Recipe: Chicken congee

Congee, also known as kanji, canje, and many other names pre and post-colonization is a rice porridge that is easy to digest, soothing and warming. It can be simplified or jazzed up depending on your palate, made sweet or savory, and it makes a wonderful dish in the heavy days leading up to your birth or the cozy postpartum period.

This recipe can be modified for your tastes and is a savory dish that is one of my most often requested when I am working with families as a postpartum doula. It makes a very large batch that can be reheated throughout the week or shared with your loved ones.

ingredients

1 cup any organic white rice

1 cup water

oil or ghee

a thumb of fresh ginger, peeled and minced

1 TBSP minced garlic

1 1/2 cups shiitake mushrooms, cleans and sliced

2 Tbsp apple cider vinegar

2 small or 1 large sweet potato, peeled and diced

4 chicken thighs or 4 drumsticks

3 cups bone broth or water

salt to taste

green onions, sliced to taste

liquid aminos or soy sauce to taste

procedure

Soak your rice in the 1 cup of water while you prep the rest of the recipe.

In a large pot with a lid, heat your oil over medium heat. Add the ginger and garlic, saute for a few minutes to soften but not burn. Add the mushrooms and saute until soft and just beginning to caramelize.

While the mushrooms cook down, strain the rice and give it a rinse a few times. Combine the rice and 1 cup of clean water and blend briefly with an immersion blender or food processor. You just want to break up the rice a little. Leave it in the water and set aside.

Once the mushrooms are caramelized, add the apple cider vinegar and scrape the bottom of your pot with your spoon to deglaze your pot and get all the yummy flavor off the bottom. Add in the sweet potatoes, give them a stir to coat them and then add the rice and water, as well as the broth. Stir everything up to prevent the rice from sticking to the bottom. Nestle the chicken into the mixture, making sure it is just covered with the liquid. Put a lid on the pot and bring to a gentle boil.

Once boiling, lower to a simmer and cook for about 1 hour. Add more liquid if needed and continue to gently stir periodically to prevent sticking.

After an hour, remove the chicken and pull the meat from the bones, discarding skin and bones and placing the shredding meat back into the pot. Add in salt. Cook for 30 more minutes or until the desired consistency is reached. Taste for seasoning and adjust as needed.

Serve hot with green onions, aminos and any other toppings that sound good! I love soft boiled eggs, seaweed seasonings and pepper.

Leftovers can be stored for up to a week and reheated over a gentle heat on the stove, adding liquid as needed for consistency.