Congee with Edamame and Pidan
Why I Love This Recipe
This is the most recent creative use I have had for leftovers. I had some leftover sushi rice, and a bit of stir fried shelled edamame (young green soybeans - you can get them frozen now in the major supermarkets).
Ingredients You'll Need
1 cup of cooked leftover rice (any medium grain would do, I suppose)
2 cups of chicken broth (low salt, please)
soybeans
minced fresh ginger
salt to taste
Directions
In a saucepan, put about 1 cup of cooked leftover rice (any medium grain would do, I suppose) with 2 cups of chicken broth (low salt, please), and bring up to a simmer. Allow to simmer, partially covered, for 15 minutes (really, you can go for a while) until the rice falls apart into a thick soup-like porridge. Add the soybeans (I had maybe 1/2 cup left), and some minced fresh ginger, and simmer for another 5 minutes. Adjust the salt to taste, and pour into a bowl. Cut the pidan (aka, century eggs) into quarters, and float into it.
You can supplement this with any number of strongly flavored savory accompaniments - rousong, or dried powdered meat or fish is a a common one from China, but furikake, or dried rice condiments are also common from Japan and would go with this. Korean pickles can go with it as well. If you aske me, a very strongly flavored cheese may work as well.
