My Recipe

A great accompaniment to any Chinese stir-fried noodle!

Vegetarian Quinoa and Rice Congee

Ingredients

1/3 cup – Uncooked quinoa
1/6 cup – Uncooked medium or long-grain brown rice
1/6 cup – Uncooked long-grain white rice
15 cups – Water
2 slices – Ginger (¼” thick)
1 Tbsp – Ginger (shredded)
one 19 oz can – Canned bean medley (rinsed and drained)
1 to 1¼ cup – Fresh or canned whole kernel corn
4 pieces – Deep-fried tofu (or 1/3 pack firm tofu)
6 pieces (large) – Fresh button mushroom
6 Tbsp – Green onion (chopped)
to taste – Sesame oil
to taste – White ground pepper

Congee Seasoning:

1½ to 2 tsp – Light soy sauce
1 tsp – vegetable broth mix
to taste – Salt

Method:

1. Rinse quinoa thoroughly to remove the natural seed coating called saponin which gives quinoa its bitter taste. Drain. Rinse white and brown rice. Drain.
2. Rinse and cut deep-fried tofu into small dices.
3. Rinse and drain canned corn, if using.
4. Clean and cut mushroom into small dices.
5. Boil 15 cups of water in a 6-litre pot or Dutch oven. Add quinoa and two types of rice and ginger slices. Bring to a boil. With the lid tilted, cook on high heat for about 1 hour until the grains open up and mixture reaches the desired consistency. Check and stir frequently so content in pot does not boil over or stick to the bottom.
6. While congee is cooking, sauté shredded ginger in a wok with 1½ Tbsp oil for 30 seconds. Add tofu and mushroom. Stir-fried for 30 seconds. Set aside.
7. When congee is ready, remove and discard ginger slices. Stir in bean, corn, tofu and mushroom. With the lid tilted, cook for 2 minutes, stirring frequently. Add congee seasoning, stir and bring to a boil. Remove and garnish with green onion. Serve hot with a dash of white ground pepper and sesame oil.

Note:

1. Brown rice can replace white rice but the colour of the congee will be darker.
2. Use a big pot because the content boils over easily. Constant attention is required when cooking congee.
3. If congee gets too thick, hot water can be added to thin out the mixture.
4. Leftover congee can be refrigerated and reheated on the stovetop the next day.

See my related post:

• Nutrients of Rice