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Bean Protocol: Mung Bean and Rice Congee

Bean Protocol: Mung Bean and Rice Congee

An easy-to-make, easy-to-digest congee-style meal you can effortlessly adapt into your own go-to weeknight favorite.

Andrea Escobar Logreira's avatar
Andrea Escobar Logreira
Jun 28, 2025
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Coming Home To Self
Coming Home To Self
Bean Protocol: Mung Bean and Rice Congee
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Mung Bean and Rice Congee

I’ve made this a couple of times—honestly, by accident—and each time, it’s exactly what I needed. So I figured it was time to share it.

I love how cozy it is. How easy. And most of all, how adaptable.

I like to use a 2:1 split of mung beans to white rice.

Soak them overnight with some spring water. (I absolutely love that the property I live on in Albion has a well on it—water feels different here.)

The next day, I cook them low and slow until they turn to mush. The first time I made this, I was making kitchari and overcooked it by mistake — it turned into this unappealing gummy mush.

And I love that about the kitchen—how often accidents become my favorite recipes.

It gave congee vibes, so I leaned in. I added bone broth, cilantro, green onion, and served it with a jammy egg. It was so good. I kept going back for more and eventually topped it with shredded chicken, coconut aminos, sesame oil, hot sauce, and a squeeze of lime.

A chili crisp and jammy egg combo? Unreal.

The options are endless—and endlessly satisfying.

I made this for the first time since moving here to Albion on a Wednesday night. I had a bunch of veggie scraps and bones in the freezer, so I simmered a stovetop broth while prepping a few other things for the week—like a version of this insane tuna salad I had at Good Life Café in Mendocino that rocked my world.

It was simple: tuna, celery, red onion, pickle, mayo, mustard, salt + pepper, and love.

Honestly, it sounds like the perfect beach-day snack with some rice crackers.

I’ve been slowly settling into life here on the coast.

It’s simpler. Sweeter. Softer.

The pace is slower—everything my nervous system and soul have been craving.

I recently read a piece written by a local Mendocino resident— The Cost of Convenience —about the art of inconvenience. It made me reflect on how I grew up believing luxury meant convenience. But I’m realizing that real luxury is actually the inconvenience—the slowing down to wash the dishes, to ask a neighbor for help instead of saying “I’ve got it,” to do things the long way. These slower rhythms bring me back to myself.

Even with tools like ChatGPT—I don’t have a negative association with it. (Shoutout to Charly who brought this up recently.) I started using it because I’d ask friends for help and they’d say, “Just look it up on ChatGPT.” And that was fine… but it reminded me of how I stopped asking people for help altogether. I’d hear my stepdad’s voice: “Google it.” The teacher saying figure it out. So with figuring out, we adapt.

These tools are helpful—but when we sub them for human connection, that’s when it starts to feel off. I love reflecting with people. Sharing a poem or a blurb and having someone respond. AI is amazing, but it’s not the same as a friend sitting across from you. And I guess that’s what I’ve been chewing on lately.

Anyway, I’m rambling now. Just felt like sharing.

If you make this congee, let me know how you like to dress it up.

Recipe: Mung Bean + Rice Congee

Base:

  • 2 cups split mung beans

  • 1 cup white rice

  • 4 cups water

  • 3 cups bone broth

  • 1–2 bay leaves

  • Salt to taste

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