours.
- Marinate the pork with the cornstarch, oyster sauce, and vegetable oil for about 15 to 20 minutes.
- In a medium pot, bring 7 cups of water to a boil. Add the frozen rice (no need to defrost) and bring it to a boil again, stirring the rice to prevent sticking. Reduce the heat to a low simmer, and cover and cook for about 15 minutes. Periodically check and stir the congee. It’s important to stir from the bottom to prevent sticking, as the rice texture thickens quickly.
- While that’s cooking, dice the thousand year-old egg and set it aside. Very thinly julienne the ginger. Don’t prepare this ahead of time, as we want the flavor of freshly cut ginger.
- After 15 minutes, it’s time to add the julienned ginger, pork, and thousand year-old egg. Stir and simmer for another 5 minutes or so. Finally, stir in the white pepper and salt to taste. Serve piping hot with chopped scallions and cilantro.
- It's that easy, folks!
Den says
Made this for my my family visiting from Thailand. They loved it. Sitting now on the couch and all I can hear are the spoons hitting the bowls. Mission Accomplished!
Mary Lee says
Wish you can supply me with more congee recipes. Hint:has dried squid other yummy ingredients.
Fal says
Just made this and my husband is SO happy. Used shrimp instead of pork and added a touch of sesame oil and this is DELICIOUS. I will say that 7 cups of liquid might have been too much for the amount of rice? Possibly his preference is for a thicker congee though (Canto city boy)?
Judy says
So glad you and your husband enjoyed the recipe.
Fal says
So much that we’re making it again tomorrow with beef! Thanks again for sharing this hack, your site is so full of things we love that are pretty easy to make <3
Judy says
That’s wonderful, Fal, so glad we can be helpful :-)
Anh says
Hi there and thanks for the great site! I was wondering— would it work to reduce the cooking time the same way by quickly putting the raw washed rice grains through a food processor to break into smaller bits rather than freezing for 8 hours?
Judy says
HI Anh, you can try, although I think it would be different.
Bonnie says
Love your blog and the variety of recipes you provide. I made this this morning, but I didn’t freeze the rice overnight, so I just followed your recipe for the overall process and ingredients. My roommate’s friend from Cambodia likes to cook the raw rice in oil and garlic before throwing it into the water, so I did that and used chicken thigh strips instead of pork, and threw in diced sweet potato. I liked using a full cup of rice too. This is as good and flavorful as the restaurants. Thank you so much! I like reading in the comments how people are making this for their parents. Thanks for helping to bridge our generational divides :).
Judy says
Hi Bonnie, thank you so much for leaving us a comment. We are glad to be that “bridge”.
Marilyn says
Does it make any difference if you use short grain or long grain rice?
Thanks
Judy says
Hi Marilyn, the only difference that comes to mind is that short grain is slightly stickier, which makes the congee thicker and less watery.
Ana says
Thank you, thank you, thank you!!!
This made congee so much easier to make! I always ended up burning the congee half the times I made it because I was too lazy to stand there and stir it for so long lol.
My mom wasn’t feeling well so I grabbed a bag from the freezer and cooked it according to your directions, stirring it every once in a while. It took thirty minutes and didn’t burn at all!
We didn’t have century egg, so I made it plain seasoned with some salt. My mom ate it with some dried shrimp and I had it with some fermented bean curd. Yum!
Judy says
Yeah…glad this congee can bring some comfort in times of discomfort.
Olivia Lin says
I washed, drained and then froze the rice, but it still took me over an hour until the rice started breaking down. I’m not sure what could have gone wrong considering this recipe seems to have worked for so many other people! :(
Judy says
Hi Olivia, did you bring the water (with frozen rice in it) to a boil using high heat, then simmer at lower heat?
Nadine Trujillo says
Seriously, where do you get thousand year old eggs?
Judy says
Hi Nadine, almost all large Asian supermarkets carry it — I do understand if you don’t live near one. Just so you know, you don’t need thousand year old eggs to make this tasty congee.