Congees
Eight Treasures Porridge
Eight Treasures Porridge, also known as Laba Congee, is a traditional Chinese medicinal porridge with a history of over a thousand years. Its origins trace back to the ancient Laba Festival, when people cooked eight kinds of ingredients together, symbolizing the gathering of all things and harmonizing all spirits. Traditionally, Eight Treasures Porridge contains eight or more ingredients, including rice, beans, dried fruits, and medicinal herbs. The porridge is colorful, soft, sweet, fragrant, smooth, and not greasy. Qing Dynasty nutritionist Cao Yanshan praised it in his Porridge Classic for its effects of harmonizing the stomach and strengthening the spleen, nourishing the heart and clearing the lungs, benefiting the kidneys and liver, tonifying deficiency, improving vision and relieving constipation, and calming the spirit. A warm bowl of Eight Treasures Porridge not only strengthens the spleen, warms the stomach, nourishes yin, and wards off cold, but also gently nourishes the five viscera. It is a daily wellness delicacy suitable for all ages.
Main Ingredients
- Rice (japonica rice) 150g
- Gorgon fruit (Euryale seed) 6g
- Job's tears (Coix seed) 6g
- White hyacinth bean 6g
- Lotus seed (core-removed) 6g
- Chinese yam 6g
- Red dates (jujubes) 6g
- Dried longan (aril) 6g
- Lily bulb 6g
- Rock sugar (or brown sugar) To taste
- Water 2000ml
Steps
Rinse and soak the gorgon fruit, job's tears, white hyacinth beans, and lotus seeds in water for 2-4 hours (beans require longer soaking; overnight in the refrigerator is recommended). Rinse red dates, remove pits. Rinse dried longan and lily bulbs briefly. Rinse rice and set aside.
Place the soaked gorgon fruit, job's tears, white hyacinth beans, lotus seeds, and Chinese yam in a clay pot. Add sufficient water, bring to a boil over high heat, then reduce to low heat and simmer for about 40 minutes.
Add the rinsed rice to the pot and continue cooking until the rice grains bloom and the porridge thickens.
When the porridge is about 70-80% cooked, add the red dates, dried longan, and lily bulbs. Continue simmering over low heat for another 15-20 minutes until all ingredients are soft and well-blended.
Add rock sugar (or brown sugar) to taste before turning off the heat, stirring until fully dissolved.
TCM Notes
The variety of ingredients in Eight Treasures Porridge ensures it is nutritionally rich and comprehensive. The combination of grains, beans, and nuts allows for amino acid complementation, mutually enhancing the protein utilization rate. Grains are deficient in lysine, which beans are rich in; millet is high in leucine; nuts are rich in essential fatty acids, trace elements, and vitamins. Modern Nutrition Research: Spleen and stomach health: Ingredients like red dates, japonica rice, job's tears, and white hyacinth beans help regulate digestion, promote digestion, and stimulate appetite. Blood nourishment and spirit calming: Red dates, longan, and lily bulbs tonify qi, nourish blood, and moisturize dryness, helping to stabilize mood and improve anemia, insomnia, and excessive dreaming. Qi and kidney tonification: Lotus seeds and Chinese yam channel to the Spleen and Kidney, nourishing and consolidating essence. Immunity enhancement: Rich in minerals, dietary fiber, and trace elements. Constipation relief: Dietary fiber promotes intestinal motility.
Suitable for：Those with general weakness, chronic illness, and spleen-kidney deficiency Those with edema, diarrhea, insomnia, thirst, and cough with scanty phlegm Those with poor digestion and loss of appetite Those with qi-blood deficiency and sallow complexion Those needing energy replenishment and daily wellness Generally suitable for most people as a daily wellness porridge
Not suitable for：Diabetics: Eight Treasures Porridge is high in sugar and may raise blood glucose. Do not add sugar, avoid glutinous rice, and add more beans, oats, and buckwheat Those with poor digestion or spleen-stomach weakness: Coarse grains are hard to digest and may cause bloating Those with GERD or gastric ulcers: Should not overconsume Those with calcium deficiency: Grains contain oxalic acid and phytic acid, which hinder calcium absorption Those with urinary system diseases: Some ingredients may worsen symptoms
