Brown vs white rice chinese congee + recipe

M

mummybee

Registered User
I want to transit my 7.5 mth old baby from commercial rice cereal to homemade chinese congee. During my "quest" to shop for the best type of rice to give her, I was overwhelmed by the number of opinions expressed. I was told brown rice is more nutritious than refined/white rice, and short grain is better than long grain rice (BTW, I ate long grain jamine white rice congee my whole life).

I bought some short-grain organic brown rice from Citysuper yesterday and this was what I started off doing: 1/2 cup washed brown rice + 5 cups water -- cooked in slow cooker overnight. But the next day I found the congee to be too thick so I took a small portion out, add more boiled water to this portion, and pureed in my blender. The result is a thinner consistency congee but it is still very thick and viscous ... like glue. This is very different from the watery texture I get from white rice.

Here are my questions:
(1) Surely this thick consistency means it is harder for the baby's little tummy to digest? Since I added so much water to the congee to get this consistency, surely the baby is taking more water than carbohydrate? Should I stay with white rice congee, which is watery?
(2) Added to this is the fact that she suffers from severe allergies to many foods so I worry each time I give something new to her. Can the grain husk cause an allergic reaction (she doesn't react to white rice)?
(3) What is wrong with my recipe? Anyone with better recipes I can try?

Thanks in advance for your help!
 
I use Long Grain Brown Rice, short grain rice tends to be more sticky. You have to experiment as to the amount of water to use. I read somewhere that the ratio of water to brown rice should be 3:1. You should adjust the amount of water depending on whether you want it to be watery or concentrated. If your first try turns out to be too watery you can always cook longer with the lid open for the excess water to evaporate.
 
Hi Mummybee,

I've always used white rice to make congee for my daughter. My mom said brown rice would be too hard for a baby to digest. I'd be more concerned about the baby's digestive ability than getting more water than carb. Surely the baby would ask for more if she is not full.

When I made white rice congee, it could be watery or thick depending on the ratio of water & rice used. If you're worried about her getting an allergic reaction from the brown rice husk, why not stick with white rice for the time being. White rice may not be the best, but it is definitely nutritious.

Sandy
 
thanks! you have totally converted me to white rice congee now. I am cooking plain congee as we speak for tomorrow. if she has no reaction (she is a severely allergic baby), I will add chicken stock into it to make it more tasty.
 
ok, here is my next question: now that I have my congee, how should I store it? leave it in the slow cooker (turn off), or in the fridge (and warm up again)?
 
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