Pork and Shiitake Congee by Betty Liu * altered by Arielle

1.5C jasmine rice 
12oz ground pork
2.5 tbsp finely grated ginger
3 tbsp soy sauce (I use tamari)
3tbsp neutral oil (instead of vegetable oil or canola oil I often use MCT because it’s flavorless) when I made this recipe I used coconut oil, and it made the shitakes taste creamy.
12 scallions
Sea salt 
White pepper, or black if you want. 
4C chicken broth 
3C water
1 Bunch Dandelion greens, washed, chopped, tough stems discarded. 
Separate Pot of water, for blanching the greens.

Soak rice in cold water minimum 20 mins to overnight to remove any arsenic. Drain and rinse. If you have time you can freeze the rice, and it will break down faster when making the congee. ( I just learned that trick!) 

Peel ginger (I like to use the edge of a spoon to push the skin off) and grate it.

Mix pork, ginger and soy sauce in a bowl and let it sit for 10 mins (if you need longer put it in the fridge)

Trim ends of shitakes mushrooms, and slice them thin

Cut scallions thinly cross-wise, and set aside ¼ of them in a separate bowl for serving.

Wash and chop dandelion greens, set aside. 

Heat 2tbsp oil in a large saucepan over medium-high, add mushroom, and cook until golden, be careful not to burn them. 6-8mins

Reduce heat to medium-low,  add the larger portion of scallions to the mushrooms, stirring for 1-2 minutes, until they’re aromatic, translucent but not browned, transfer them to a bowl.

Heat remaining 1 tbsp of oil in the same saucepan over medium heat add the marinated pork and cook, stirring only once until it goes from translucent to lightly browned and opaque,  but not completely cooked through. Transfer to the bowl with the mushrooms and scallions.

Fill separate pot with water, salt it to a light salt taste, bring it to a boil so it’s ready for you once the congee is ready. 

In your cooking saucepan,  bring to a boil add endd 4C of broth and 3C of water to the saucepan, bring to a boil and add rice, stirring and scraping any sticky parts at the bottom of the pot. If rice was frozen, cook over low heat for 20 mins, for non-frozen (but soaked) rice, about 35-mins and longer for unfrozen, unsoaked rice. You want the grains to be broken down and to look like a porridge. 

Add pork, shiitakes, and  scallions, let cook for about 5 minutes, to meld flavors. Season with a bit of salt, and white pepper. 

 Submerge dandelion greens into pot of boiling water for 1-2 minutes, you want the stalks to be soft, don’t overcook. Drain them with a colander, and put them in a separate bowl. 

Serve congee with scallions if you want, a touch a soy sauce, and ample dandelion greens. Enjoy the bitter against the saltly fatty soup. The more you add the more you’ll buzz.