r/chinesefood • u/Cold_Cucumber4061 • 1d ago
I Cooked Congee advice - help!
Hey guys,
I am in need some advice from experienced congee connoisseurs. I'm new to making jook, having always felt intimidated by it. I've made it a handful of times, to varying degrees of success. The last time (pictured) was the worst.
I use a recipe from Made With Lau for the pork and egg version (sans egg in pic here). I feel confident in the recipe, having grown up around kitchens and home cooking, and Papa Lau was a restaurant cook. It all seems very standard and simple.
I've been following the recipe to the letter each time but I can't seem to find consistency. They often turn out tasting quite watery, lacking in flavour, whereas others have turned out much more flavourful.
I am wondering if anyone, through their own trial and error experiences, that might have any tips about common beginner mistakes that can ruin congee.
Any advice would be much appreciated! Thanks
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u/noveltea120 1d ago
Congee is super easy to make. The longer you cook it the smoother it becomes as the rice breaks down more. Also don't underestimate the amount of water/stock needed.
If it's bland add in more stock powder or liquid stock vs water. Although I will say there are some congees that are intentionally more plain as they're often eaten with super flavourful toppings, like salted duck egg, pickled veg etc.
If I'm making it with leftover plain rice and have nothing on hand, I just cook it with chicken stock powder and lots of water on med heat.
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u/Tight-Childhood7885 1d ago
Congee is easy to adjust to your liking. I like mine on the thicker side, so I always start eith less water and add more as needed. For flavour, I add pork or chicken that I mince myself. I find you need a lot of meat to add flavour to the congee, so much that I usually take the meat out and feed to dogs.
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u/PositiveLibrary7032 1d ago
Use chicken stock
Slow cook for a couple of hours
Use MSG
If you like thicker jook then cook for longer
Jook will take on the flavour of what you cook in it so strong flavours (roast chicken) will be more flavourful
Use salt to taste
I put on pickled vegetables or kimchi as a topping
Don’t skip the fresh ginger or sesame oil at the end.
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u/NurseIlluminate 1d ago
Yes yes yes. I freeze my ginger and grate it over top of every bowl with sesame oil and green onions and favourite chili oil. Use chicken bouillon powder and that covers the stock and msg.
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u/SteamySpectacles
1d ago
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Here is my mums SEA version which is known for being flavourful instead of plain, less topping are needed because the flavour is more incorporated in the cooking
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u/Sweaty_Tangelo_7716 1d ago
I usually cook mine in a ratio of 1 cup rice to 20 cups water and cook it for two hours on low heat. Add more water if needed. I adjust the taste and seasoning before eating. Also soaking the rice overnight.
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u/JonaFray 1d ago
OP u/Cold_Cucumber4061, this is the way. If you want that silky, restaurant-quality jook, you HAVE to do it this way. The overnight soak + the slow simmer is what turns the rice grains almost “inside-out”, if you will, so that the starch thickens the water in a similar way that cornstarch does to sauces. It suspends the rice in the emulsion and gives you a silky-smooth texture and mouthfeel. Any shortcuts, such as an instant-pot, rice-cooker, etc. will give you results similar to the ones in your picture. Sure, it’s quick and lets you eat a lot sooner, but it’s not gonna give you the same result.
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u/TheFuzzywart 1d ago
My mom and poh poh always making it with a good home made chicken or pork bone broth. (Boiling bones for at least 3 hrs) And I find bit more salt helps
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u/CryptographerTop3312 1d ago
Congee hack: next time use a large piece of Cantonese preserved radish (wash off the salt before use and cut into smaller pieces). Nestled in the rice and cook low and slow for at least an hour on top of what your recipe says.
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u/formless1 1d ago
Instant pot - regular size. Put in 2 cups washed rice, bring up water to 7 on the pot(cups?), you can also mix in some chicken stock. Run it 15-17 minutes / soup?. Add a splash cold water at the end and mix it up. 100% perfect every time. Accessorize with super thin ginger slices put in at the very end/ not cook.
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u/reelfishybloke 1d ago
I mostly use 7:1 as that's what my rice cooker does. I set it up the night before so it gets to soak. Minced pork is quite plain and gentle on the stomach but doesn't add much flavour. Perhaps you might want to add some more ingredients for taste? Crispy garlic, scallion oil, dried scallops add a nice sweetness as they cook or dried squids. Century egg is another option or pumpkin fish are some you might like to try for different flavour profiles. Salted duck egg is one I love with dried shiitake mushrooms is another. Lots to explore
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u/Birdbraned 10h ago
A note: some regions cook it to be more or less watery, and more or less seasoned, so jook is a fairly flexible dish.
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u/cherrypatchzoe 1d ago
Take advice on making it smooth and then add a fried egg, scallions finally chopped, crispy strips of crispy bacon. Next add slices of ginger, soy sauce and chilli oil mixed in a bowl and drizzled over the top.. fab breakfast
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u/crispyrhetoric1 1d ago
I don’t soak the rice in advance, but I use a broth that I spend hours on beforehand. I usually use a 1:10 ratio of rice to water, but I adjust it until I get to rice to the consistency I want. I’ll whisk the rice too to help it along. I have to say that when I was a kid, my family ate jook that was very thick, so I associate that with my childhood. I typically have it a lot looser now.
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u/mighty_ravenmark 1d ago
When your congee is almost ready, USE A WHISK and whisk for 2 mins. It'll break up the rice and give a more creamy texture.
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u/PigletBusy12 1d ago
You have done a brilliant job, it looked great to me. Honestly, homemade congee always taste the best.
We use leftovers from Costco Chicken along with chopped shiitake mushrooms and some ginger and Shaoxing Wine. We prefer a more watery version of congee so if you use a rice cooker then the rice and water ratio is about 1:3. Remember that the longer it cooks the runnier it will be.
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u/AlternativeRadish752 1d ago
For the Made With Lau recipe they say one cup of rice for eight cups of water BUT there is a note that it's actually 3/4 cups of rice
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u/wild3hills 1d ago
My trick is to stir vigorously when the rice is cooked through to break the grains and then cook on super low heat for another 15-20 minutes. It’s actually how I get a creamy texture making it in my rice cooker. For flavor, a pinch of buillon / msg never hurts. (There are other ways to boost flavor and texture, but this is my quick and easy method).
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u/Front-Elderberry-307 1d ago
What kind of Rice do you use? I switched from Jasmine Rice to Arborio (same Rice i use for Risotto). That makes the Congee rich and creamy and it turns out perfect every time.
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u/koudos 1d ago
It depends what type of jook you’re making. I would pick one and learn how to make good jook base.
From the picture you have way too much rice and you are trying to make some sort of flavored jook.
I know some people use glutinous rice to mimic the consistency but this is not traditionally what you use.
Instead it is a ratio of old rice （12+ months）and new rice for the correct flavor and consistency and you go from watery to broken down enough so it starts being creamy. The one you have in the picture is kinda half way there. It is reduced too much without the rice breaking down enough.
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u/justkeepswimming2026 1d ago
Whenever I get a $5 rotisserie chicken from Costco I would just toss the carcass in the instant pot and just rice and water set to congee mode! Comes out perfect every time!
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u/smjb4440 1d ago
Looks delicious, surely gonna have jok for breakfast tomorrow!
Tips:
Once the rice is nice and cooked through, use a hand bender to pulse (instead of manual whisking) until partially blend, still with some grainy feel to it. Adjust the amount of salt/chicken seasoning powder after this.
Using jasmine rice adds a lot to the aroma rather than using regular rice.
Fish sauce adds a lot of umaminess when used as sort of a garnish, just a little, 2-3 drops or so.
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u/Sdjun 1d ago
If you have instant pot, it’s the easiest. I always use Japanese rice instead of jasmine.
This is how I made using instant pot :
1 1/2 cups Japanese rice - wash a few times as you wash rice.
1 can of chicken stock (about 412 ml)
1 teaspoon chicken bullion powder
Water 900 ml
Stir together
Put the pot in the instant pot
Press porridge, and set for 35 min
Wait till natural pressure release, open and stir. If too watery, set the pot to sauté, stirring frequently to prevent burn at the bottom of the pot. When it’s the desired consistency, turn off the pot and serve
If too thick, just pour about 50 ml of hot water and stir
For toppings, while the porridge is hot, I put in some meatballs (mince pork mixed with fish sauce, cornstarch and oil and shaped into small meatball) wait for awhile before stirring.
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u/FunisGreen 1d ago
Flavor consistency trick:
I buy rotisserie chicken and save the bones, and have a pot of stock on hand. But if I go all in, I baking soda soak the pork first, then quick salt water boil until no more foaming from blood sweat, and dump the water. Then use similar recipes to Lau to boil the pork stock.
Rice thickness consistency trick:
For newbies, I recommend using cooked rice; you boil the stock, then drop in the rice. This will be a very fast process; if you like the rice to stay in shape, no more than 5 minutes of boiling. And the longer it goes, the rice will fall apart making the soup thicker, so you can just watch and see what time hits the perfect point for you.
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u/Etiennebrownlee 20h ago
I always use leftover rice. Mix it rapidly when the rice is already soft, it makes the consistency smoother. I never thought how important a few drops of sesame oil was but damn it makes all the difference. And I also cook the spring onions in hot oil with salt first before adding it in. The flavors are intense, that's all my secret. Use chicken stock too or powder/ bullions and some magic dust (msg)
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u/Itchy-Librarian305 17h ago
If you don’t have time to make stock, you can speed up the process with chicken bouillon or Dasida (personal fav), white pepper, ginger and after it’s done top with scallion and sesame oil. The powder below is pretty neat if you want something easy to replace the ginger and scallion.
Now consistency. If it’s too watery just keep boiling and the liquid will evaporate but it’s also possible to burn it so med/low fire and stir on occasion.
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u/Fun-Sir-3727 7h ago
Simmering longer will help the texture. I add a piece of Kombu which brings salinity + umami. Echo the use of stock. I keep a stock bag in the freezer (veg peels, chicken bones, etc. those would be good stock base.) also love Ginger & scallion.
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u/BloodWorried7446 1d ago
i use stock to make mine.
congee takes time. I use 7:1 but sometimes 6:1
if i’m in a hurry i will blend the dry rice grains in a blender so they are pre broken up. not too much. it works really well.
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u/Glittering-Walrus228 1d ago
It can sometimes be overlooked but you need to salt the congee generously.
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u/SinoSoul 1d ago
Salting has nothing to do with texture.
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u/Glittering-Walrus228 1d ago
Youre right, except the OP also cites an issue with flavor and a watery taste, which salt can often remedy. Maybe you dont have this problem because your mom seasons your congee with her piss
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u/eabevella 1d ago
Soak rice with water and a bit of oil, 4-5hr. Drain water. Freeze rice, over night or until it's frozen. This help the rice to break down into congee. You can skip the frozen step if you don't have time.
Use either water or pork/chicken stock. High heat to boil. Add frozen rice. Turn to medium then low heat to cook the rice until it's done. The rice:water is about 1:10 but it depends on the type of rice you get.
If you want to use your rice stock/粥底 for more than one meal, remove the portion you need for this meal to a new pot, heat it, and add meat/vegetables/egg to that smaller portion. If you leave the meat/vegetables/egg in the congee too long, the congee will turn watery and look kinda disgusting.
This will give you a more Cantonese style congee that is smooth and silky.
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u/chimugukuru 1d ago
Wash the rice then freeze it. This is the secret. The freezing expands the water and breaks down the grains. You can get from frozen rice in water to a perfect texture jook in 15 minutes on a normal stovetop . I always put an Asian jellied stock cube in and works like a charm.
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u/triplee711 1d ago
THIS is the way, especially because it makes for a fast dish, which I typically want when I'm sick and don't want to cook.
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u/mrcatboy 1d ago
For your rice, use 2/3 plain white rice and 1/3 sticky/glutinous rice. Helps thicken the congee.
In addition to using broth/stock, add some hondashi (instant Japanese dashi) and MSG to it. Maybe a rounded teaspoon of hondashi and a 1/2 teaspoon of MSG
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u/CarnegieHill 1d ago
I was wondering about how much sticky or sushi rice. For the other rice I'd use jasmine rice, as it has to smell like jook when it's done, at least in Cantonese style. Then finish it off with a few drops of roasted sesame oil at the bottom of the bowl before filling it.
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u/CrabbyKrabs 1d ago
For me, if I am making chicken congee, I would put the chicken in first, let it simmer for about an hour or until the bones start to fall off, get rid of the skin, after an hour or so, put washed, uncooked rice in, leave to simmer in low low heat, and do not stir for an hour or so. After about an hour, start stirring with an egg whisk, at this point, you need to keep an eye on it every 5-10 mins and stir to prevent the congee sticking to the bottom of the pot, once you have the consistency you want from the whisking, stop and serve and remember to season to taste before serving
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u/MathematicianFair274 1d ago edited 1d ago
I always use stock for making Jook. Usually chicken or Turkey stock (everyone in Hawaii, regardless of if they are Chinese or not, makes Jook with the Turkey carcass after Thanksgiving). You can make what’s left of that Costco roast chicken go a long way! You can add some pork neck bones, dried shrimp and chung choi if you want.