Positive Health Online

Pink Soup and Clever Eating

"Muuuum", Craig, my friend's typical five year old, has a well-developed bellow. "C'n I have pink soup for my school lunch??!!" Pink soup is the envy of his friends because it turns his lips and his tongue as pink as the soup itself. The tongue is then stuck out to incite the girls' delicate sensibilities and much kudos is gained. Of course what Craig doesn't know, is that his pink soup is his clever mum's way, through an understanding of dietary principles, th2e Chinese way, of solving the health problems that have bedevilled Craig since he was very small.

In the west our choice of foods is frequently driven by taste alone. We often do not think of eating foods for their medicinal properties. Over the last decade or two an enticing array of exotic foods has become readily available all the year round. It is easy to lose sight of the concept of eating foods in their natural season, or for using them to support our systems. Embarking on a journey of discovery of Chinese dietary principles can lead us back to a clearer focus on what we eat, why we eat it, and how we can use foods to build healthy bodies and minds. Many common Chinese herbs can be used in every day cooking. Often, indeed, we will already have these herbs in our kitchens, simply calling them by a different name, and perhaps having little awareness of their herbal properties.

The magic ingredients of Craig's soup are beetroot and cinnamon, ideal for strengthening his constitution and helping to prevent the constant colds and ear infections that Craig used to suffer from. The soup is sweet and tasty and Craig's resistance to colds and flu this winter is much improved. Craig's pink soup is tailor-made for his individual constitution. Beetroot as a root vegetable is warming and strengthening. Cinnamon, otherwise known as Gui Pi in Chinese medicine, is also warming and helps to support his immune system. Craig's mother consulted a herbalist and then using his guiding principles she engaged her imagination to find something her son would enjoy. But how do we know what would be suitable for each one of us, as individuals, so that we can eat to help ourselves?

Chinese dietary principles are very different from western although many of the foods are immediately recognizable. One of the best and most accessible books on the market in this area is Stefan Chmelik's book Chinese Herbal Secrets.[1] Chinese herbal medicine is an enormous and complex subject which Chmelik's book renders deceptively simple, charming and very appealing, as he draws the lay reader through the underlying principles to the specifics of some of the more common herbs themselves. The book can readily be used as a jumping off point for further understanding if you find your interest is piqued.

Simple Remedies for Common Ailments

The following remedies are examples of foods used in Chinese medicine that could readily be incorporated in a standard western diet.
* Try Chrysanthemum tea bags, Ju Hua if you suffer from headaches on the temples, dry, red or itchy eyes. The tea bags are available from most Chinese herbal medicine shops;
* Chinese barley, Yi Yi Ren, is excellent for a bladder infection. It is a diuretic and is suitable where the urine is cloudy or the urination is difficult. Pearl barley, to be found in any good grocery store, can be used as a substitute in stews. Or it can be mixed with risotto rice to make a delicious breakfast dish, served with a fruit compote of cranberries and pears. If you are cold, add cloves, ginger and cinnamon;
* Many people will be familiar with Angelica sinensis, Dang Gui, also sometimes called 'women's ginseng' for its tonic properties. This can be added to soup if you tend to suffer from fainting, dizziness, tiredness, poor sleep, brittle hair and nails, light periods and general weakness. This pattern is called deficiency of Blood, in Chinese medicine, and is a common complaint of young women, especially if they are vegetarian or on a strict diet. The taste is mild enough for most soups and the herb, which can be bought from a Chinese medicine supplier, should be simmered for twenty minutes or so (although, in this case, pick out the bits of herb before eating the soup);
* Crataegus fruit, Shan Zha, can be used to counteract high cholesterol and high blood pressure when there are also symptoms of poor digestion and bloating. Shan Zha tastes both sweet and sour at the same time. It can be added to congee, which is a type of Chinese rice porridge that can be eaten sweet or savoury at any meal, or indeed can be cooked along with rice boiled in the normal way;
* Rhubarb root, Da Huang, is suitable for constipation and has a very bitter taste, so it has to be taken like medicine, infused in hot water, with the eyes screwed and the taste buds cringing. Effective though!;
* Sesame seeds, Hei Zi Ma, can also be used as a rather more user-friendly laxative, in a salad, or used as a garnish on green vegetables. Another delicious way of eating this herb is in the form of tahini. Great on toast with blackcurrant jam, although I have also seen it eaten on Weetabix by one of my more eccentric friends;
* Walnuts, Hu Tao Ren, are suitable for people with low energy, lumbar pain, weak knees and frequent urination. These must be from a reliable supplier as, if they are stored, the high fat content readily goes rancid and unpleasant to taste. Walnuts are delicious in salad, or in the winter cook them with dates to make a delectable bread.

Five Elements and Five Tastes

In Chinese medicine the taste of the food is very important and can be used to support different parts of the body-mind system. As with anything else, even when a food is indicated for a particular condition, you should bear in mind that excess may be damaging. It is only in the west that we see more as necessarily better!

* The energy of the Wood Element is predominant in the spring time, when the forceful dynamism you see in budding plants is reflected in our own renewed verve for starting projects, planning new ideas and taking the decisions that support our long-term vision. The organs related to Wood are the liver and gall bladder, and the emotion associated with them is patience or anger in its negative form. The taste related to the Wood Element is sour. The sour taste such as in grapefruit, lemons and tomato also cools, consolidates and astringes (i.e. it keeps things in and prevents leakage such as in diarrhoea), but used in excess it can make tendons too tight and hard;

* The energy of the Fire Element is predominant in the summer time, when our own lives reflect the vibrant blossoming surrounding us in the natural world. Social interaction keeps pace with sexual energy. The organs related to Fire are the heart and small intestines, and the emotion associated with them is joy or hate in its negative form. The taste related to the Fire Element is bitter. The bitter taste such as in rye, coffee, chicory and rhubarb makes energy descend and cools at the same time as benefiting the digestion, although too much bitter food can be drying;

* The Earth Element energy is at its height in the late summer, the time gathering the harvest, for producing the seeds and for nurturing the new generation. The organs related to Earth are the stomach and spleen, and the emotion associated with them is empathy or anxiety in its negative form. The taste related to the Earth element is sweet. Sweet food, such as chicken, carrots and honey, are used as a tonic. Although they are drying in general, too much of them can produce undesirable dampness in the system;

* The energy from our Metal Elements shows itself most strongly in the autumn, when our gardens need clearing, we re-establish our connection with our spirituality and everything is pared down to the minimum ready for winter. The organs related to Metal are the lungs and colon, and the emotion associated with them is courage or grief in its negative form. The taste related to the Metal element is pungent. Pungent food, such as spring onions and ginger (a common cold remedy), improves circulation and digestion and tends to promote sweating and clearing of colds and flu. Too much of the pungent taste may scatter your energy;

* The home of the Water Element is the winter, synonymous with conservation, retracting to our roots, hibernating and storing our reserves ready for the first thrust of spring. The organs related to Water are the kidneys and bladder, and the emotion associated with them is calmness or fear in its negative form. The taste related to the Water element is salt. Salty foods cool and moves downwards. They can be used to soften masses such as fibroids and goitres, although too much of it will also harden. Seaweed is salty, so are shellfish and soya sauce.

If you would like to learn more about the properties of foods in cooking for common health problems Henry Lu's book, Chinese Foods for Longevity,[2] is an excellent place to start. He describes a wide array of foods together with their medicinal properties and descriptions of how to prepare them.

The Art of Balance

To make an ideal diet you should balance the five flavours with a variety of fresh foods. For more information on the quality of foods in your diet, seek out Daverick Leggett's books Helping Ourselves[3] and Recipes for Self-Healing.[4] He also produces a wonderful wall chart, and as you become more familiar with the properties of Chinese herbs, you can use the chart as a ready reference to put on the kitchen wall. Whilst you are cooking you can explore the qualities and actions of the common foods in your diet. Sometimes a craving for a particular taste can indicate a need for it, but we should always be aware that with the enormous variety and ready availability of modern food, it is easy to distort the taste buds.

Being Bitten by the Bug

Beginning the journey of discovery into the wonders of Chinese medicine and the cooking associated with it can be very exciting. Sometimes you can get bitten by the bug so badly that it really won't let go! If so, and you develop a compelling urge to train further in the subject, these days it is possible to undertake a full, UK professional training in Chinese herbal medicine, from scratch, over a period of four years. To learn more about accredited courses in herbalism contact the Register for Chinese Herbal Medicine. They will also put you in touch with well-qualified and reputable practitioners in your area. If you would like a practitioner who works with both herbal medicine and acupuncture contact the British
Acupuncture Council.

Quiz: Taking the Taste Test

Check out your tasting skills by guessing which of the five tastes the following belong to:
Questions: Answers:
Celery Salt Celery is a very good source of natural salt for those of you who prefer not to add salt to your diet.
Almonds Normally sweet, although it is also possible to get bitter almonds.
Curry The overriding taste is pungent, with sometimes sour and sometimes sweet on top, and usually salt as well in commercial curries.
Pumpkin A very sweet vegetable. Makes a delicious soup to support the Earth Element if cooked with kidney beans and caraway seeds.
Campari Predominantly bitter, although most alcohol is also sweet and pungent.
Raw Onions These are pungent, which is why onion soup is good for colds.
Cooked onions As onions are cooked they become sweeter.
Pickled onions In this case the sweet, pungency of the cooked onions is tempered with the sourness of the pickling vinegar.

Case History: Food as Medicine

Julia is 34 and has just started a high-powered new job. Her digestion is generally weak, and in the past she used to lose her appetite quite easily, feeling the cold and getting quite a lot of bloating and nausea. She also used to get acute period pains that often meant she had to take a day off work. But these problems are a thing of the past now that she cooks according to the principles of Chinese medicine. To support her digestion she drinks ginger tea (Sheng Jiang) three times a day and for dinner she will often choose a casserole with cloves (Din Xiang) or nutmeg (Rou Dou Kou) She has grated cinnamon (Gui Pi) on her breakfast porridge to help to regulate her periods and will often cook fennel seed (Hui Xiang) with her vegetables for the same reason. Julia rarely eats cold or raw foods any more because she now knows that they do not suit her digestion. Cooking the Chinese way has changed her life and her confidence enormously as her chronic health problems recede into the past.

Three years ago, having tried a variety of conventional medicine solutions in vain, Julia went to see a practitioner of Chinese herbal medicine. She was so impressed with the results of a short course of treatment that she decided to change her diet to suit the underlying condition diagnosed by her practitioner. Since then she has not looked back and she has stayed fit and well, enjoying the new diet which seems to suit her inclinations. Julia's practitioner uses a traditional diagnosis to categorize her symptoms and to prescribe her herbal decoction. One month's treatment (three consultations) was enough to change Julia's life for the better, and her commitment to her health has done the rest.

Recipe 1: Warm Green Salmon

Serves 2

Bok choy is a digestive aid that is even said to treat ulcers. In this case, with the tasty sauce and the ginger used in the cooking, this is a simple, quick meal, as easy on the digestion as it is on the taste buds and the eye.
2 large salmon steaks
1 or 2 medium sized bok choy
3 desert spoons of shredded fresh ginger
6 spring onions, sliced very thinly, lengthwise

combine for sauce
2 cloves of crushed garlic
soy sauce
Worcestershire sauce
Prepare the bok choy, and arrange on a wok rack underneath the salmon steaks, shredded ginger and spring onions. Boil water in the wok, place the rack above, cover and boil for 6-10 minutes, until the fish is cooked through. Serve with dressing spooned over.

Recipe 2: Mushroom Mania

Serves 2

Mushrooms are excellent for stimulating the immune system. In spite of the mushroom's reputation as being bad for candida sufferers, oyster and shitake mushrooms are a different issue altogether, and can be tolerated by most people. Oyster mushrooms are credited with inhibiting tumours and snow peas are good for the digestion.
250 gms shitake mushrooms
250 gms oyster mushrooms
500 gms snow peas
Garlic and ginger to taste
2 tablespoons sake

combine for sauce
4 tablespoons oyster sauce
2 tablespoons sake
1 teaspoon sesame oil
half cup water
1 teaspoon cornflour to thicken

250 gms asparagus

Put the asparagus to steam for about 7 minutes in a small steamer. Remove as soon as tender, so that the heads do not fall off. In the meantime, heat a small amount of oil with the sake in a hot wok and lightly fry the snow peas until just tender and put aside. Using a little more oil, add the ginger and garlic and after one minute add the mushrooms and sauce ingredients. You will need to stir constantly so that the sauce does not go lumpy. Arrange with the snow peas and asparagus, and serve immediately.

References

1. Chmelik S. Chinese Herbal Secrets. Gill and Macmillan. Dublin.1999.
2. Lu H. Chinese Foods for Longevity. Sterling Publishing Co. New York. 1990.
3. Leggett D. Helping Ourselves. Meridian Press. Totnes, UK. 1994.
4. Leggett D. Recipes for Self-Healing. Meridian Press. Totnes, UK. 1999.

Further Information

British Acupuncture Council (BAcC), 63 Jeddo Road, London, W12 9HQ. Tel: 020 8735 0400; info@acupuncture.org.uk; www.acupuncture.org.uk
Register for Chinese Herbal Medicine (RCHM), Office 5, Ferndale Business Centre, 1 Exeter Street, Norwich, NR2 4QB. Tel: 01603 623994; Fax: 01603 667557; herbmed@rchm.co.uk; www.rchm.co.uk