Immune-Boosting Soup | Pamela Salzman
Photography by Erica Hampton

I have been able to avoid conflict and controversy all these years on my blog and on social media, until I posted an image of this soup on Instagram a little over a year ago.  If you read my recent post on how to get well quickly, you know that I favor homemade broths, ginger, garlic and very digestible foods like soups and rice.  In my post how to boost the immune system, Japanese mushrooms are a top food. My assistant Lauren has two little boys who seem to catch every virus at pre-school and she suggested to me that I teach an โ€œimmune-boosting soup.โ€  Great idea!  So I did last January and in the recipe-testing phase I posted an image on Instagram.  Oh man!  I offended so many people by calling this an โ€œImmune-Boosting Soup.โ€  To many, this is congee and I disrespected those who eat it by not labeling it as such.

Immune-Boosting Soup | Pamela Salzman

I have had congee many times before and what I know of it is that it is a thick porridge made of very well cooked white rice.  The rice is cooked in water or chicken broth for a long time so that the rice really breaks down and the porridge is like oatmeal.  If you google โ€œcongeeโ€ and look at the resulting images, the soup/porridge is very thick.  Honestly, I feel as though if I called this congee, just as many people would be offended that my rice soup wasnโ€™t cooked long enough or wasnโ€™t thick enough to be called congee.  If you are offended by this post, it is not my intention.  Iโ€™m just trying to help people make something for their families in the thick of cold and flu season thatโ€™s easy, tasty and digestible.

Immune-Boosting Soup | Pamela Salzman

This became a very popular recipe with my students because you can make it in 20 minutes, itโ€™s delicious, and easy for digestion.  Remember that white rice is much more digestible than brown.  This soup intentionally has no fat or oil for maximum digestibility.  You can 100% do what you want with this recipe and I will not be offended. ๐Ÿ˜‰  Feel free to add poached chicken at the end, cilantro, hot sauce, loads more garlic or ginger, even turmeric.  And I give you permission to eat this soup even if youโ€™re not sick! xoxo

If you make this soup, please tag me on Instagram with an image of your creation! @pamelasalzman #pamelasalzman

5 from 7 votes

Immune-Boosting Soup + Instant Pot version*

By Pamela
Servings:

Ingredients 

  • 6 Tablespoons or ยฝ cup if you want more rice white jasmine rice (you can use other types, but jasmine has the best flavor here)
  • 3 large cloves of garlic, thinly sliced (feel free to add more - I have added up to 8 cloves)
  • 1 ยฝ - inch piece of fresh ginger, peeled, sliced into thin matchsticks**, about 2 Tablespoons
  • Sea salt to taste, according to saltiness of stock (start with ยฝ teaspoon)
  • 3 cups chicken stock or bone broth, preferably homemade (or mushroom stock for a vegan option)
  • 4 cups water, or use all broth
  • pinch of crushed red pepper, if desired (or see ideas for optional add-ins)
  • 2-3 ounces shiitake mushrooms, stems removed and caps wiped clean and sliced (you can also use frozen mushrooms)
  • Ideas for optional add-ins:
  • Sliced red chiles
  • Chili oil
  • Sliced scallions, green and white parts
  • Chopped fresh cilantro leaves
  • Shredded, poached chicken or frozen green peas
Prevent your screen from going dark

Instructions 

  • Place the rice, garlic, ginger, salt, broth and water in a large saucepan and bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce heat and simmer uncovered for 10 minutes.
  • Add crushed red pepper (if using) and mushrooms. Raise heat to bring up to a boil, lower to a simmer and cook for 10 minutes until rice is super soft. Taste for seasoning. Add optional add-ins at this point and warm through. Serve hot.

Notes

*For the Instant Pot version, place all ingredients in the pot and cook on Manual High Pressure for 6 minutes. After the cooking time is up, use the manual release or natural release.
**If you donโ€™t care to eat the ginger, slice it into rounds and remove from the soup before serving.
iconLike this recipe? Rate & comment below!

 

โค๏ธ Our Recipe? Try These Next!

Leave a comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recipe Rating




28 Comments

  1. Katie says:

    5 stars
    This is delicious! I added a squeeze of sriracha and it was perfection.

  2. Christy Lemire says:

    Good morning! Iโ€™m planning to make this recipe tonight โ€” it sounds amazing on this chilly LA day โ€” and Iโ€™m wondering how much chicken to add. Itโ€™s just for me, my husband and son. Also this is a dumb question, I realize, but how do you cook the chicken before you add it to the soup โ€” just sir fry it in a skillet? Thank you!

    1. Pamela says:

      The amount of chicken is really up to you and how much you like. For myself and my son, 1 small cooked and shredded chicken breast is plenty. I poach the chicken separately (thereโ€™s a blogpost on my site for how to poach chicken) or you can use leftover roasted chicken or a rotisserie chicken shredded. ๐Ÿ™‚

  3. @pynglin says:

    We make a very similar recipe and add turkey and peas! We always make congee the day after Thanksgiving โ€“ this is what Asians do with leftover turkey lol. Very yummy and comfortingโ€ฆ Glad you are sharing it with everyone!

  4. Audrey says:

    I canโ€™t wait to try this! I tend to stay away from white rice, how would I incorporate brown rice instead? Would the longer cooking time for brown rice be too much cooking time for everything else?
    Thank you!

    1. Pamela says:

      You can use brown rice and yes, you need a longer cooking time. Just keep the pot covered when you cook. All the other ingredients should be fine.

  5. Lisa Messner says:

    5 stars
    After a week and a half of holiday travel and eating out, everyone is tired and run down. This recipe was a lifesaver for dinner! So quick and easy to make. Served with rotisserie chicken. Excellent for flu season and cold temps. Only note I haveโ€ฆ caution on using the quick release. Mine splattered lots of soup during release!

    1. Pamela says:

      The holidays have wiped everyone out this year! Thanks for the advice about the quick release, Iโ€™ll make a note of it!

  6. Mollene says:

    Canโ€™t wait to try your soup! I had Congee while in China and loved it!

    1. Pamela says:

      Hope you love it! ๐Ÿ™‚

  7. Lani says:

    Oh brother. Had to come read your explanation after seeing your Instagram post! Soup looks great and Iโ€™m going to make it for my toddler and I this week. Anything to help stop the dreaded sicknesses from other kiddos at our playgroup!

    Also, I came upon your website after making your green muffins that were posted on valleybrinkroad.com. Iโ€™ve since bought your book and consult your website weekly for meal/dessert ideas and no joke, every single one of your recipes has been a keeper. And Iโ€™m probably in the double digits by nowโ€ฆ Youโ€™ve gotten me excited about cooking again so, thank you!

    1. Pamela says:

      Hi Lani! Welcome! Thank you for being here and saying hi. Iโ€™m so honored you bought my cookbook and Iโ€™m thrilled you are loving it! Happy cooking! ๐Ÿ™‚

  8. Mia says:

    Thanks for sharing! Definitely want to try this! canโ€™t believe people got offended by soup hahaha.

    1. Pamela says:

      All good!

  9. Jennifer says:

    This sounds fantastic! My husband made a similar soup last week for our daughter who had a bad cold โ€” it definitely seemed to help. The soup, a hot steamy bath, and a hot lemonade with honeyโ€ฆand a shot of bourbon, seem to be the panacea to cure your ills.

    Iโ€™m excited to try this version to get an extra boost through the winter! Iโ€™ll be back to rate it.

    P.S. Sorry you have to include a disclaimer about congee. It seems silly that people get so fired up over soup. ๐Ÿ˜‰

    1. Pamela says:

      Thanks, Jennifer! Canโ€™t wait to hear what you think. Letโ€™s stay healthy this winter!

  10. Kim says:

    5 stars
    Can you freeze this soup?

    1. Pamela says:

      Yes!