Garlic Congee Bowls with Soy Tea Eggs, Oyster Mushrooms & Tangerine Salad
Silky congee with jammy eggs, mushrooms, citrus, and crisp garlic.
Daily recipe · March 07, 2026
A little about this dish
This cozy brunch leans Chinese in spirit without falling into the usual takeout tropes: savory scallion-garlic rice congee is topped with jammy soy tea eggs, blistered oyster mushrooms, and a bright tangerine-sesame herb salad for contrast. Garlic shows up in two layers—gently simmered into the rice for sweetness, then crisped in oil for a fragrant finishing crunch. It’s warming, seasonal, and dramatic on the plate, with soft neutrals, glossy eggs, and vivid citrus making it especially photogenic.
Ingredients (for 4)
- Garlic — 10 cloves — 6 cloves smashed, 4 cloves thinly sliced
- Jasmine rice — 1 cup — rinsed well
- Vegetable stock or water — 8 cups
- Large egg — 6
- Black tea bags — 2 bags
- Soy sauce — 1/2 cup
- Shaoxing wine — 2 tablespoons
- Whole star anise — 2
- Small cinnamon stick — 1
- Fresh ginger — 1 2-inch piece — sliced
- Oyster mushrooms — 12 ounces — torn into clusters
- Scallions — 6 — thinly sliced
- Tangerines or mandarins — 2 — segmented and cut into bite-size pieces
- Cilantro leaves — 1/2 cup loosely packed
- Toasted sesame oil — 2 teaspoons
- Black sesame seeds — 2 teaspoons
- Chili crisp or chili oil — 2 to 4 tablespoons
- White pepper — 1/2 teaspoon
- Neutral oil — 1/4 cup
- Salt — 1 1/2 teaspoons
- Sugar — 1 teaspoon
Preparation
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Step 1 — 🥚💧⏲️Bring a small pot of water to a boil. Gently add the 6 eggs and simmer for 7 minutes for jammy centers. Transfer to ice water and let cool slightly.
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Step 2 — 🍵🥚🌟Lightly crack the eggshells all over without peeling. Return eggs to the pot with 2 cups water, black tea bags, soy sauce, Shaoxing wine, star anise, cinnamon stick, 2 smashed garlic cloves, half of the sliced ginger, and sugar. Simmer very gently for 20 minutes, then turn off the heat and let steep.
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Step 3 — 🍚🥣🔥In a medium pot, combine rinsed jasmine rice, vegetable stock or water, the remaining sliced ginger, 4 smashed garlic cloves, 1 teaspoon salt, and white pepper. Bring to a boil, then lower to a gentle simmer.
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Step 4 — 🥄🍚⌛Cook uncovered for 45 to 55 minutes, stirring every 8 to 10 minutes, until the rice breaks down into a silky porridge. Add a splash of water if it gets too thick. Remove the ginger if you like, and either remove or mash in the garlic.
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Step 5 — 🧄✨🍳Heat the neutral oil in a small skillet over medium-low heat. Add the 4 thinly sliced garlic cloves and cook slowly, stirring often, until pale golden and crisp, 3 to 5 minutes. Strain and keep the garlic chips and garlic oil separate. Lightly salt the chips.
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Step 6 — 🍄🔥🥘Heat 1 tablespoon of the reserved garlic oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the oyster mushrooms in a single layer and leave them for 2 minutes to brown. Toss and cook 3 to 4 minutes more until blistered and deeply golden. Season with a pinch of salt.
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Step 7 — 🍊🌿🥗Toss the tangerine or mandarin pieces with cilantro leaves, half of the scallions, toasted sesame oil, and a tiny pinch of salt.
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Step 8 — 🔪🥚👌Peel the tea eggs and cut 4 of them in half. Save the remaining 2 eggs for extra topping or another meal.
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Step 9 — 🥣🧂👅Taste the congee and add the remaining salt as needed. Divide the congee among 4 shallow bowls.
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Step 10 — ✨🍜🌶️Top each bowl with blistered mushrooms, 2 egg halves, a little tangerine salad, the remaining scallions, black sesame seeds, crisp garlic chips, and a spoonful of reserved garlic oil or 2 to 4 tablespoons chili crisp or chili oil for serving. Serve right away.
A final fox tip
For an even more dramatic brunch presentation, serve the eggs with their marbled exterior facing up and finish with a few drops of chili oil around the rim of each bowl. If you want more spring produce, quick-wilt baby spinach or add shaved radish on top. To make it heartier, spoon on a little crumbled baked tofu or leftover roasted sweet potato.