Sweet Potato Rice Porridge Recipe

Japanese sweet potatoes and uncooked rice.

Sweet potato rice porridge is another easy-to-cook meal. It is light on the tummy. When I was a kid, Mum would cook this porridge for me if my body gets heaty. The symptoms of heatiness are ulcers in the mouth and a poor appetite. In a way, the rice porridge is therapeutic as the light meal allows for better digestion which in turn allows the body to recover faster.

According to Mum, rice was a scarce commodity during the World War II. If the family had sufficient supply, they would have cooked rice, if not, it would be rice porridge. They reared poultry and pigs for meat, and also grew their own vegetables. Sweet potatoes were one of them. It was a luxury to have sweet potatoes in the porridge during those times.

With the weather now alternating from hot to humid to rainy and back, I thought it would be a good idea to have some of this porridge. Wuan could not get local sweet potatoes at the Pandan Perdana wet market. She bought some Japanese sweet potatoes instead. They are just as good although the potato was not as sweet as I had expected. One good thing about Japanese sweet potatoes is that they do not have chewy fibres like those found in the local varieties.

Sweet potato porridge

Sweet Potato Rice Porridge Recipe

1 cup fragrant rice
1 sweet potato
a pinch of salt (optional)

5 cups water

Peel sweet potato and cut into chunks. Rinse rice 4 or 5 times until water runs clear. Put rice and sweet potato into the automatic rice cooker. Add water. Allow to cook for another 5 minutes after the porridge begins to bubble over. Turn off the cooker and let sit for another 15 minutes. Do not open the cover until ready to serve. To be sure that the potato is thoroughly cooked, gently poke a fork into it. If the fork goes all the way in, it is cooked. The porridge can be eaten as is. Sometimes, I add some light soy sauce for taste. Serves two.

Author: Peter Tan

Peter Gabriel Tan. Penangite residing in the Klang Valley. Blissfully married to Wuan. A LaSallian through and through. Slave to three cats. Wheelchair user since 1984. End-stage renal disease since 2017. Principal Facilitator at Peter Tan Training specialising in Disability Equality Training. Former columnist of Breaking Barriers with The Borneo Post. This blog chronicles my life, thoughts and opinions. Connect with me on Twitter and Facebook. View all posts by Peter Tan