Chicken Congee with Turnip Omelette

Congee is a breakfast staple where I grew up. Actually it’s often baby’s first food. So I really did grow up on this LOL! It is made with rice cooked to a gooey state, one can have plain congee with just rice and water, and have it with various condiments, usually pickles or salty dishes. Or you can add meat and vegetables to  it to make it a one pot meal. This is the version I usually make with leftover roast chicken.

Ingredients for the Congee:

Leftover roast chicken (or 1 chicken breast fillet)

5cm knob of fresh young ginger, julienned

150g pumpkin or sweet potato, diced into 2cm cubes

2 cups of rice (you can use brown rice, or a mixture of jasmine, brown rice, or even barley)

5 cups of water or part chicken stock

Ingredients for the omelette:

3 eggs, lightly beaten

2 tbsp of chopped Chinese preserved turnip

2 tbsp of chopped coriander

1 tbsp of cooking oil

Method:

1.          Place everything in a large pot and boil till the rice is softened and the water a bit gooey. I like to be able to see the rice grains still. Pick the meat off the bones, discard the bones and shred and return the meat to the congee.

2.          Add a bit more water if it dries up. If you’re not having it with other condiments, add salt and pepper for seasoning.

3.          To cook the omelette, heat oil in a flat pan.

4.          Add the eggs; sprinkle the turnip and coriander over.

5.          Cook for 2-3 minutes on each side.

6.          Serve with chopped spring onion and more coriander.

Note:

To make this baby friendly, omit the meat and ginger for really young babies, you can boil the congee with pumpkin and other baby friendly vegetables for a bit longer to soften it. When the baby gets a bit older, you can add mince to the congee.