• 45 ideas
  • Checked October 2026

What to Eat with Congee

Fried dough sticks, century egg and pickles for a plain bowl, then the small plates of a porridge table.

What to Eat with Congee

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  1. Fried dough sticks (youtiao)Tear them into pieces and dip them, or let them soak in the bowl.
  2. Pork braised in soy sauceServe it in its dark sauce and spoon a little over the porridge.
  3. Century eggCut it into wedges and lay them on the porridge just before serving.
  4. Pickled mustard stem (zha cai)Slice it into thin strips and add only a few, since it is very salty.
  5. Omelette with preserved radishCut it into wedges that are easy to pick up.

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All 45 ideas

Fried dough and breads 3

  • Fried dough in a rice noodle roll (zhaliang) Cut it into short lengths and add a little soy sauce.
  • Fried dough sticks (youtiao) Tear them into pieces and dip them, or let them soak in the bowl.
  • Plain steamed buns (mantou) Serve them warm and tear off pieces between spoonfuls.

Toppings for the bowl 10

  • An egg cracked into the hot bowl Crack it in while the porridge is very hot and stir until it sets.
  • Century egg Cut it into wedges and lay them on the porridge just before serving.
  • Dried salted fish Fry small pieces until crisp and serve them on the side.
  • Fermented bean curd Set a cube in a small dish and break off a crumb with each mouthful.
  • Fried peanuts Scatter them on last so they stay crunchy.
  • Fried soybeans Sprinkle a spoonful over the top for crunch.
  • Pickled mustard stem (zha cai) Slice it into thin strips and add only a few, since it is very salty.
  • Pickled plum (umeboshi) Put one in the middle of a plain bowl and take a little with each bite.
  • Pork floss (rousong) Pile a loose handful in the middle of the bowl.
  • Salted duck egg Halve it in the shell and scoop a little yolk into each spoonful.

Seasonings and garnishes 7

  • Crisp fried shallots Keep them in a dish so everyone can add their own.
  • Fried garlic Sprinkle the crisp bits on at the table.
  • Ground white pepper Shake a little over the bowl at the table.
  • Sliced scallions Scatter them over the top just before the bowl goes out.
  • Slivered fresh ginger Cut it into fine threads and drop a pinch on each bowl.
  • Soy sauce Add a few drops at a time and taste before adding more.
  • Toasted sesame oil Finish each bowl with a few drops.

Cooked into the porridge 8

  • Abalone Slice it thin and save a few pieces to lay on top.
  • Minced pork Drop small pinches into the simmering pot so they cook as soft lumps.
  • Mung beans Soak them first and let them cook down with the rice.
  • Shredded poached chicken Pull the meat into threads and stir half in, keeping half for the top.
  • Sliced pork liver Slice it thin and add it at the very end so it stays tender.
  • Sweet potato chunks Cook them in the pot until a spoon breaks them easily.
  • Taro chunks Let them simmer with the rice until the edges start to melt in.
  • Thin slices of white fish Lay them in the bowl and ladle the boiling porridge over them.

Small plates beside plain congee 15

  • Braised duck Slice it and fan it on a plate with some of its sauce.
  • Braised firm tofu Slice it and spoon a little of the braising sauce over.
  • Braised wheat gluten Serve it cool, as a small plate to pick from.
  • Chicken and cabbage salad Dress it with a sharp vinegar sauce and eat it between spoonfuls.
  • Chinese sausage salad Slice the sausage thin and toss the salad just before serving.
  • Fried chili dried shrimp (hae bee hiam) Offer it in a small dish and sprinkle a little over each spoonful.
  • Fried dace with salted black beans Flake the fish and share it out with the beans.
  • Fried tofu and pork in soy and vinegar (tokwa't baboy) Serve it in its dressing and spoon some onto the porridge.
  • Kimchi Serve it cold in its own small bowl.
  • Minced pork with Chinese olives Put out a small dish; a spoonful seasons a whole bowl.
  • Omelette with preserved radish Cut it into wedges that are easy to pick up.
  • Pork braised in soy sauce Serve it in its dark sauce and spoon a little over the porridge.
  • Salted seafood (jeotgal) Take a very small amount with each spoonful of plain porridge.
  • Steamed fish Bring it whole on a plate so everyone can pick at it.
  • Stir-fried water spinach Cook it fast over high heat and serve it at once.

Drinks 2

  • Hong Kong-style milk tea Pour it hot and strong, with the bowl or after it.
  • Soy milk Serve it warm, sweetened or plain.

How it works

What to eat with congee? Something crisp, something salty and something sharp, because the rice porridge itself is plain. These 45 ideas cover fried dough, toppings, seasonings, meats for the pot, small side plates and two drinks.

Read the full guide

What do people eat with congee?

Congee is rice boiled in plenty of water until it turns soft. It is typically served with side dishes, or topped with meat, fish and pickled vegetables. In China, fried dough sticks called youtiao go with it at breakfast, and salted duck egg and zha cai, a very salty pickled mustard stem, are eaten as condiments. In Korea a plain bowl comes with kimchi and salted seafood.

Dress the bowl or set the table

Dress one bowl with toppings, or set the table as Teochew porridge is served in Singapore: the porridge stays plain, and small plates of braised pork, steamed fish and omelette go beside it.

  • Add crisp toppings at the table. Fried dough and peanuts soon go soft in a hot bowl.
  • Salt the pot lightly. Pickles, salted egg and soy sauce bring plenty of their own.

Questions and answers

What toppings go on congee?

Century egg, pork floss and fried peanuts, then slivered ginger, scallions, white pepper and a few drops of sesame oil. In Thailand an egg is often added to the hot bowl, and in Japan a pickled plum is a common topping.

What meat goes with congee?

Shredded chicken is the meat of bubur ayam, the Indonesian chicken congee, and minced pork usually goes into a Thai bowl. Beside plain porridge, braised duck is a Teochew side dish, and Thai restaurants serve pork stewed in soy sauce.

What do you eat with plain congee?

Something salty, a little at a time: a cube of fermented bean curd, crisp dried salted fish, or fried dace with salted black beans. In the Philippines the usual partner is tokwa't baboy, which is pork with cubes of tofu.

What vegetables go with congee?

One of the usual plates beside Teochew porridge is water spinach, stir-fried. In Vietnam, chicken porridge comes with a side of the sliced chicken on shredded raw cabbage and scallions, dressed with a vinegar sauce.

What do you drink with congee?

Without alcohol: warm soy milk, sweetened or plain, which fried dough sticks are sometimes dipped into. Hong Kong-style milk tea is the richer choice.

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