Wholesome 5 Grain Porridge

This is the companion dish of the rice cooker chicken I have mentioned in my previous post. My apology for the delay as I was too busy with so many holidays and activities for the past few weeks. Oh yes! We had a great month with so many public holidays including the Hari Raya. Thus, there is a lot of outings for my family. Well, we did enjoyed these holiday hang out and in fact a good break for a working mom like me.

All right, back to the dish today, this 5 grain porridge is a perfect companion of the rice cooker chicken. It is indeed healthy and nutritious. The 5 grain rice (香軟五谷米) that I have bought from an organic shop consists of organic millet, organic buckwheat, red rice, red mountain rice and brown rice. A good combination to make some nutritious porridge. To make it a wholesome meal, I have added some mushroom and lettuce in it.


Consuming more whole grains in our diet is a good way of healthy eating. Besides, whole grains contain high fiber which helps in our digestive system. By consuming more whole grains helps in reducing our weight (weight management) and also promoting general health benefits. For example, buckwheat is a grain that's good for your cardiovascular system, helps in maintaining better blood sugar control, lowering risk of diabetes and protect against heart disease. (Reference from WHFOODS)

Another popular grain which has been known for long time is the millet. Millet is one of the oldest foods known to humans and possibly the first cereal grain to be used for domestic purposes. Today, millet ranks as the Sixth most important grain in the world, sustains 1/3 of the world's population and is a significant part of the diet for various countries. (Reference from here)

I have first introduced millet to my son when he was ready to take solid. It was indeed a very versatile grain in variety ways of cooking. My favourite ways of using millet were making millet porridge, boiling barley water with millet, cooking millet with rice for my son during his younger days. Until today, I still love to use millet in cooking porridge or adding them into the rice. A good choice for baby or toddler that is ready for solid in their diet.

As I have heard of 5 grain rice long time ago and wish to give them a try in making porridge which can be served together with the shredded rice cooker chicken. You may add some white rice if you are not use to the texture of 5 grain rice for the first time. I find that the porridge is so fragrant, it brings out the sweetness and it is not starchy compared to the white rice porridge. You need a longer time to cook the 5 grain rice as it takes long time to get soften. Nevertheless, this wholesome 5 grain porridge is a prefect lunch for the whole family. Enjoy!

Ingredients: 1 cup 5 grain rice, washed and soaked Half cup of white rice 6 stalks Dried mushroom, washed and soaked Some lettuce, washed and chopped (optional) Spring onion, chopped 2 tbsp Concentrated Chicken Stock (adjust to your taste) White pepper to taste Sesame oil Method: 1. Wash and soak 5 grain rice and mushroom separately for 3 - 4 hours. 2. Bring 1 litre of water to a boil. Once it is boil, add in 5 grain rice and simmer for 10 mins. 3. Add in white rice and cook until rice achieve the porridge texture on low fire. Stir occasionally 4. If the water is insufficient, add more water until you achieve the desire porridge texture. 5. Add in mushroom and simmer until the mushroom is soft. Add in chicken stock and lettuce. Mix well. 6. Off fire, serve porridge in a bowl, sprinkle pepper to taste. 7. Arrange shredded chicken meat from the rice cooker chicken on top of the porridge. 8. Drizzle some sesame oil and garnish with spring onion. Note: • Make sure to cook porridge until the desire texture is achieved. The porridge shouldn't be too thick nor too watery. • You may substitute chicken stock with salt if you do not have chicken stock in hand. • You may add fried shallots during serving time to enhance the porridge. • You may use only 5 grain rice for this recipe.