Congee Recipe (Instant Pot, Pressure Cooker, Stovetop)
An Original Recipe by Lorraine Elliott
Recipe Overview
Preparation time: 5-10 minutes
Cooking time: 30 minutes
Serves 6-8 people
Ingredients Needed
- 8 cups/2 litres/2.1quarts water
- 400g/14ozs pork ribs or chicken pieces on the bone
- 1 cup/200g/7ozs short grain rice
- 30g/1oz ginger, peeled and sliced into matchsticks
- Chicken stock powder
- 1 stick green onion, sliced on the diagonal
- Sesame oil for serving
- 1/2 youtiao donut, sliced for serving
Step-By-Step Instructions
Step 1 - First place the water and pork or chicken bones in a pressure cooker. Close lid and set to 15 minutes on high. If doing this on the stovetop, simmer for 45-60 minutes or until the meat comes off the bone very easily. Release pressure and remove the meat from the pot and place on a plate to cool off.
Step 2 - Rinse the rice under running water until the water runs clear. Add the rice and ginger to the stock in the pot and set to 15 minutes on high. If doing this on the stovetop, simmer for 45-60 minutes until the rice has broken down and has a porridge-like consistency. Release pressure and add in chicken seasoning powder to taste (I used between 4-5 teaspoons of it). Stir well. Chop or shred the meat which should be cool enough to handle. Add to the pot and stir to combine. Serve with a drizzle of sesame oil, sliced youtiao and green onions. Note: when the congee cools down it will thicken even further.
Personal Note
Congee is one of the things that is getting me through winter. I'm miserable in winter. I'm one of those people that feels the cold acutely and I will do anything in my power to stay warm. Whether it be layers of clothing or those packets of hand warmers or fur lined stockings, I am layered. Every day that I have to leave the house, I wear three layers of clothing.
Even Mr NQN who is half Finnish and doesn't feel the cold as much has started the triple layering. He grudgingly had to admit that his paltry 1 or 2 layers simply weren't enough. "You need to do three layers like me, you need to pickle," I said to him. Pickles is his nickname for me and he needed to do like me to stay warm.
One day he turned to me proudly and said, "I'm wearing three layers of clothing, are you proud of me?"
"You're pickling!" I said excitedly. "You've come over to the dark side!".
So tell me Dear Reader, how many layers of clothing do you wear when you go out during Winter? Do you like congee?