Deliciously warm and comforting century egg congee with pork ready in 30 minutes and just 5 steps! This easy and classic dish is popular for a reason, and this recipe incorporates a trick to make it ready even quicker!
Century egg congee is probably my favorite kind of congee. Though it's a breakfast dish, I personally prefer to eat it for lunch or dinner. It goes very well with scallion pancake and scallion shaobing. I learned how to make century egg congee when I was in college, and I was surprised by how easy it is to make this dish.
My family loves this congee as much as the Instant Pot Chicken Veggie Congee, and whenever I make it, my kids will always ask for a second bowl while commenting on how yummy it is!
Why You Should Try this Recipe
- It's a classic and popular dim sum dish that's very easy to make at home.
- This is an easy dish that takes only 5 steps!
- This is a great recipe for beginners.
- I will teach you a trick for cutting down the cooking time of the congee.
- Leftovers reheat well and taste just as good as fresh.
Ingredients You'll Need
note
- White rice - I like to use short grain white rice.
- Pork tenderloin - you can also use other lean pork parts.
- Celery - it's not usually used in the century egg congee, but I like the freshness and crunch that it adds to the congee.
How to Make this Dish?
- Rinse the rice, store it in a freezer bag and freeze for 40 minutes or until it's frozen.
You can do this ahead of time (even weeks ahead) and use it whenever you are ready to cook. This step isn't necessary if you don't mind cooking for longer. This step allows you to halve the cooking time.
2. Add the frozen rice, ginger slices and water into a pot (I use my 4qt Staub Dutch oven) and bring it to a boil before turning the heat down to maintain a gentle boil and cook until the congee is thick and smooth, about 15 minutes.
3. Meanwhile, slice the pork tenderloin, mix it with the marinated seasoning and set it aside.
4. Peal and cut the century egg.
5. When the congee is done, add in pork slices, stir and cook until it turns white before adding century egg and chopped celery. And it's ready to serve!
Tips and Tricks
- Freezing the rice makes the rice easier to break and cook through, you can also use unfrozen rice, but the cooking time will double.
- When cooking the congee, leave a little opening to prevent it from bubbling over. When the congee starts to thicken, stir occasionally to prevent sticking at the bottom.
- If you prefer your congee to be a bit thicker, start with 7 cups of water instead. You can always add more water to adjust the thickness towards the end of cooking.
- Celery is usually not used in century egg congee, but I like the freshness and crunchiness that it adds to this dish.
Recipe FAQs
No, you don't.
Yes, use 3 cups of cooked white rice and 7 cups of water.
I loved eating century egg since I was a kid, and my mom never stopped me from eating it, but she wouldn't let me eat too much of it. Now, as a mom of two young kids, I personally wouldn't give it to kids under 1 year old as it isn't exactly considered to be healthy food. Also, I only get century eggs that are labelled as being "lead free", and I'd only eat it occasionally.
I would like to hear from you! If you make this recipe, please consider leaving a star rating and comment in the section further down the page. Stay in touch by following my Instagram and Pinterest!
Century Egg Congee with Pork
Ingredients
- 1 cup short grain white rice
- 2 slice ginger
- 8 cup water
- half pork tenderloin, about ½lb
- 2 tablespoon soy sauce
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- ¼ teaspoon white pepper
- 1 tsp rice cooking wine (mijiu)
- ½ teaspoon corn starch
- 1 clove garlic
- 2-3 century eggs
- ½ cup finely chopped celery
- salt
- chopped scallion , optional
- sesame oil , optional
Instructions
Prepare the rice
- Rinse the rice, store it in a freezer bag and freeze for 40 minutes or until it's frozen. You can do this ahead of time (even weeks ahead) and use it whenever you are ready to cook.
Making the Congee
- Add the frozen rice, ginger slices and water into a pot (I use my 4qt Staub Dutch oven) and bring it to a boil before turning the heat down to maintain a gentle boil and cook until the congee is thick and smooth, about 15 minutes.
- Meanwhile, slice the pork tenderloin, mix it with soy sauce, sugar, white pepper, rice cooking wine, corn starch, garlic and set it aside.
- Peal and cut each century egg to 4 pieces.
- When the congee is done, add in pork slices, stir and cook until it turns white before adding century egg and chopped celery.
- Season the congee with salt to taste and serve warm with optional topping.
Notes
- Freezing the rice makes the rice easier to break and cook through, you can also use unfrozen rice, but the cooking time will double.
- If you want to make it with cooked rice, use 3 cups of cooked white rice and 7 cups of water.
- When cooking the congee, leave a little opening to prevent it from bubbling over. When the congee starts to thicken, stir occasionally to prevent sticking at the bottom.
- If you prefer your congee to be a bit thicker, start with 7 cups of water instead. You can always add more water to adjust the thickness towards the end of cooking.
- Celery is usually not used in century egg congee, but I like the freshness and crunchiness that it adds to this dish.
Love a bowl of warm congee in winter, especially after lots of heavy meals with cheese and cream. Definitely only go with frozen rice to cut down the cooking time!
Me too! A bowl of warm congee is always comforting 🙂
I chop the century egg into small pieces before adding it in. Very tasty. I'll be making it again soon.
Yum! I'm glad to hear you like it 🙂