It doesn’t take much time or effort to put together this satisfying and delicious bowl of chicken congee! In fact, you just need 30 minutes. In this easy recipe, I’ll teach you my secret method for how to make the perfect bowl of chicken congee every single time in practically no time at all.
The Best Rice to Water Ratio for Congee
Have you ever come across a congee recipe where the instructions simply say “add lots of water”? It can be very difficult to gauge how much water you need and can also be unnecessarily time consuming since you need to constantly check on the congee as it cooks.
After years of cooking congee, I’ve found that the perfect ratio is 1:10 rice to water. For me personally, this yields the perfect texture – not too thick and not too runny. Give it a try and let me know what you think!
Boneless vs. Bone-in Chicken Congee
When making chicken congee, always go for bone-in chicken. Bone-in chicken is a lot more flavorful than boneless chicken and will make your congee taste much better. It will also make your congee more nutritious, as chicken bones are rich in minerals such as calcium, magnesium, and potassium that will release into the congee as it cooks – similar to a chicken bone broth.
Using bone-in chicken is also a lot more economical. Chicken thighs, legs, or quarters can be found in most grocery stores for less than $1 per pound. Combined with the affordability of the other congee ingredients, you can make an entire pot of ginger chicken congee with just $5! It’s an excellent way to stretch your budget.
Easiest Congee Cooking Method
Now that you know the best rice to water ratio and the best kind of chicken to use, let’s get into my no-fail, passive method for cooking congee. After learning this recipe, your friends and family will crown you the chicken congee king or queen for sure!
So, once you’ve sautéed the aromatics, add your thoroughly washed rice and sauté until the rice becomes slightly translucent throughout. You can check out my video tutorial to get a better idea of how it should look. Then, add your water and chicken and bring the pot to a light rolling boil. Be sure to skim off the impurities and fat that floats to the top. Once you’ve reached the rolling boil stage, set a timer for 8 minutes. When the timer goes off, turn off the heat and put on the lid. The congee and chicken will cook perfectly in the residual heat!
This method results in consistently great ginger chicken congee. If you want the texture of your congee to be a little softer, you can set your timer to 9-10 minutes instead of 8 minutes during the rolling boil stage.
How to Make Congee Taste Even Better
Congee toppings are endlessly customizable. Some common favorites are fried garlic, soy sauce, chives, and chili oil. The toppings I like best with my congee are white pepper, chopped green onions, and cilantro. Feel free to personalize your ginger chicken congee with whatever toppings you enjoy!
Chicken Congee Recipe | Easiest Method
Ingredients
- 2 lbs Bone-In Chicken
- 1 cup Rice
- 10 cups Water
- 4 Green Onions – white part only – crushed
- 2-3 cloves Garlic – crushed
- 2-3 thumb size pieces Ginger – crushed
- 2.5 tbsp Fish Sauce
- 1 tbsp Rock Sugar
- White Pepper
- Green Onions – chopped
- Cilantro – chopped
Instructions
- Use the back of your knife or a pester to crush ginger, garlic and green onions. This will release all the beautiful flavors.
- Heat 1 tbsp of oil in a medium size pot. Add crushed ginger, garlic and green onions and sautée for a few minutes to develop the flavors of these aromatics.
- Add your thoroughly washed rice and continue to sautée until the rice turns translucent. Continue to stir the rice during this process so it doesn’t burn.
- Add water and chicken and bring the pot to a light rolling boil over medium heat.
- Skim of any impurities and excess fats that will come to the top.
- Once the pot has some to alight rolling boil, set your timer for 8 minutes. Continue to skim off the top as needed.
- When the timer goes off at 8 minutes, you want to turn OFF the heat and put ON the lid.
- Now set the timer for 30 minutes. Do not open the lid during this period!
- After 30 minutes, your chicken congee will be perfectly cooked.
- Now season your congee with rock sugar and fish sauce.
- To serve, sprinkle with a little bit of white pepper and garnish with chopped green onions and cilantro!