Century Egg and Lean Pork Congee 皮蛋瘦肉粥
The ‘Century Egg and Pork’ congee is available at many Chinese restaurants across the globe and is a staple in many households. The congee is warm and comforting with delicious strips of pork. The Century Egg provides saltiness from the yolk and gives the congee a contrast of textures and colour.
This recipe is adapted from my parents who make this on the stove top. Eating it has evoked nostalgic memories living with my parents, and eating this congee during brunch on weekends. It gives me a sense of joy to be able to remake this, and quickly, using my Instant Pot pressure cooker.
Tell me more about this Century Egg?
If you did not grow up eating this egg, I understand that you may not understand the appeal. It was even given as a dare to contestants on the show “Fear Factor” in the past.
The Century Egg has many names including Hundred-Year-Old Egg, Thousand-Year-Old Egg, preserved duck eggs and Pidan. The eggs have a long history and originated in China, where the eggs were coated in a mixture including alkaline clay to preserve them which cures the eggs. The result of the process hardens around the egg, the white part becomes dark brown and translucent, and the yolk turns green to a greyish colour.
Century Eggs
I am not sure of the techniques manufacturers use to cure the eggs these days. The ingredients for the eggs I purchased called “Preserved Duck Eggs’ had duck eggs, salt, water, tea leaves, and sodium carbonate. The eggs can be found at many Asian grocery stores.
To me, the taste of the brown part of the egg is like a firm jello and has little taste. It does provide a nice texture to the congee as it holds its shape well even after stirring. The stand out is the yolk which is creamy and salty. You have to try it to truly understand the taste.
Why you must make this recipe!
The technique is easy where half the meat is used to create stock for the congee, and the remaining is cut into thin slices, marinated, and cooked right before serving so that the meat does not overcook. The Century Egg is already cooked, so once it is peeled and sliced, it can be added at the end of the cooking process to heat up in the congee.
The outcome is a nutritious congee without the use of store-bought stock.
You will love this congee as there are few steps, is easy to make, and makes over 8 cups of congee in 20 minutes in the Instant Pot.
Century Egg and Pork Congee Preparation
Instant Pot Century Egg and Lean Pork Congee
Ingredients
- 680 g (1.5 pounds) pork tenderloin, divide in half First half, leave it as a whole piece. For the other, slice thin about 1 mm thick, 1 x 2 inch pieces
- 1 Tbsp. soy sauce
- 1 Tbsp. sesame oil
- 30 grams ginger
- ½ cup scallions, thinly sliced
- 6 360 g Century eggs, cut into 8 segments each
- 1.5 cups Jasmine rice
- 10 cups water
- 1 Tbsp. fish sauce
Instructions
- Cut the pork tenderloin in half. Refrigerate the first half until ready to use.
For the 2nd half, slice thinly and tenderize the meat by pounding the meat with the back of the knife.
Place the sliced pork in a bowl and add soy sauce and sesame oil. Mix well. Place in the fridge for 1 to 3 hours (or overnight).
Peel the ginger and set aside.
Slice the scallions and set aside.
Peel and cut the Century Eggs.
Clean the rice. Add the rice to a bowl, and add enough water to cover the rice. Swirl the rice around. Drain and repeat a few times until the water is clear.
Use the Instant Pot
- Add the cleaned and drained rice.
- Add enough water until it reaches the 10 cup mark in the Instant Pot.
- Add the whole piece of pork tenderloin (not the slices), and the piece of ginger.
Turn the Instant Pot on, close the lid and make sure the knob is on "Sealing". Choose the "Porridge" button and change the timing to 20 minutes.
- When the time is up on counter, turn the Instant Pot off. Do a natural release by waiting at least 15 minutes before turning the knob from 'Sealing' to 'Venting'. Open the lid.
Remove the piece of pork tenderloin and ginger and discard.
- Press the “Saute” button on the Instant Pot. Add the marinated and sliced pork into the congee and mix well, followed by the Century eggs. Stir slowly until the meat cooks through (about 4 minutes).
- Add the fish sauce. Taste and adjust as needed.
- Ladle into bowls and top with desired amount of scallions.
Recipe Notes
The 'cook time' indicated does not include the time it takes for the Instant Pot to go up to pressure and the natural release time.
Feel free to add salt instead of fish sauce, and to substitute the toppings with other fresh herbs you have handy, and or sesame oil.
Learn to make my other congee recipes:
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1 Comment
Tiffany
March 6, 2022 at 12:32 pmThis is my favourite type of congee and I’ve never been able to replicate that creamy texture at home before. I can’t believe how easy it is and how authentic it tastes! Thank you for sharing this!