How to Make a Good Cantonese Congee Base

Ever wondered how to make smooth, delicious Cantonese congee fast and easily? Ever feel frustrated that it seems like you can never get the right rice to water ratio? Hey, you are not alone in this unfamiliar adventure! What you are missing is a kick-ass recipe for a damn good congee base. Read More Show Less Cantonese congee has been popular around the world as a comfort food full of flavors. Compared to other types of porridge, Cantonese congee is famous for its fineness and smoothness. There is a certain amount of skill involved in making this type of congee that is overflowing with flavor. If you want to make delicious, world-class Cantonese congee, getting the congee base right is the most critical part. With a good base, you'll be able to make authentic, tasty congee dishes easily. Practice the following techniques, you too can become a congee master. We are introducing two types of congee bases below: basic and advanced. Both are not difficult to follow and take about the same amount of time to prepare. However, the advanced congee base is packed with a little bit more flavor. But first ...

What is a Congee Base?

1. Started in Restaurant Style Chinese Congee

   Good Cantonese rice congee is very time-consuming to make. One needs to boil the rice and ingredients for hours for the congee to reach a thick and smooth texture. This becomes very difficult as customers expect to be served within a short period of time after ordering. It is also impractical to make a significant amount of every type of congee on the menu as restaurant owners can’t predict with accuracy the number of orders for each specific type of rice congee. Congee base became an ingenious solution to satisfy customers and also keep the congee quality and flavors intact. By making an authentic thick congee base ahead of time, chefs only need to stir-fry the ingredients separately based on the congee recipe. By adding the pre-cooked congee base into these flavored ingredients, not only will a delicious congee be ready in minutes, but also it preserved the separate flavors of the ingredients and congee base with a clean and appealing look.

2. Meant for Rice Congee

   While there are many different types of grain for making congee, congee base is only meant for rice congee recipes. Both the plain congee base (see Basic Congee Base below) and flavored congee base (see Advanced Congee Base below) use rice as the main ingredient.

3. Utilized in Many Unfamiliar China Congee Recipes

   If you have tried the recipes in our Congee section, you might already be familiar with the term congee base. Many popular recipes among our readers utilize the two types of congee base described below. Mixed fruit congee and chicken thigh congee are just the two of the examples.

Controlling the Heat

The type of flame one uses to cook with is divided into four categories – high, medium, low, and weak – based on the flame's height, intensity, color, and temperature. Here are some descriptions of each type. Next time, when you see one of these heat types being mentioned in the recipe, you’ll know exactly what to do!

1. High Heat

   A high, steady flame. Leaps out from the burner and emanates heat in an area around the burner. Bright, dazzling light. Yellow-white in color.

2. Medium Heat

   A flame that wavers on the burner. It sometimes leaps out of the burner, and sometimes shrinks lower than the burner. Relatively bright with a yellow-red color. Relatively high temperature.

3. Low Heat

   A relatively low flame that generally stays level with the height of the stove range. A healthy, dim flame that glows red. Weaker in strength.

4. Weak Heat

   A flame that flickers just on the surface of the stove range. A dim flame with a dark red color. Relatively low temperature.