Yam, Job's Tears and Persimmon Cake Congee (Huai Shan Yi Mi Shi Bing Zhou)

Why people make this congee

When a cold lingers and a cough just will not clear — especially in children who cannot expectorate phlegm on their own — parents are often at a loss. Strong supplements are not appropriate, and yet doing nothing feels insufficient. This is where gentle food therapy shines. This three-ingredient congee requires no herbs from a pharmacy, no special equipment, and no complicated preparation. Chinese yam, Job’s tears, and dried persimmon cake together create a mildly sweet, pleasantly thick porridge that is easy to eat and easy to digest, and that has been used in Chinese households for generations to support the lungs and spleen after illness.

Method

1. Soak the Chinese yam and Job’s tears in cold water until soft (at least 1–2 hours, or overnight for dried yam).
2. Transfer to a blender or use a pestle to roughly crush the soaked ingredients into a coarse paste or thick grain.
3. Add 1.8 L of water and cook over medium heat for approximately 1.5 hours, stirring occasionally, until the mixture becomes a thick, smooth congee.
4. Finely chop the dried persimmon cake and stir it into the congee. Continue cooking for a further 30 minutes.
5. The congee can be sweetened lightly if desired. Serve warm.

Nourilo’s Tips

Using fresh Chinese yam makes this congee much easier to prepare as it mashes effortlessly. If you can find persimmon frost (the white powder on the outside of a good-quality dried persimmon), it is even more effective than the cake itself. This congee is suitable for people with eczema too — the fresh persimmon fruit should be avoided by those with eczema due to its high tannin content, but the dried cake form is fine. For a more substantial version, blend or mash the ingredients into a porridge-like paste; this is actually what gives the dish its congee character, as there is no rice added.