Sweet Potato Congee

Sweet Potato Congee

　　Sweet Potato Congee

　　In the past, people in Yangxi would cook rice together with sweet potatoes and water to make a thin porridge, commonly known as sweet potato congee. For a considerable period in the past, sweet potato congee served as the staple food for the people of Yangxi, and many impoverished families relied on it to survive. Although it’s all called sweet potato congee, different regions in Yangxi have their own unique ways of preparing and eating it. In some areas, the sweet potatoes are cooked in the congee and then scooped out to be eaten first, followed by the congee; in other areas, cleaned sweet potatoes are placed in a winnowing basket and steamed inside the congee pot, allowing people to eat the sweet potatoes while sipping the congee; yet in other places, the sweet potatoes are simply cooked together with the congee, and people eat them bite by bite along with the congee. No matter how it’s prepared or eaten, the goal is the same — to save on rice in order to get through times of famine. With the advent of reform and opening-up and the improvement in living standards, people’s basic needs for food and warmth have been met, and the people of Yangxi rarely eat sweet potato congee anymore. Nowadays, sweet potatoes are generally used as animal feed, and only in some restaurants is the recipe for sweet potato congee still preserved, allowing visitors to enjoy a taste of the past. However, eating sweet potato congee is no longer about relieving hunger, but rather about enjoyment — many now consider it a delicacy.

　　Truly delicious sweet potato congee is made using sweet potatoes harvested in winter. After storing the sweet potatoes in a corner of the house for two or three months until they turn sweet, the skin is peeled off and the sweet potatoes are slow-cooked in the congee. Once the rice is fully cooked, the heat is turned off and the congee is left to cool. This kind of sweet potato congee is sweet, fragrant, smooth, and delicious — truly a fine delicacy.