Vegan Congee with Star Anise and Porcini Mushrooms

Slofoodgroup Team July 28, 2021

What is Congee?

Congee is a rice porridge eaten throughout Asian countries. It is cooked slowly in a lot of liquid, usually a 1:7 rice to liquid ratio, until it softens significantly. It is primarily eaten as breakfast or as late dinner as it is an easily digestible meal.

Congee can be eaten as it is or it can be garnished with various toppings, from fresh herbs to thin cuts of meat. The congee can be cooked in water or it can be cooked in stock for more flavor. We went for vegetable stock and star anise for our recipe, to pair the earthy taste of porcini mushrooms.

This recipe makes a great breakfast-for-dinner meal for busy weekdays. Our choice of protein was soft boiled eggs but any cuts of meat or vegan options would work well with this recipe.

 How to make congee from scratch

Ingredients:

• 2 cloves of garlic
• 1 tsp vegetable oil
• Thumb size piece of ginger
• ½ cup uncooked jasmine or basmati rice 
• 3 cups vegetable stock
• 1 star anise
• Pinch of sea salt
• Pinch of freshly cracked black pepper

Toppings:

• 1 oz/25 grams dehydrated porcini mushrooms
• 2-4 brown champignon mushrooms
• Soy sauce to taste
• 2 eggs, soft boiled, optional
• ½ spring onion, thinly sliced 
• ½ chili, sliced 
• Pinch of chopped coriander 

Procedure:

1. Peel the garlic and ginger and bash to a fine paste; to a saucepan add the vegetable oil together with the ginger and garlic and cook for 1-2 minutes or until fragrant;
2. Add the rice, vegetable stock, star anise, and a pinch of salt to the pot and simmer on low for 30-45 minutes, stirring often; 
3. While the congee is cooking, rehydrate the porcini mushrooms in hot water for 15 minutes; remove from water, and pan-fry together with the brown champignon mushrooms until cooked; add a splash of soy sauce and set aside;
4. Once the congee is done, add it to bowls and top it with the fried mushrooms, soft boiled eggs, thinly sliced spring onions, and coriander.