Chinese century eggs are seasoned and served with roasted peppers may sound weird but a great combo of flavor and taste.
I did not realized the last time I made congee with century eggs was almost 6 years ago. I’ve had it at the restaurant all this time of course, but I haven’t made them for a really long time and decided it’s time to revisit this comfort food. What the heck is century eggs you would ask. I eat pretty much anything under the sun except for grubs and durian (the king of fruit they say). Durian is one of those thing that you either like it or you hate it. I fall into the latter group. Century eggs are the same. I don’t think there’s a middle ground for this. I happen to LOVE it! I don’t even know how to describe what it tastes like 🙂
Century egg, also known as preserved egg, hundred-year egg, thousand-year egg, thousand-year-old egg, and millennium egg (or Pidan in Mandarin), is a Chinese cuisine ingredient made by preserving duck, chicken or quail eggs in a mixture of clay, ash, salt, lime, and rice hulls for several weeks to several months, depending on the method of processing. Through the process, the yolk becomes a dark green, cream-like substance with a strong odor of sulphur and ammonia, while the white becomes a dark brown, transparent jelly with little flavor. Okay…at this point you are about to close this browser and leave I know! 🙂
Century Egg can be eaten without further preparation on its own or to compliment other dishes. In this case, I whip up a congee using century egg. Century Egg may not be for everyone, but I absolutely adore it! And I can assure you many Asians do too 🙂
Century eggs (Pi Dan) with roasted peppers
Ingredients
- 1 cup of uncooked brown rice
- 6 cups of chicken/pork broth or more
- 4 Century Eggs quartered if served as side or coarsely chopped if add into congee
- 1 large red bell pepper or other colors are great too
Sauce for the century egg with bell pepper (mix all ingredients in a serving bowl):
Garnishes:
- Chopped fresh scallions
- Few sprigs of fresh cilantro leaves
- Julienne-cut ginger
- Soy sauce
- Sesame oil
- White pepper powder
Instructions
- Place the brown rice in a food processor and process until the rice is broken into smaller pieces but not turning into powder completely. I usually make 5 cups worth of rice and place 1 cup each individually in a freezer bag and freeze them. I can use them straight from the freezer whenever I need to without thawing
With century eggs in the congee:
- Place the rice in a large pot with a lid. Pour in 6 cups of broth and bring them to a rolling boil. Lower the heat and let it simmer until the rice started to gel. If the congee is too thick to your liking, add a bit more broth
- Garnish with spring onion, couple drops of sesame oil, 1/2 tsp of white pepper powder and ginger
With century eggs and roasted bell pepper:
- Wash the bell pepper and pat dry. Place them on stove top (direct fire) over medium to high heat and let them char all over. Place it in a heat-proof bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Let it sit for about 30 minutes. Uncover and you will be able to easily peel the charred skin off. Slice the bell pepper vertically. Arrange the quartered century eggs in a serving platter. Top with the roasted peppers. Drizzle the sauce and serve with the congee
I’m glad that my two kids like the century egg with the congee. They wouldn’t eat it on its own, but they would in the congee.
