Congee is a grain-based, medicinal porridge served for centuries in traditional East Indian and Chinese homes. It is an easy and affordable dish to incorporate into any diet. It is used preventively to promote good health and strong digestion.
Congee for breakfast is simple and easy to make. You use a small amount of grain with 5-6 times more water, sea vegetables, dried fruit and spices. For a lunch or dinner meal, try a combination of grains, beans, vegetables, or medicinal herbs.
When you incorporate this as a regular dish, you’ll see improvement in digestive function and the consistent level of energy throughout the day. Congee is healing in the sense that those who need to lose weight will lose it and those who need to gain weight will gain it when congee becomes a regular part of the diet.
BREAKFAST CONGEE
Ingredients: A total of 1.5 cups of whole grain to 8 cups of water, with sea vegetables, dried fruit and spices
Whole grains include: Rice (brown, red, black), Quinoa (brown, red, black), Amaranth, Millet, Buckwheat, Steel cut oats
Sea vegetables include: Kombu, Arame
Dried fruits include: Prunes, Apricots (not artificially colored), Dates, Figs
Spices include: Cinnamon, Nutmeg, Cloves, Allspice, Ginger, Anise
Directions:
Place your choice combination of the above ingredients into your cooking vessel. Crock pot method: Cook on low heat for 7-9 hours. Stove top method: Simmer on stove over very low heat until the water is absorbed by the grain (2-3 hours).
CONGEE SUNDAE
Like with the less nutritious ice cream sundae, a congee sundae is made special by the toppings. Choose a delicious combination from the following list, and add your own ideas:
Nuts, seeds, dried fruits: Almonds, Dried Apricots (not artificially colored), Brazil Nuts, Cashews, Chia Seeds, Shredded and Unsweetened Coconut, Dried Cranberries, Pecans, Pine nuts, Pistachios, Raisins, Sesame Seeds (black, toasted brown), Sunflower Seeds, Walnuts
Fresh fruits: Choose delicious in-season fruits and berries
Milk: Choose nut- and grain-based milks (avoid brands that have a lot of added sweetener, and the preservative carrageenan, which may have carcinogenic associations). Almond, Hemp, Oat, Rice.
Kathryn Hayward, M.D. was a primary care internal medicine specialist at the Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School for 20 years. She now lives in Mallorca, Spain, where she practices Integrative Health in the United States and elsewhere through Odyssey Journey: A Collaborative Approach to Wellness, and is co-founder of International Integrators, a community devoted to the global promotion of Integrative Health.
David L. Thomas, Jr. co-founded and developed International Integrators in concert with his passionate desire to initiate change in the way that we care for ourselves and each other, and the way we interact with and affect our natural environment. He brings his background as an attorney and businessman, and his expertise in nutrition and plant-based cooking and eating, to the collaborative effort to identify, mentor and support leaders in Integrative Health. David holds a BA in Spanish Literature from Haverford College, a JD degree from Georgetown University and a certificate in plant-based nutrition from the T.Colin Campbell Center for Nutritional Studies and Cornell University.
Image source: Under500calories.com
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