Eight Treasure Congee (八宝粥)
Eight Treasure Congee, also known as “Bā Bǎo Zhōu” (八宝粥), is a traditional Chinese breakfast, side dish or dessert made with glutinous rice.
Ingredients
- ½ cup glutinous rice
- 2 tbsp black rice (also known as forbidden rice)
- 2 tbsp barley
- 2 tbsp azuki beans dried
- 2 tbsp lotus seeds dried
- 2 tbsp chestnuts raw, coarsely chopped
- 6 to 10 red dates dried (also known as jujubes)
- 2 tbsp raisins
- 2 l water can use up to 10 cups
- 100 g rock sugar optional
Complete Recipe Steps
- Combine the glutinous rice, black rice, barley, azuki beans, lotus seeds and chestnuts in a big bowl. Add water to cover the mixture and soak overnight. Discard the soaking water and drain thoroughly before cooking.½ cup glutinous rice, 2 tbsp black rice, 2 tbsp barley, 2 tbsp azuki beans, 2 tbsp lotus seeds, 2 tbsp chestnuts
- Combine the soaked rice and nuts blend, red dates and raisins in a big pot and add 10 cups of water.6 to 10 red dates, 2 tbsp raisins, 2 l water
- Cook over medium-high heat until the mixture starts to simmer. Reduce to a low heat and cover the pot with the lid. I usually place the pot lid slightly to the side and leave a 2 cm gap to allow steam to escape and prevent the congee from boiling over and spilling out.
- Simmer until the congee reaches your desired texture. If you want a thin texture, simmer for 40 minutes. Otherwise you can simmer for up to 60 minutes for a stickier and thicker texture.
- (Optional) At the end of the cooking, add the sugar and stir to dissolve it completely.100 g rock sugar
- Serve hot as a dessert or side.
Notes
- Barley can be substituted with brown rice for a similar texture
- Dried azuki beans can be substituted with mung beans or red kidney beans
- Dried lotus seeds can be substituted with a raw nut like cashews or peanuts
- Raw chestnuts can be substituted with chopped walnuts
- Red dates can be substituted with dried longan, goji berries or taro