Laba congee

So, on December 30, 2022, the days fly by so, fast and in the blink of an eye, Laba Festival is here again. Porridge is indispensable, it adds all kinds of beans and rice to the boil, which is fragrant!

Laba Festival, commonly known as “Laba”, is the eighth day of the twelfth lunar month. The ancients had a tradition of offering sacrifices to ancestors and gods and praying for a good harvest. In some areas, there was a custom of drinking Laba porridge. According to legend, this day is also the day when the Buddha Sakyamuni became enlightened.

It is called the “Dharma Treasure Festival” and is one of the grand festivals in Buddhism. Also known as “Seven Treasures and Five Tastes Porridge”, “Buddha Porridge”, “Family Rice”, etc., is a kind of porridge made from various ingredients. The oldest written mention of porridge comes from the Song dynasty. On the day of Laba, whether in the imperial palace, the temple or in the homes of common people, everyone makes Laba porridge.

You will need:

sticky rice
black glutinous rice
red rice
lotus seeds
jujubes (red dates)
red beans
black beans
peanuts

Procedure:

Prepare and soak the beans for more than three hours, which can be your favourite. What I cook are: rice, jujubes (red dates), lotus seeds, red beans, peanuts, and whatever I have at home. Adding brown sugar is more nutritious and healthy. Add an appropriate amount of water. Close the lid, bring to a boil on high heat, turn to medium-low heat and press for about 10 minutes, then turn off the heat, and the pressure will be released naturally. I wish you all a happy Laba Festival.

Congee can be found here

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