Counterfeit Congee

This is not so much a recipe but a pathetic attempt to copy the soulful congee that you get for next to nothing in simple asian establishments. The end result is simply not the same (possibly because I haven't even bothered to look up a recipe in order to make it properly) but it is tasty, healthy and enjoyable. Better still, it can be made with what you have in the house and in one pot.

1 cup of any type of rice except brown (I believe you can buy special rice for congee but I have used heaps of different ones including arborio, sushi and basmati).
5 cups liquid - Use leftover Asian vegetable stock from yesterday's post or normal chicken or vegetable stock or water. If you use water, you can go crazy and add a couple of whole peeled but slightly bashed garlic cloves and pieces of peeled ginger (the size and width of a dollar coin) and simply fish them out before serving.
Vegetables - combination and amount to suit your toddler's taste and what is in your fridge - peas, corn, broccoli, snow peas, carrot, mushrooms are all good options. We went alternative today and included sweet potato.
Some protein (optional) - quarters of boiled egg, or cooked chicken are a good idea.

Place the liquid and the rice into a big saucepan and bring to the boil. Turn down the heat and lit simmer briskly until rice thickens and makes the water cloudy with its starch. Feel free to add water if necessary and keep cooking it until the rice nearly dissolves. The end result you are aiming for is a thick soupy mixture - a little like porridge.

You can cook the vegetables one of two ways:
* by placing them in a steamer that fits on top of the saucepan, or
* by placing them in the actual liquid and rice after the mixture has been simmering for about 5 minutes.

Once the congee has reached the desired consistency, place in serving bowls and add vegetables (if they have been steamed separately) and any cooked protein you would like. For a toddler who likes finger food, leave steamed vegetables separate so there is something for them to eat with their hands (my toddler also liked eating the congee with her hands but that is another story).

For any adult sharing the congee offer the following garnishes to make it more interesting:
* finely sliced spring onion
* peeled and finely sliced young ginger (give the old and gnarly stuff a miss), or
* sauce of 2 parts lime juice, 1 part fish sauce, 1 part sugar and chopped chilli to taste. I keep freeze dried sliced chilli on hand - with a dash of hot water it reconstitutes and can be added into recipes that call for fresh chilli and I don't have to worry about getting chilli juice on my hands and stinging my toddler when I touch her.

This recipe makes one adult serve and four generous toddler serves or enough for two adults and two toddlers. It can be frozen (without the adult garnishes).