Slurp up the superpowers of jook.
Jump to RecipeI’m typically a sweet-kinda-breakfast gal, but a couple of weeks back I had a craving for a savory, umami porridge loaded with complex flavors and textures. A simple to make, but complex to eat kind of dish that warms and lightens all at once…. I haven’t been able to shake it. Jook, as it’s called in Korea (the home of the origins of this recipe) or congee is a gorgeous, creamy, rice porridge that comes together quickly (especially in an Instant Pot,) and is suitable for any meal — breakfast, lunch or dinner.
And so, here we are.
I chalk it up to the collision of winter + spring we’ve been enjoying; our increasingly warm, sunny days are punctuated by wild wintry storms, rain clouds, and heavy weather exemplary of kapha spring. It’s a time when our bodies and beings are so eager to break free of the confines of cold weather, craving the warmth, the change of scenery. Every little sprout and spritely flavor is a peek into a new season, and that count for something big in our psyche, but also for our bodies as well. 
I just finished my seasonal Spring Reset a few days ago, and so I’m still running high off the comforting feeling or warm bowls of porridge, kitchari and dal and so this more exotic format felt exciting and therapeutically appropriate.
As spring arrives, it might feel most logical to strip away layers, bare our shoulders and start to let it all out. Limbs and legs trapped in pants and sleeves of jackets for months are eager, after all! But instead, the best thing we can do for our bodies in this season is to keep warm so as to help burn off any excess kapha dosha in the form of mucus, water weight and stagnation. If we air it all out too drastically or quickly, we threaten to hang onto this mucus and water weight that the body has been harboring all winter. This material has done us well; keeping us warm! But now that spring is here we don’t need it anymore and we want to let the extra heft go because it will start to interact with pollen in the air, and illnesses, and effectively these pathogenic particles get stuck, forcing us all into “seasonal allergies” or this cycle of sickness.
And so, our bodies need both the warmth and the heat; eating warm foods that pack a bit of a spicy punch help keep our bodies warm and spark our digestive fire to help us burning off the excess all spring long. Soupy and a little spicy is the play – NOT shifting immediately to salads as soon as the sun starts to hang a little longer in the sky.
Jook -or congee as it’s known in China – is a loose rice soup that has been considered a medicinal food in China since the Han Dynasty in 206 BCE. It is basically rice cooked with extra water or stock for a long time. It’s particularly beneficial for the stomach and intestines and is most suitable for babies, people with gastro-intestinal complaints, and people with long-term illnesses. But all of us can enjoy and benefit from this gentle and digestible meal, especially during seasons when we want to be supportive of good digestion…like the spring.
Typically Ayurvedic medicine suggests enjoying mushrooms in the fall, when their deep grounding qualities are beneficial for rooting the incoming influx of Vata dosha – the dosha of fall and winter. Mushrooms are most helpful for reducing pitta, and they have a tendency to vitiate or aggravate vata and kapha. This is on account of their extreme cooling qualities. Enjoying them in the spring is a bit of a renegade move, holistically speaking! But by adding warming ginger, chili, white pepper and pungent green onions, we warm the dish up bioenergetically, bringing balance, flavor and function.
…is an incredible meal for breakfast, lunch or dinner. It’s fantastic as a savory breakfast, before a big ski day in the winter. And it’s a lovely warming lunch, or quick and homey dinner too. It’s a favorite dish I love to feed little Leo, and also that I bring to new mamas just recovering from birth. It’s easy to customize (see the Recipe Notes below!) and can be made quickly in an InstantPot, or on the stovetop for purists. Whatever you do, don’t ignore a single crunchy or textural topping – they add flavor, depth, nutritional value and straight up enjoyment to this otherwise very simple soup.
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