Hong Kong Juk for Everyone

(Congee Loves You)

Making rice porridge is easy and yummy. You add your own extras and condiments to this comfort food and it tastes better than you can imagine.

Congee for your sick days, congee for missing-your-Mommy days, congee for hangovers, congee for brunch, congee impress-your-virgin- friends, congees for extended-TV-watching, congee right-out-of-the-fridge-heated-up anytime.

Most people look at congee recipes online and despair because it takes a couple hours of slow cooking.

NO MORE!

Here’s how to make quick, perfect-tasting rice porridge:

Cook 1 part rice to 8 parts water or chicken stock. Or fish or veggie stock. Or coconut milk.

Cook it just like you would cook a regular rice recipe, for 20 minutes.

Here’s the sneaky, “right-tool-for-the-jook” trick:

Take an immersible blender and blend what’s in your saucepan until it’s like pudding.

YOU’RE DONE.

That’s the basic recipe, but I’ve written down the congee I made yesterday so you can see an example of a full-blown congee pig-out.

My friends Janet and Dan Jurafsky supplied me with the condiments and garnishes for my first venture. They live in San…