Pork bone congee, or zhū gu zhōu, or, more familiar to me in Cantonese phonetics, “gee gwut jook,” is a simple rice congee dish flavored with a meaty pork bone stock.
I remember this pork bone congee recipe from our childhood cooked in a large 12-quart soup pot. (I often wonder where that pot went. I’ll have to ask my sisters if either of them has it stashed somewhere.)
My mom always used that pot for pork bone congee, because it was the largest pot we had in our house at the time. Even though she cooked it in large volumes, pork bone congee always went quickly, with leftovers reheated over the course of a few days. Like most soups and stews, it seemed to get better with each day, until it was finally gone.
I remember that my mother would sometimes salt the pork bones overnight before making the congee if she had time. In those days, to my young palette, it genuinely seemed like one of the best things I ever ate––or would eat. Perhaps it was just because our culinary standards weren’t that high, but I like to think that my mom’s delicious pork bone congee recipe really was the best. I wish I could remember more details about how she’d make it, like the salted pork bones, but I’ve tried to make mom’s recipe as close to how I remember hers tasted!
One other point I wanted to cover is regarding the dried seafood which you can check on our Dried and Preserved Ingredients page. I think it is more of a Cantonese and/or Hong Kong thing but adding dried seafood to soups and congee gives them a nice umami boost of flavor. Pictured below is a package of dried conch or shellfish and oddly, the package labeling does not really specify the type but based on the price, I think these were dried conch. One slice is good for this congee.
These dried cuttlefish are about 4 to 5 inches long and may not look appetizing but certainly can make your soup quite tasty! Just add them whole after a quick rinse.
Dried scallop is probably the favorite of the three, at least in our family, and I remember it was used for many congee and soup dishes. A couple of whacks with the back of the cleaver breaks these dried scallops up nicely.
My parents have used one or more of the dried scallop, dried squid/cuttlefish and dried conch/abalone in this pork congee but one or two pieces of any of these three is sufficient to add that extra flavor without overwhelming the dish. That said, it is totally optional and up to you whether you want to add it!
This pork bone congee really is the perfect home-cooked, comforting soup for cold winter days. I hope you enjoy it!
You’ll need:
- 3 pounds pork back bones, cut into 2-inch pieces, washed, and drained
- 1 tablespoon salt
- 4½ quarts water
- 2 pieces dried squid or 2 pieces dried conch or 3 large dried scallops, smashed into small pieces (optional)
- 1 cup uncooked rice, soaked in water for 30 minutes
- 1 scallion, chopped
- ¼ cup chopped cilantro
- Fresh ground black or white pepper, to taste
Rub the pork bones in 1 tablespoon of salt and marinate for at least 6 hours, ideally overnight, in the refrigerator.
Put the marinated pork bones in a large pot with 4½ quarts of water, and bring to a boil. Boil for 5 minutes. Skim off any foam with a spoon or a fine-meshed strainer, and discard.
Next add the dried squid/conch/dried scallops (if using), cover the pot loosely, and turn the heat down to a simmer. Let the soup simmer for 4 hours.
Taste the soup and re-season with salt if needed. Add the soaked rice and simmer for another hour. If you decide to use Judy’s method for 20-minute Congee, then all you need is an additional 20 minutes after adding the grains!
One point I’d like to make here is that the texture and consistency of congee is a very personal thing. Some like their congee cooked like a gruel, where you can’t see any signs of individual rice granules at all. Others prefer the rice granules cooked until they just open up or “blossom like a flower,” to use the literal translation of a Chinese expression. Finally, some prefer it thick and others prefer it thin. This recipe yields a thick congee, where the rice is cooked until it blossoms like a flower. But once you’re familiar with this congee recipe, feel free to adjust the amount of water and/or rice according to your own preferences!
At this point, give your congee another taste, and add additional salt to taste. Ladle the congee into small bowls, and serve with chopped scallion, cilantro, and pepper.
Hope you enjoy my Mom’s favorite pork bone congee recipe!
Pork Bone Congee Recipe
Ingredients
- 3 pounds pork back bones (cut into 2-inch pieces, washed, and drained)
- 1 tablespoon salt
- 4½ quarts water
- 2 pieces dried squid or 2 pieces dried conch or 3 large dried scallops) (smashed into small pieces, optional)
- 1 cup uncooked rice (soaked in water for 30 minutes)
- 1 scallion (chopped)
- ¼ cup cilantro (chopped)
- Fresh ground black or white pepper (to taste)
Instructions
- Rub the pork bones in 1 tablespoon of salt and marinate for at least 6 hours, ideally overnight, in the refrigerator.
- Put the marinated pork bones in a large pot with 4½ quarts of water, and bring to a boil. Boil for 5 minutes. Skim off any foam with a spoon or a fine-meshed strainer, and discard.
- Next add the dried squid/conch/dried scallops (if using), cover the pot loosely, and turn the heat down to a simmer. Let the soup simmer for 4 hours.
- Taste the soup and re-season with salt if needed. Add the soaked rice and simmer for another hour. If you decide to use Judy’s method for 20-minute Congee, then all you need is an additional 30 minutes after adding the grains!
- One point I’d like to make here is that the texture and consistency of congee is a very personal thing. Some like their congee cooked like a gruel, where you can’t see any signs of individual rice granules at all. Others prefer the rice granules cooked until they just open up or “blossom like a flower,” to use the literal translation of a Chinese expression. Finally, some prefer it thick and others prefer it thin. This recipe yields a thick congee, where the rice is cooked until it blossoms like a flower. But once you’re familiar with this congee recipe, feel free to adjust the amount of water and/or rice according to your own preferences!
- At this point, give your congee another taste, and add additional salt to taste. Ladle the congee into small bowls, and serve with chopped scallion, cilantro, and pepper.
Nutrition
Vivian says
Merry Christmas Eve! I’m making this for Christmas lunch and instead of pork back bones, I got pork riblets. Is that ok to use? And your cook time mentioned at top of recipe says 4 hrs but the cook time is 5 hrs in the actual recipe, including the last hour with the rice. Should I follow the time in the recipe? Thank you!
Judy says
Hi Vivian, you should follow the cooking time of 4 hours. BTW, I don’t see any instruction of 5 hours in the post :-|
Linda says
It does say 5 hours. Step 3 says to simmer the soup for 4 hours. Then step 4 says to add the rice and cook for another hour.
On a separate issue I’m having. When I make congee (same rice to water ratio), it’s thick in the pot but then it turns watery in the bowl. Any idea why this happens?
Sayo says
Super easy to make and so delicious! Thanks.
Bill says
You’re welcome Sayo and glad you liked this family favorite pork bone congee!
Katie says
My family is Toy-San and we used “Preserved Vegetable” or pickled turnip in place of the dried seafood. Thank you for posting this recipe!
Judy says
Ya, that sounds delicious.
Nathaniel says
Yum! Just made this yesterday. Used dried scallops I brought back from Hong Kong. Was delicious!
Thanks for the excellent website. Almost everything I cook is from you guys!
Bill says
Hi Nathaniel, Glad you enjoyed this one and keep up the great cooking!
Susan says
Hi, my mother was taught how to make congee by a professional cook in Hong Kong. She in turn passed this on to me. Firstly, after washing the rice and draining the all water out, coat rice grains throughly with cooking oil. I use canola oil. By coating it will give ut a very smooth texture in the soup. Adding minced ginger makes it perfect. If anyone is cooking it in a pot this is the most important rule. Once you start seeing a rolling boil, lower heat to medium. Do not stir as much as you are tempted to. The reason is once you stir it, the rice starts to stick to the bottom of the pot and begins to burn.
Bill says
Hi Susan, thanks for your comment and tips! I never knew that you were not supposed to stir congee, but I do know that a thick-bottomed pot is essential to distributing heat. Using low heat is also essential for not burning it. My experience is that you have to stir it when using high heat (impatient or hungry cooks, yes) and once you stir it, you have to keep stirring it. That said, I will try your method/advice next time :) Thanks again for your comment, because we love to hear any and all feedback, advice, and questions from our readers!
Mike says
Thanks for the recipe. I tried it once and it turned out very nicely. A couple questions, when do you wash the pork bones? Is it before you salt them, or after salting/marinating them overnight right before you boil them? Also, how do you get all the little bones that fall apart out of the stock if you simmer the bones for a long time, like 12 hours in a slow cooker? I used pork back and pork neck bones and removed the big bones, but it was too late when I realized there were many smaller bones with no meat on them anymore. Thank you!
Bill says
Hi Mike, good question because Chinese people generally don’t mind picking out bones when eating. The only practical solution is to use larger ham and pork shoulder bones instead and chunks of meat from the pork shoulder/butt. Also, if you make a thinner congee, smaller bones will sink to the bottom. Hope that helps and happy cooking!
KL says
If you have a Chinese bbq nearby, see if you can get one of the feet from a roast pig to put in the congee. So much flavor!
Bill says
Great Idea KL!