A Hearty Bowl of Glutinous Rice and Adzuki Bean Congee

             By Mu Xi & Carolyn poon

Ingredients

            30 grams glutinous rice

            30 grams organic adzuki beans
            (red beans)

Directions

           1 Rinse and drain the glutinous rice and adzuki beans.

           2 Pour sufficient water into the pressure cooker as needed.

           3 Turn to the congee setting mode on the pressure cooker and cook for 30 minutes.

            For warming comfort, many people love a simple bowl of congee. In Ancient China, congee was regarded as the foremost health-boosting supplement. This was especially so amongst the wealthy nobility, who frequently demanded congee of different types to be cooked in accordance with the changing seasons for the purpose of nourishing their health. Today, this soothing age-old dish continues to be popular — not only because it benefits overall health, but because it is delicious too.

           In many parts of Asia, congee stalls are ubiquitous on modern streets and thoroughfares. The delicious varieties of congee on offer continue to multiply. Be it rice congee to warm empty bellies, millet rice congee with pumpkin to rid the body of chills, or green bean congee boiled with lotus leaves to prevent overheating in summer, customers delight in a hearty bowl.

            For many congee lovers, home-cooked congee is always best. That is why many choose to wake early and cook by the light of dawn for their families, enjoying the gentle aroma and the almost tangible sense of warmth and contentment that envelops the home.

            A bowl of congee to accompany a dish of pickled vegetables — an ordinary meal, yet it warms the heart and nurtures the body, and grounds us in the simplicity of life.