Comfort Congee
“Lai chiak” Come eat. We would come running to the table only to sigh dramatically “Maaaaii”. Poooorrridge. We were calm though by the time we were halfway through the tepid rice broth with one fork spearing a slice of fried spam. The end of the bowl was met with soft scrapes in case they thought we enjoyed it. Mai/jook/congee whatever you call it is a Chinese household panacea. It is the food of babies, the ailing and the elderly. Full of starchy goodness, easy to digest and an economical way to stretch a meal. My mum likes a plain watery porridge with a few salty dishes. Salted dace with black beans, pickled vegetables, salted duck egg, omelette with crunchy things. The list goes on. Alternatively there is the chicken porridge; cooked with ginger and stock with shredded chicken on top or fish porridge; white fish poached in the broth at the end. Both served with soy sauce, white pepper oh yes it must be white, fresh chopped shallots and fried baby onions. It is a food I took for granted and not one I craved. But age, well, ages you and your tastes change. I appreciate the blander things in life now - Genesis, Friday nights on the couch, the color grey, rice porridge. In my current condition, I HAD MY WISDOM TOOTH OUT, ahem, I appreciated congee all the more. It is the perfect goopy texture, comforting and importantly satisfying unlike custard and jelly. My latest obsession is dropping an egg into its warm warm depths and heating it through for a perfect poached egg in porridge. Perfect with a good drizzle of soy sauce. Ok, Heros Season 2 calls.
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