Congee recipes: Chiu Chow oyster congee, and roast duck congee

Congee is one of my favourite comfort foods, although I'm aware that if you didn't grow up eating it, you probably see it as dull and boring. In many Asian cultures, plain congee - just rice and water - is the first "solid" food that's fed to babies. Adults, though, tend to appreciate congee cooked with (or served with) stronger flavours.

Plain congee is delicious served with a drizzle of soy sauce and sesame oil, and with side dishes of pickled vegetables, toasted peanuts, minced spring onion, fresh coriander and century egg or salted egg.

These two recipes are hearty, though, and need little added to them because they're delicious on their own.

For this dish, you need small oysters (about 2.5cm in length or smaller). You can buy them, already shelled, from some wet-market sea-food vendors.

If you have home-made chicken broth in your fridge or freezer, this dish takes less than 30 minutes to make. If you don't, buy six chicken wings and a few chicken feet and rinse them well. Put them in a pot of water with two slices of ginger and two spring onions. Bring the ingredients to the boil then lower the heat and simmer for about an hour. Strain out the solids before using the broth. You can also make a quick broth by simmering the carcass and any leftover meat from a roast chicken with water for about 30 minutes.