Oats Congee
- 10 min prep
- 40 min
- Cook
- Serves 2
- 210 kcal
- 7.8 g protein
Congee made with steel-cut oats instead of rice: a slow, gingery, savoury porridge with mushrooms and carrot. Soft, warming and done in a third of the time of rice jook.
Ingredients
- ½ cup (80 g) steel-cut oats
- 4 cups (960 ml) water or vegetable stock
- 1 tsp (5 ml) sesame oil
- 1 tbsp (10 g) ginger, cut into fine matchsticks
- 2 cloves garlic (6 g), thinly sliced
- 1 cup (70 g) mushrooms (button or shiitake), finely chopped
- 1 small carrot (60 g), finely diced
- 2 tsp (10 ml) light soy sauce
- ½ tsp rice vinegar or any mild vinegar
- ½ tsp salt, or to taste
- ¼ tsp white pepper powder, plus chilli flakes to serve
- 2 spring onions (30 g), sliced
- 2 tbsp (6 g) coriander leaves, chopped
Method
- 1Heat the sesame oil in a heavy pot over medium heat. Add half the ginger and all the garlic and stir for a minute until fragrant and just starting to colour.
- 2Add the mushrooms and carrot and cook for 3 minutes, stirring, until the mushrooms release their liquid and shrink.
- 3Stir in the steel-cut oats and toast for 1 minute, then pour in the water or stock. Bring to a boil.
- 4Reduce the heat to low, partly cover and simmer for 20 to 25 minutes, stirring every few minutes and scraping the base. The congee is ready when the oats are fully soft and the liquid has turned thick and silky, like a loose risotto.
- 5Stir in the soy sauce, vinegar, salt and white pepper. If it is too thick, add hot water a ladle at a time until it pours slowly off the spoon.
- 6Ladle into bowls and finish with the remaining ginger matchsticks, spring onion, coriander and a pinch of chilli flakes.
Notes from the Department
- Soak the steel-cut oats in the water overnight and the simmer drops to about 12 minutes.
- Short of time? Use 1 cup (90 g) rolled oats with 3 cups water and simmer for 8 to 10 minutes; the result is creamier and less grainy.
- Congee thickens as it sits. Always have hot water ready to loosen it at the table.
Nutrition per serving
- Energy
- 210 kcal
- Protein
- 7.8 g
- Carbohydrate
- 35 g
- Fat
- 5.4 g
- Fibre
- 6.1 g
- Sugars
- 3 g
Why this works
Congee, or jook, is rice cooked in a lot of water until the grains break down into a silky porridge. Steel-cut oats do the same thing in about a third of the time and keep a little more bite. Their starch thickens the liquid naturally, so you get that soothing, spoonable texture without any cornflour.
Building flavour at the start matters because the oats themselves are mild. Ginger and garlic gently fried in sesame oil, plus mushrooms cooked down until their juices concentrate, give the base depth. Raw ginger on top adds a fresh bite at the end.
Toppings and swaps
Crisp fried shallots, roasted peanuts, chilli oil, pickled radish or a few cubes of seared tofu all belong here. Add a handful of spinach or chopped bok choy in the last 2 minutes. For a desi version, temper mustard seeds, curry leaves and green chilli in the oil instead and skip the soy.
Soy sauce usually contains wheat. For a gluten-free bowl, use tamari and certified gluten-free oats.
Storage and reheating
Congee keeps 3 days in the fridge and sets firm when cold. Reheat in a pan with hot water or stock, stirring until smooth, and add fresh spring onion. It also freezes well for a month without its toppings. The Ministry files this under comfort food, sub-section rainy mornings.
Questions people ask
- Can I make congee with oats instead of rice?
- Yes. Steel-cut oats make the closest match, with a silky texture and slight chew in 20 to 25 minutes. Rolled oats work too, giving a creamier, softer congee in about 10 minutes.
- How much water do I need for oats congee?
- About 12 parts water to 1 part steel-cut oats by volume, so 4 cups for ½ cup oats. Congee should pour slowly, so keep extra hot water to adjust.
- Can I make oats congee in a pressure cooker?
- Yes. Cook everything except the soy, vinegar and toppings for 2 whistles on medium, then let the pressure release on its own. Stir well and season before serving.
Inspired by Healthy Slow Cooking. Method, notes and photograph by the Ministry of Oats.
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