All types of cuisines have their comfort foods. For many Asian cultures, congee is the ultimate in comforting eats that is often served when someone is not feeling well or want to detox from fatty or fried foods. It is a humble dish where it is essentially rice cooked down until it becomes a porridge. Sometimes, in more expensive restaurants, it is elevated beyond the basic nature of its base ingredient. Now Secret Congee in Seattle is not an expensive restaurant, however, it does reinterprets congee in an accessible manner.
We tried a good part of their menu including their baseline bowl (in my opinion) in the Chicken Congee. So all of their congee have the same base (made with chicken bone broth) with only the toppings being different. I have to say the congee was pretty good with a thick viscosity but not that it couldn't be eaten easily. The seasoning was pretty mild with sweetness and a certain nutty aroma from the rice. Add in the white pepper and a touch of soy, it was lightly flavorful. It didn't get watery even until the last drop. I understand that chicken breast is generally more popular than dark meat, however, I personally would've liked dark meat since it would've been more tender and less dry.
We move onto two seafood congees with the Wild Blue Crab and Wild Halibut. These were predictably more subtle-tasting with the crab being the more flavorful of the two. It had a sweet brininess as well as a fluffy texture. I really liked the crab congee as it also incorporated fried garlic, white pepper and a touch of soy. This provided just enough seasoning to compliment the ample amount of crab. For the Halibut, it was maybe needing some more salt as the fish was very mild-tasting. On that note, I could definitely taste the fish, which was probably what they were getting at. The addition of fried garlic, wolfberries and the other toppings such as cilantro, ginger and scallions, did make up for the lack of seasoning on the fish. I think a bit of chili oil would liven this bowl plenty (if you like spice that is).
Staying with the seafood theme, another favorite of mine was the Hokkaido Scallop Congee. Look at all those large scallops complete with the mantle! This was full of texture as a result with the buttery sweet scallops offering up some textural contrast with the chewy (in a good way) mantle. This ensured there was a bite of scallop in each spoonful of congee. For this one, we found fried shallots to go with the ginger, green onion, white pepper and soy sauce. It was a little more aromatic and sweet.
Hands down, my absolute favorite and probably will order again when I'm visiting Seattle, is the Thai Meatballs Congee. So far, the chicken and seafood congee were good, but for something with more body and robust flavors, the meatballs did exactly that. They were juicy and tender with a wealth of natural sweetness and meatiness. They were also well-seasoned giving off aromatics, saltiness and some pepperiness. This really kicked the congee up a notch.
But the most flavorful of all was the Spicy Tom Yum Shrimp Congee. Yah, it still had the same base, but you would never have known it due to the addition of Tom Yum influence with spice, lemongrass, kaffir lime leaves and galangal. Add in the shrimp paste and we had some umami brininess. The shrimp had a meaty snap texture and were naturally sweet and aromatic. The cilantro blended in with the flavors really well and this one had both fried garlic and shallots.
To add a bit more oomph in some of the more mild congee offerings, you can get a side of Chopped Century Egg. That made a big difference in the chicken congee with pungency as well as a rich savoriness. Naturally, you can't have congee without Youtiao (Fried Salty Donut). This was really good being crispy on the outside while fluffy and chewy with elasticity inside. Great for dipping into the congee! To add texture, we also had the Crispy Fried Vermicelli Noodles. Lastly, we had the Soft-Boiled Egg which was more like an Onsen Egg which provided creamy custardy textures for the congee. Overall, the congee here at Secret Congee is good and they appeal to a wide audience. Ingredients are high-quality and they aren't skimpy with the portion-size. This may not be your traditional congee, but that is not the point here. I can see why they have a lineup at most times. I would gladly be part of that lineup.
*All food and beverages were complimentary for this blog post*
The Good:- Not skimpy with the high-quality ingredients
- Congee base has a nice viscosity and flavor
- Accessible for all (no scary ingredients except for the additional preserved egg)
The Bad:
- Small location and it gets busy! Might need to wait for a seat and it will be cramped
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