Basic Congee

Congee, or jook, is a lovely dish for when you're sick, or just need some quick comfort food. It's basically rice porridge or gruel at it's most basic, but you can jazz it up and it's quite yummy and very easy. The basic way to make it is to use 1 part rice to 6-12 parts water or broth. The best thing about it is how very customizable it is. You can use chicken or other meats to help flavor it and add a little protein. I am partial to adding dried mushrooms, usually shiitake, that I but cheaply buy them in bulk from Asian markets and highly recommend it!

Basic Congee: 

1/2 cup uncooked jasmine, or other white rice
5 cups water or stock
5 garlic cloves
1 inch piece of ginger, peeled and diced

Optional inclusions:
Lemon grass
Dried chilies
handful of dried or fresh shiitake
chicken breast (add for only the last half hour of cooking)

Combine all of the above in a pot and bring to a boil on high heat. Once it boils, bring the heat down to low, and simmer for at least an hour, until the desired consistency is reached. Serve with optional garnishes to make more of a fancy meal out of it.


Garnishes:
sliced scallions, slivers of fried shallot
cilantro
crispy strips of bacon
fried eggs (or poached, or w/e)

Some people do lots of water and a 2 hour cooking time to get it really broken down and soft, and some people like it with less water and a 45 minute cooking time to get it less porridgey. Experiment because it's a great recipe to have in your mental file as it is cheap, easy, comforting, and relatively quick. I make this both when I'm legitimately sick with food poisoning, flu/colds, or otherwise sensitive tummy times when nothing else sounds good, and also when I am lazy and just need some easy comfort food.