How to eat congee more healthily.

Introduction: Eating congee for health has always been a tradition for Chinese people, but there are different habits between the north and south. Northerners use more plant-based ingredients when making congee, with Laba congee being the most typical, as it uses a wide variety of colorful ingredients. Southerners, on the other hand, mostly make simple rice congee, often adding meat, such as fresh shrimp congee or century egg and lean pork congee.

Ingredients

A variety of grains and a full spectrum of colors

Eating congee for health has always been a tradition for Chinese people, but there are different habits between the north and south. Northerners use more plant-based ingredients when making congee, with Laba congee being the most typical, as it uses a wide variety of colorful ingredients. Southerners, on the other hand, mostly make simple rice congee, often adding meat, such as fresh shrimp congee or century egg and lean pork congee. From a nutritional perspective, both follow the principle of dietary diversity, making the congee more nutritionally complete. However, from the perspective of controlling blood sugar, blood pressure, and preventing chronic diseases, northern multigrain congee is more recommended.

Experts point out that although they are both "whole grains," different types have different nutritional values. For example, oats have a high protein content, which can partially compensate for the low protein content of other ingredients. The beta-glucan in oats also has excellent effects on controlling blood lipids and blood sugar. Beans like red beans and kidney beans are rich in dietary fiber, which is beneficial for the metabolism of fat and cholesterol and can prevent blood sugar fluctuations. Ingredients like yams and sweet potatoes are experts in strengthening the spleen and stomach. Furthermore, different colored whole grains offer different health benefits. Millet, yellow millet, and corn contain carotenoids, which are good for eye health. Black rice and purple rice are rich in anthocyanins, which can fight aging. Polyphenols in mung beans can clear heat and detoxify.

Therefore, experts suggest that even when making multigrain congee, attention should be paid to ingredient pairing. For example, use several types of grains, several types of beans, and add some pumpkin, sweet potatoes, etc., and try to include as many colors as possible. Some people are not used to the texture of multigrain congee, finding it too coarse. In that case, you can use rice to account for about 1/3 to 1/2 of all ingredients. It should be reminded that multigrain congee should also be varied; don't just drink one kind.

Cooking

Light flavor, short cooking time

Northerners' first principle for making congee is "light." When making multigrain congee, they rarely add sugar and never add salt. This is different from the salty and sweet congees in the south. From a health perspective, the refined sugar added to congee can easily lead to unstable blood sugar, and excessive salt intake can easily cause high blood pressure. However, to make the congee taste better, it is a habit for many northerners to add alkali to the congee. Experts point out that alkali not only contains sodium but also destroys the rich B vitamins in grains. This habit is recommended to be changed. In fact, many natural ingredients are great helpers for improving the flavor and texture of congee. For example, adding black rice and purple rice can make the congee fragrant; if you want something sweet, you can add pumpkin, sweet potatoes, red dates, or goji berries; if you want a thick congee, you can add oats and glutinous rice.

Second, northerners also understand the techniques of making congee. Different ingredients take different times to cook. First, cook the harder-to-cook ingredients, such as coix seed and red beans, which are relatively hard. Soak them the night before and cook them for 20-30 minutes before adding easier-to-cook ingredients like rice. Of course, ingredients that take about the same time to cook can be put in the pot at the same time, such as millet and rice. After adding the ingredients and bringing to a boil, simmer over low heat.

Third, northerners cook congee for a short time and do not overcook it. To some extent, this is also beneficial for controlling blood sugar.

Experts remind that if there is too much water when making congee, the nutritional concentration will be insufficient; if there is too little water, the ingredients cannot fully contact the water, the energy density will be too high, and the health effect will not be achieved. If using a regular pot, about 100 grams of ingredients with 1500 ml of water is more appropriate, while a pressure cooker only needs 1000 ml.

Pairing

Don't forget meat, eggs, and vegetables

Northerners value drinking congee but do not rely on it completely. They use multigrain congee to replace part of their staple food, thus achieving a coarse-and-fine balance. While drinking congee, they also eat eggs, lean meat, and vegetables. From the perspective of dietary balance, drinking only congee can cause the body to lack high-quality protein, vitamin C, vitamin D, and other nutrients, while foods like eggs and lean meat can just make up for this deficiency. At the same time, a combination of solid and soft foods better meets the needs of health preservation.

In many southern regions, congee is only drunk in summer to relieve heat, but not in winter. Experts suggest that congee can be drunk all year round, and one can consciously drink it with the seasons for health. Many northerners add warmer foods like millet and red beans to their congee in winter; in spring, they can drink more vegetable congee like shepherd's purse congee or celery congee; in summer, mung bean congee is the mainstay; in autumn, they drink more moisturizing congee like lily congee.

Experts point out that from a Traditional Chinese Medicine perspective, the stomach meridian is dominant in the morning, and drinking congee can nourish the stomach. Middle-aged and elderly friends might often drink yam congee to nourish the stomach, or multigrain congee to refresh and nourish the qi. In addition, people often feel a poor appetite and lack of desire to eat in the morning. A bowl of hot congee can promote fluid production and benefit the intestines, aiding digestion. Drinking congee at night is beneficial for sleep; black bean congee and lily congee are both good choices. It should be reminded that because congee contains a lot of water, it fills you up quickly but also makes you hungry quickly. Children who are growing and people with high physical activity levels can get hungry easily if they only drink congee. It is recommended to pair it with other staple foods like steamed buns or pancakes.

Recommendation

Autumn Health Congee

A autumn rain brings a cold spell. The gradually falling leaves, turning from green to yellow, remind us that autumn has arrived. Autumn is windy and the climate is dry, making the respiratory system vulnerable. Experts have recommended the following healthy congees suitable for autumn.