Category Archives: Nei Jing

AUTUMN FOOD

Constipation, Digestion, Dryness, Heat, Metal Element, Nei Jing, Pungent, Taste, , ,

I love a good curry. Give me a masala dosa or a vegetarian thali, or an aloo gobi with a Goan fish curry, and we’ll be friends for life. My travels in India are among my fondest culinary memories. Eating food with fingers from palm leaves in vast halls, samosas with chai on railway platforms, long spicy fish lunches at beach huts in Kerala. Ah, but I digress. These are samples of the pungent taste that is the resonance of the Metal Element, tastes that are concentrated, distilled and bursting with an aromatic flavour. Herbs such as rosemary, thyme, cinnamon, nutmeg, cardamon, garlic and ginger are also in the realm of the pungent.

The season of Autumn is the best time to be adding warming, spicy, aromatic foods to our diet, for this pungent flavour supports the Metal Element and its organs of Lung and Large Intestine.

In the early autumn as the temperature and humidity drop, one should transition from the cooling foods of summer and the damp-clearing foods of late summer to neutral and yin-nourishing foods. As the autumn deepens and the weather gets colder, add warming spices and cruciferous vegetables to support the Metal Element. As the season dries, and especially in dry climates, add lung-moistening foods such as pears, pawpaw and honey.

Vegetables that support the Metal Element include radish, cauliflower, shitake mushrooms, sweet potato, parsnip, spinach, Brussels sprouts, pumpkin, leek, broccoli, fennel, onion, spring onions and chives.

Among the fruits, choose apple, tangerine, pear, golden kiwi, guava, persimmon, peach and fig.

Other foods that are supportive of the Metal Element are black sesame seeds, sesame oil, oats, red rice and black beans. For protein: tahini, silken tofu, duck, river fish and crab.

Pungent foods are said to move or disperse Qi, loosen stagnation and strengthen the Lung. This is especially useful when there is an invasion of pathogenic factors such as Wind or Cold. The pungent foods help to expel the invasion via the skin, often by sweating, and releasing to the exterior. The flavour can be used to protect against colds and flu, boosting immunity by stimulating defensive Qi. If, however, the Lung Qi is weak, then pungent food should be consumed in moderation as too much will scatter the Qi.

The Nei Jing tells us that “the pungent taste can ventilate the lungs and open the pores” but that “excessive consumption of the pungent taste may injure the pores and skin.” (Su Wen 5). Not only does too much pungent food injure the organs and tissues of its Metal Element, but it also has a flow-on effect on the Wood Element. “Overindulgence in pungent food can cause spasms, tremors, and poor nails.” (Su Wen 10) This is an example of an excess of the flavour of one Element acting on the grandson Element. In this case, Metal is invading the Wood.

Zoey Xinyi Gong in her Five Elements Cookbook warns that too much hot sauce, chilli etc can bring heat to the lungs (Metal) and liver (Wood), causing skin issues, hair loss, anger, restlessness and insomnia. It can also cause dryness in the Large Intestine leading to constipation. If you are prone to reaching for the 5-star hot sauce, you may therefore want to temper your usage. (Note to self!)

This blog post completes our year-long exploration of the foods of the Five Elements. Normally at this time I am already thinking of a new theme for the coming year. But for the first time, nothing has arisen and I wonder why. My first blog was posted in February 2014, just as the Wood Horse Year came galloping in. Here we are 12 years later in the Year of the Fire Horse, a year that promises change at all levels, so I am reassessing my blogging. Perhaps I’ll take a break, or perhaps I will post when the inspiration arises, rather than setting myself a timetable of blogging on a theme in each season. If, dear reader, you have read this far, I am humbled by your interest. If there is something you’d like to suggest for a topic, or even just to say hello, feel free to email me. My contact details are on the website.

With warm wishes

John

SUMMER FOOD

Bitter, Digestion, Fire Element, Food, Heart, Heat, Nei Jing, , , ,

Summer is the season of the Fire Element and this week in southern Australia the full heat of summer is baking us to a crisp. In a four-day heatwave this week, temperatures in Adelaide reached 43 degrees on two of the days. I have certainly not turned on my oven to add to the baking, nor am I thinking of hot soups and stews. These were the fare of winter, that cold season that seems impossible to conceive amidst the heat of summer.

Heat is one of the six pathogenic factors that can enter the body in several ways. Firstly, through prevailing climate, often accompanied by wind or damp; secondly, an imbalance in the organs or a deficiency of fluids; and thirdly through eating foods that generate heat, or exacerbate existing internal heat.

Five of these six environmental factors align with the Five Elements, cold to Water, wind to Wood, heat to Fire, damp to Earth, and dryness to Metal. The sixth factor is summer heat which is specific to hot climates, and which is roughly equivalent to the effects of heat stroke. Regulating heat and fluid balance in the body is a function of the Triple Heater, one of the four Fire organs.

As warming foods are recommended to counter the cold of winter, so cooling foods balance the external heat of summer. Foods to avoid in the summer heat include oily, fried and spicy foods which are all hot. Rather, eat food that is raw, lightly steamed or rapidly stir-fried. These cooking methods are less likely to create heat. Fruits that are cool or cold include apple, avocado, banana, blueberry, grapefruit, kiwi, all citrus, mango, pear, strawberry and watermelon. As for the cool vegetables, go for asparagus, beets, bok choy, celery, cauliflower, cucumber, eggplant, lettuce, mung bean sprouts and zucchini. Grains that are cooling include barley, buckwheat, millet, and wheat. Teas that are cooling are mint, lemon balm, hibiscus, jasmine, matcha and green tea. Alcohol is hot so consume in moderation and in combination with cooling foods.

As we saw in the Winter Food post, most animal protein is warming, especially lamb and beef. Protein sources that are cooling or neutral include tofu, seitan (wheat protein), most fish, pork, liver, rabbit, eggs, cheese and yoghurt.

The flavour of Fire is bitter, and bitter foods benefit the Fire organs of Heart and Small Intestine. Many bitter foods are medicinal including bitter greens such as rocket (arugula), mustard greens, dandelion, collards, radicchio, endive, chicory and watercress. Cacao and dark chocolate are helpful in small amounts. But as with any food, overindulgence has negative effects, often on other organs.

The Neijing Suwen chapter 10 observes, “It is said that the heart is benefited by the bitter taste, However, this never implies that one may overindulge. Overindulgence in bitter food will cause the skin to become shrivelled and dry and the body hair to fall out.” Elsewhere in chapter 3 it warns, “Too much bitter taste disrupts the spleen’s ability to transform and transport food and causes the stomach to digest ineffectively and become distended. The muscles and tendons may become scattered.”

The colour of the Fire Element is red, so red foods support the Heart and Small Intestine. Tomatoes, beets, red lentils, strawberries, goji berries and watermelon are particularly helpful as they are also cooling or neutral. Other red-coloured foods such as red pepper (capsicum), cherries and raspberries, while warming, provide the splash of red colour that brings a dish to life.

Above all it is crucial to stay hydrated in the heat. If your urine starts to turn dark, it’s time to drink cool fluids. Avoid very cold drinks and drink fluids frequently in smaller amounts. Chugging a litre of water quickly will be less hydrating than sipping it over a couple of hours.

Enjoy the rest of the summer. Stay cool, and I’ll be back soon for a look at the foods of the Earth Element whose province is the late summer.