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Fish-slice congee, cooked in the pour

Fish-slice congee, cooked in the pour

生滾魚片粥
Cooked in the bowlCongeeWeeknightKids like itMediumhands-on 15 min · start to finish 1 hr 12 min

“Congee wants its full time on the boil before the rice opens.”

Ingredientsserves 4

雜貨舖White rice· rinsed, then mixed with ½ tsp salt and a few drops of oil1 cup (180 g)
街市Fish slices· white fish, sliced 3 mm across the grain with the knife held upright300 g
街市Fresh ginger· half juiced for the marinade, half cut in fine threads1 small piece
雜貨舖Rice wine (cooking wine)· for the fish1 tbsp
雜貨舖Salt· plus ¼ tsp for the fish½ tsp
百子櫃Peppercorn, chiefly white· white pepper, some in the marinade and some at the bowl¼ tsp
雜貨舖Cornflour· cornflour, for the fish½ tsp
雜貨舖Sesame oil½ tsp
街市Spring onion / scallion· chopped2
雜貨舖Cooking oil· for the ricea few drops

Equipment

  • A big pot and a sharp knife. Sharp matters: it is what lets you cut the slices thin.

How the time splits

  1. 5 minRinse the rice and start the pothands on
  2. 55 minThe base simmers downhands off
  3. 10 minSlice and marinate the fishhands on
  4. 2 minInto the boiling congee — two minuteshands on

Method

  1. Rinse the rice, mix it with the half teaspoon of salt and a few drops of oil and leave it to stand. Bring 1.8 litres of water to the boil, add the rice, bring it back to the boil and simmer on low for fifty-five minutes until the grains have burst and the congee has gone creamy. Stir it twice along the way so it does not catch.
  2. Slice the fish 3 mm thick across the grain, holding the knife upright — that is what keeps the bones out of the bowl. Marinate it ten minutes with the ginger juice, wine, salt, white pepper, cornflour and sesame oil.
  3. Bring the congee to a hard rolling boil. It must be a hard boil: the fish is cooked by that heat, not by the flame under it.
  4. Slide the slices in and stir once — once — so they separate without breaking. Add the ginger threads.
  5. One to two minutes, until the slices have turned white and firm, then take it off the heat. Spring onion, white pepper and a few drops of sesame oil at the bowl.
  6. Or do it the 艇仔粥 way: the raw slices in the bowl and the boiling congee poured straight over, covered for a moment. They cook just the same.

Take care

  • Fish. The slices are cooked by the heat of the boiling congee, so the congee must be at a hard boil and the slices must be thin. Cut them thick and the centre stays raw.

The story

The purest form of the congee shop's 生滾: one thing dropped into a base already at the boil, eaten in the minute it takes, never simmered on. It is also the bowl a Hong Kong family makes for somebody who is unwell, because all of it is soft. It is on this wall because 艇仔粥 and 及第粥 both rest on the same principle — the base is the hour's work and the 生滾 is the last two minutes, and keeping the two apart is what makes the dish come out right.

Same kind

Century egg and salted-pork congeeScholar's congee, with the pork offalBoat congee, with everything in the bowl

Lo Fo Tong is cultural food-heritage reference, not medical advice. If you are pregnant, unwell or on medication, talk to your doctor or registered practitioner before changing what is in the pot.