The Shrimp Congee is a very popular and common Chinese dish. If you ever travel to that great Asian country, then you would notice that they sell this Congee at every restaurant or bar.
It is eaten at any time of the day, but mostly for lunch or dinner. It has the best of the cuisine from China: from the most delicious seafood to the classic white rice, there is simply no way to go wrong.
How to Make Shrimp Congee Hot Pot
Prep time: 5 minutes
Baking/Cooking time: 10 minutes
Total time: 15 minutes
Servings: 4
Ingredients:
- 1/2 cup uncooked rice
- 5 cups water
- 15 big shrimp (180g), shelled and deveined
- 1 tbsp cornstarch
- 1 piece ginger, thinly shredded
- salt and pepper for taste
- 15 g green onion, finely chopped
Directions:
- Boil the five cups of water, so you have already started cooking the rice in boiling water.
- Get rid of the head, shells, and intestine of the shrimps. You can buy them clean, or do this by yourself. Do it with the help of a sharp knife, then wash it off and dry the shrimp with a clean kitchen towel.
- Marinate the shrimp. Add salt and pepper, plus then thin pieces of ginger. Also, add the tablespoon of cornstarch and mix everything. Let it sit for 15 minutes while you work on the rice.
- Blend the uncooked rice in a blender or food processor for about 10 seconds so it cooks faster. Don’t overdo it so it doesn’t become rice powder.
- Place the rice in a strainer and wash it with water. This way you remove any remaining dust and excess water.
- Take the rice to a pot and pour the boiling water so the cooking process is faster. Take the pot to the stove and put the heat on high for 2 to 3 minutes, then lower it down to medium. Stir so the rice doesn’t burn or stick.
- Cook on medium heat for 10 minutes, but mix constantly. Once it’s cooked, take the shrimp to the pot and cook it. It should take 1 minute, or once you see the shrimp get a pink color.
- Sprinkle some salt and chopped green onions on top for more flavor.
- Serve warm and enjoy.
How to Adjust the Ingredients
There are hundreds of changes you can make to this recipe if you want to add your personal touch.
For example, instead of using white rice, you can use any other you like, such as brown rice, although it will take longer to cook.
You can also replace the shrimp with another type of seafood such as mussels, squid, or octopus.
If you don’t like seafood you can use chicken, or pork or simply leave the rice alone.
How to Add More Flavor to this Dish
This dish already has enough flavor between the shrimp and the green onion on top, but if you want more, you can add soy sauce or sweet and sour sauce, even some honey can work.
You can also add a larger amount of ginger, garlic, or any type of seasoning that you like, such as paprika, turmeric, chili powder, etc.
How to Serve Shrimp Congee Hot Pot
In China, this dish is even eaten for breakfast, but if you’re not ready to take that leap, you can eat it for lunch or dinner.
As you can see in the recipe step by step, you can serve it with some green onions cut on top.
You can serve it along with green tea, wine, or water as drinks to accompany the dish.
You can even put some small bowls with soy sauce, sweet and sour sauce, or any other that you like for people to throw on top of the rice.
How to Store Shrimp Congee Hot Pot
There are two ways to store this dish: freezing it or keeping it in the fridge.
If you choose to store it in the fridge, it can last up to 3 days there. You should store it in a covered container once it reaches room temperature, and then only heat it when you’re ready to eat it.
If you choose to freeze it you must also let it come to room temperature, cover it and freeze it for up to 30 days. Then let it thaw overnight and serve hot.
You can heat it in the microwave, pausing and stirring to get it to heat evenly.
You can also heat it in a pot, although in that case, I recommend that you add half a cup of water since it is very likely to evaporate quickly.
It is important that you let it reach room temperature before storing it, otherwise, it will gather a lot of steam inside the covered container.
Remember that it cannot be more than an hour out of the fridge, otherwise, the shrimp will go bad.
Extra tips for making Shrimp Congee Hot Pot
- If you want a thicker Congee you can use less water.
- It is always recommended that you taste the rice as it cooks, so you get the desired texture.
- Also, check if it has just enough salt before serving.
- If you plan to serve it together with soy sauce then don’t put so much salt on it.
- If it is too salty just make more rice and heat everything together in the pot.
- If you don’t cook it with boiling water then it will take longer to cook, about 30 minutes.
- You can boil the water in an electric kettle or in the same pot you plan to cook the rice in.
- It’s always best to use fresh shrimp, but you can use frozen if that’s what you have at home.
- If you do not like to clean the shrimp or you are not sure you can do it well, then it is recommended that you buy it already cleaned.
- To facilitate the cleaning of the shrimp, it is always helpful to use a sharp knife.
