Chinese medicine maintains that human Qi originates with gu Qi, which literally means "Qi of grains." Thus Chinese medicine recognizes grains in particular, rice, but also all other grains as the foundation of human vitality. In fact, according to Chinese herbology, the taste of grains is generally sweet, and this flavor tones the Spleen and Stomach, which together are the organs responsible for transforming gu Qi into zhen Qi, true human vitality.
The traditional Chinese diet reflects this understanding of the importance of grains, above all other foods, for the maintenance of human well being. The Chinese have for centuries made grains in Chinese, fan the mainstays of their diet, and all other foods, whether vegetable or animal, are used as mere condiments, or sung, to enhance one's enjoyment of grain foods.
The wisdom of this grain based diet style has recently been corroborated by the massive China Health Project, an ongoing study of current dietary patterns in China by staff from the Chinese Academy of Preventive Medicine, and Oxford and Cornell Universities. The study has found that the health and nutritional status of the people of China is generally superior to that of the people of western industrialized nations. In particular, the incidence of heart disease, cancer, and other degenerative diseases which from the standpoint of Chinese medicine are disorders of Blood and Qi is far lower in China than in the United States. Researchers are concluding that this is largely due to the predominance of grains and minimal consumption of animal foods in the traditional Chinese diet, because the people who live in urban areas of China and eat a nontraditional diet with more animal foods and less grains have degenerative diseases at rates approaching those of western industrialized nations.
According to Cornell researcher T. Colin Campbell, one of the leaders of this study, the evidence is compelling enough that the World Health Organization has asked him to coauthor a document addressed to developing nations titled "More Meat Does Not Mean Better Health," and the government of China is putting a hold on its previous plans to develop a large livestock and dairy food industry. Thus, modern nutritional epidemiology lends its support to the view of traditional Chinese medicine that grains are the essential source of humanity's Qi, health, vitality and longevity.
A dietary practice that is composed primarily of whole grains may thus be considered one of the most important aspects of a lifestyle for enhancement of one's experience of Qi. Yet traditional Chinese medicine maintains that there may be more to consider in one's dietary practice than its general contents.
The principles of traditional Chinese medicine also suggest that it is important to eat in harmony with the energetic transformations manifested in the seasonal cycles of Nature.
The movements of Nature that we observe in seasonal changes actually occur albeit on a smaller scale each and every day, and throughout everyone's life cycles. Our morning corresponds to infancy and spring, noon to adulthood and summer, evening to maturity and autumn, and midnight to death and winter. A daily dietary practice which goes with this Natural Flow enhances our personal experience of Qi. Just as struggling against a river's flow merely wastes one's energy, so a diet that is not in harmony with the movement of Nature will sap one's Qi. On the other hand, just as swimming with the river will magnify one's sense of personal power, so a diet that harmonizes with Natural Qi will enhance one's personal experience of Qi.
Further, and perhaps more importantly, a diet in harmony with Natural Qi is truly sustaining, as well as practically and ecologically sustainable. Such a diet provides true sustenance, and is practically sustainable, because it will harmonize, rather than conflict, with our own inner physiological cycles, which reflect those of the environment. And it is ecologically sustainable by virtue of its harmony with Natural cycles of Qi.
Using the principles that underlie Chinese medicine, let us look at how we might create a practical way of eating that harmonizes with daily energetics, and thus enhances our personal experience of qi,
BREAKFAST
Breakfast comes after we arise from our natural deathlike slumber. This is the springtime of the day, and at this time we recapitulate our infancy, moving from lying to crawling (out of bed) to standing to walking. Morning has the yang-rising energy of springtime. The cold, moist, material yin Qi is fading as energetic yang Qi begins to rise.
In the early morning, our digestive system is as sensitive as that of an infant. Thus, the textures and nutritional values of mother's milk or infant food are most appropriate. Interestingly, whole grains have a protein to carbohydrate ratio and sweet flavor that virtually duplicates human mother's milk. This suggests that soft grain porridge would be a particularly suitable staple food around which to build a Natural breakfast. In fact, traditional Chinese medicine has determined that the Stomach is the organ most active between 7:00 and 9:00 a.m., the time when we commonly consume breakfast. The Stomach likes warm and moist foods, and dislikes dry foods. Thus, to harmonize with the morning energy, it may be best to take the advice of your grandmother and have warm porridge rather than dry toast or cold cereal.
Many Americans are used to having fruit and sugars on their cereal. However, sugary sweet foods, including fruits, generally have a yin, condensing, cold energy, according to Chinese herbalists. This energy is just the opposite of the tendency of morning Qi and thus there are not particularly appropriate foods for the first meal of the day. The cold and damp nature of sweets or fruit may be temporarily stimulating, but can in fact put a damper on the digestive "fire" of the Spleen entirely, leaving it unable to transform more nourishing foods into Qi. This may lead to the all too common experience of midmorning, low energy "Blues", and cravings for stimulants, or more sweets, to offset a dietary depletion of Qi.
The principles of traditional Chinese medicine suggest that the attempt to use sugary sweet or fruit laden breakfast foods to tonify the Spleen is a poor substitute for regular staple use of grains at all meals. These more substantially sweet foods nourish the Spleen and thus Qi at a much deeper level than the superficial stimulation afforded by sweets. For breakfast, oats, barley, millet, and rice are particularly suitable for porridge.
To harmonize with morning Qi, it is important to have more yang, ascending, warm energy foods with a mildly pungent taste. These may be fresh or prepared by steaming or fermentation, both of which are techniques which have an enlightening energy. Steamed greens fit this bill, as do sprouts, salt pickled (not vinegar pickled) vegetables especially pickled pungent greens, radish, or onions and fresh or dried chives and parsley. Things that sprout or grow upward help us to rise to the challenge of a new day.
No one would think of feeding an infant bacon, sausage, steak or other such foods. According to traditional Chinese medicine, digestion of these sorts of foods is difficult, and they may be best eaten in small quantities at a time when our digestive fire is stronger. If flesh foods are taken in quantity at this time when we are attempting to reawaken, the result may be that, before we know it, we are digesting ourselves back to sleep!
Example: Soft porridge, garnished with a small amount of sprouts, or fresh or dried parsley or chives. Steamed greens. Salt pickled vegetables.
LUNCH
The noon meal occurs in the middle, summertime of the day. At noon, as in the summer, the Sun's energy is felt most strongly on Earth, and the Qi of Nature is expanding strongly outward. This time is characterized by a Natural predominance of yang Qi in the forms of heat and fire. These quickly consume and transform yin Qi "i.e. matter" to radiate energy in all directions.
As noted briefly above, Chinese medicine teaches that the Spleen is responsible for transformation of gu Qi "yin material food" into refined zhen Qi or true, functional human life energy. The Spleen is most active between the hours of 9:00 and 11:00 a.m., readily transforming food into energy. In corroboration of the Chinese view, western science has found that individuals who consume the majority of their calories in the morning have more energy and no difficulty maintaining their weight, whereas those who consume the majority of their calories in the evening tend to be sluggish and gain a disproportionate amount of weight.
Since the noon meal follows the time of day when the Spleen has been move active in transforming food into energy, and is at the time of predominance of yang Qi, this is the time that our yang digestive fire is strongest. Traditional herbal wisdom maintains that the way to harmonize with yang predominant noon or summer Qi is to eat more pungent and hot foods. Hot foods such as hot soups and hot whole grains are the ideal basis for a noon meal. This may seem unusual to Americans, who are used to lunching on cold sandwiches, salads, iced soft drinks, fruits and juices, and ice cream and milkshakes.
Hot entrees may be seasoned with hot energy herbs such as ginger, garlic, red or green pepper, basil, and scallions. Mustard and radish greens are also hot and pungent, and are ideal foods for the noon meal.
Although yang Qi is predominant at noon, it is not without its yin complement. As in the Taiji diagram, it is the tiny spot of yin in the ocean of yang that holds it all together in the extreme. In the noon meal, it is important to include some small amount of yin, cool, even raw foods to provide dynamic contrast. Ideally, this may come from salty condiments, sea vegetables, or salty marinated salads in the style of Japanese cooking. Salt has a decidedly cool and condensing energy that provides a pleasant anchor for the upward and outward energy of hot pungent foods; additionally, according to the Nei Ching, the salty flavor can tonify the Heart. Since noon is also the time of day when the Heart is most active, according to traditional Chinese physiology, the salty flavor may be important at the noon meal. Isn't it interesting that common sense refers to a well seasoned, salty meal as "hearty"!
In summary, noon is the most appropriate time to have a good sized, dynamic, and hearty meal. This also may seem unusual to Americans, who often eat a small lunch on the run, or no lunch at all. A large noon meal followed by a xiuxi, or afternoon siesta, is in fact a common practice in China and other traditional cultures around the world.
Example: Hot vegetable soup with hot pungent and/or salty seasoning and a garnish of scallions. Hot whole grain, pasta, or fresh Chinese style flat or steamed bread. Stir fried vegetable with fresh or pickled mustard or radish greens, or salt marinated salad with pungent vegetables such as onions. Roasted and salted seeds and/or roasted seaweed condiments.
DINNER
The evening meal occurs at the time of day corresponding to the autumn season, and precedes the long winter like night. The natural movement of Qi at this time of day is downward and inward. Qi becomes more yin material, and less yang energetic. Naturally, things come to rest, condense their form, and conserve their energies. The Nei Ching refers to these as the times of harvest and storage.
Traditional Chinese medicine maintains that the Kidneys are the most active organs in the time period when many of us partake of dinner, 5:00 to 7:00 p.m. This is when the Kidneys restore our native vitality that is, during this time they once again store Qi within themselves to enable us to maintain inner life while outwardly we fall into a deathlike slumber.
As in autumn, the early evening is a time to celebrate the harvest of the fruits of the day's labors, and to flourish in gracious enjoyment of health and human company. It is also auspicious to nourish in oneself the yin Qi that characterizes the cool, damp and winter like night time.
According to Chinese medicine, sour, salty, and bitter foods have the condensing, moist, and warm or cold energies that characterize the evening and night. In general, Chinese medicine recommends against large or frequent consumption of chilled or raw foods, as these tend to injure the Spleen and Stomach, dampening their fire. Therefore, since salty, bitter, and some sour foods tend to have intrinsically cold energies, it is recommended that these usually be taken in cooked form. This way, one can reduce their impact on the system, yet derive the yin enhancing benefits that they offer.
The evening marks the rising to predominance of yin, materialized Qi. To reflect this in our evening meal, the ubiquitous serving of grains may be enhanced by emphasizing foods with more condensing and descending forms, and sour, salty, and bitter tastes. Rounded vegetables such as onions, hard "winter" or soft summer squashes, and cabbages have a condensing form, and root vegetables, small peas and pulses, and beans have a condensing and descending form. All of these foods can help us to condense and root our own energies for a long sedentary night. Kidney shaped beans in particular enhance the storage function of the Kidneys, especially if taken in the form of a salty soup and/or accompanied by salty sea vegetables.
Fruits and sweets also tend to have a condensing and descending form or energy, and thus the evening meal is the best time to enjoy dessert. But, as we noted above, since these foods also have a very cold and damp nature, it is best not to rely on them to excess, as they may easily weaken the Spleen. Books by western authors on Chinese cooking often lament that dessert is not a common feature of the Chinese diet, but this lack clearly reflects respect for the principles of Chinese medicine. According to the diagnostics of Chinese medicine, a craving for sweets is often indicative of a Spleen disorder. Interestingly, the "Nei Ching" also says that the proper food of the Spleen is salty. It seems that fruit and sweets are attractive mainly to individuals who are not regularly toning their Spleens with the substantial sweetness of grains at the core of their diet. The traditional Chinese diet also contains many salty condiments, and this combination of sweet grains and salty seasonings seems to keep the Spleens of the Chinese people very happy, as the dearth of Chinese sweets would seem to suggest.
The Nei Ching recommends peas and pulses (such as lentils) as sources of the sour taste. Brown rice, plum, or apple cider vinegar are also warm and sour foods appropriate for the autumn like evening. The bitter flavor may be gotten from wheat; roots such as burdock, turnip, rutabaga, and radish; and fruits such as almonds and apricots. Besides beans and sea vegetables, sea animals, coarse greens such as kale and collards, and chestnuts have a salty taste. All of these are foods to nourish yin Qi.
Although these flavors and foods may predominate in the evening meal, it is again important to provide some contrasting yang within the yin. By incorporating a wide variety of richly sour and salt seasoned dishes using root and round vegetables, one may harmonize with the condensing of Natural Qi. Yet contrasting herbs or garnishes with the pungent flavor such as Basil, oregano, thyme, sage, garlic, chives, or parsley can provide the inner but lifting yang that prevents the yin from imploding upon itself. Without such herbal enlightenment as pungent herbs can provide, a meal of condensing and descending foods may leave the diner feeling more like a log than like an energetic and enlightened being.
The eminent herbalist Dr. Michael Tierra, author of "Planetary Herbology" and "The Way of Herbs", points out that traditional Chinese dietetics allows for the inclusion of 24 ounces of animal flesh in one's daily diet, though more than this may introduce excess toxins into the system. Dr. Henry Lu, author of "The Chinese System of Food Cures", recommends consuming flesh foods in the form of soup, pointing out that a small quantity of flesh is easily digested and goes a long way in this sort of dish. Poultry is highly regarded in Chinese medicine for its tonic properties, light taste, and easily digestible flesh. The evening meal may be considered like the traditional harvest feast of thanksgiving for the bounty of the harvest, and by having a wider variety of foods, including some fish or fowl, and serving an occasional and simple cooked fruit (it is usually best to use dried and/or cooked fruit, to counteract its generally cold and damp nature) dessert, one can create that relaxed and festive atmosphere.
To top off the evening meal, it is quite appropriate to drink a roasted bitter root "coffee," such as may be made from roasted dandelion or roasted chicory roots. As well as being toning to the Kidneys, the bitter flavor of these roots is sedating, useful in clearing the excess fires and heat of agitation and irritability of the day, allowing one to settle down to a restful night.
Example:
Root vegetable soup with peas, beans, fish, and/or chicken, and salty seasoning.
Whole grains, pasta, or flat or steamed bread.
Sea vegetable side dish.
Cooked "coarse" greens, cabbage, or seasonally appropriate salad.
Salty seed condiments.
Seasonings and garnishes of salty, sour, and pungent taste.
Bitter root "coffee."
Such are the sorts of cycles in daily meals that are suggested by the principles of Chinese medicine. Perhaps with these in practice we may find a more sustainable diet, greater health, vitality and personal experience of the flow of Qi in the human body through harmony with the ever-cycling Qi of Nature.
The traditional Chinese diet reflects this understanding of the importance of grains, above all other foods, for the maintenance of human well being. The Chinese have for centuries made grains in Chinese, fan the mainstays of their diet, and all other foods, whether vegetable or animal, are used as mere condiments, or sung, to enhance one's enjoyment of grain foods.
The wisdom of this grain based diet style has recently been corroborated by the massive China Health Project, an ongoing study of current dietary patterns in China by staff from the Chinese Academy of Preventive Medicine, and Oxford and Cornell Universities. The study has found that the health and nutritional status of the people of China is generally superior to that of the people of western industrialized nations. In particular, the incidence of heart disease, cancer, and other degenerative diseases which from the standpoint of Chinese medicine are disorders of Blood and Qi is far lower in China than in the United States. Researchers are concluding that this is largely due to the predominance of grains and minimal consumption of animal foods in the traditional Chinese diet, because the people who live in urban areas of China and eat a nontraditional diet with more animal foods and less grains have degenerative diseases at rates approaching those of western industrialized nations.
According to Cornell researcher T. Colin Campbell, one of the leaders of this study, the evidence is compelling enough that the World Health Organization has asked him to coauthor a document addressed to developing nations titled "More Meat Does Not Mean Better Health," and the government of China is putting a hold on its previous plans to develop a large livestock and dairy food industry. Thus, modern nutritional epidemiology lends its support to the view of traditional Chinese medicine that grains are the essential source of humanity's Qi, health, vitality and longevity.
A dietary practice that is composed primarily of whole grains may thus be considered one of the most important aspects of a lifestyle for enhancement of one's experience of Qi. Yet traditional Chinese medicine maintains that there may be more to consider in one's dietary practice than its general contents.
The principles of traditional Chinese medicine also suggest that it is important to eat in harmony with the energetic transformations manifested in the seasonal cycles of Nature.
The movements of Nature that we observe in seasonal changes actually occur albeit on a smaller scale each and every day, and throughout everyone's life cycles. Our morning corresponds to infancy and spring, noon to adulthood and summer, evening to maturity and autumn, and midnight to death and winter. A daily dietary practice which goes with this Natural Flow enhances our personal experience of Qi. Just as struggling against a river's flow merely wastes one's energy, so a diet that is not in harmony with the movement of Nature will sap one's Qi. On the other hand, just as swimming with the river will magnify one's sense of personal power, so a diet that harmonizes with Natural Qi will enhance one's personal experience of Qi.
Further, and perhaps more importantly, a diet in harmony with Natural Qi is truly sustaining, as well as practically and ecologically sustainable. Such a diet provides true sustenance, and is practically sustainable, because it will harmonize, rather than conflict, with our own inner physiological cycles, which reflect those of the environment. And it is ecologically sustainable by virtue of its harmony with Natural cycles of Qi.
Using the principles that underlie Chinese medicine, let us look at how we might create a practical way of eating that harmonizes with daily energetics, and thus enhances our personal experience of qi,
BREAKFAST
Breakfast comes after we arise from our natural deathlike slumber. This is the springtime of the day, and at this time we recapitulate our infancy, moving from lying to crawling (out of bed) to standing to walking. Morning has the yang-rising energy of springtime. The cold, moist, material yin Qi is fading as energetic yang Qi begins to rise.
In the early morning, our digestive system is as sensitive as that of an infant. Thus, the textures and nutritional values of mother's milk or infant food are most appropriate. Interestingly, whole grains have a protein to carbohydrate ratio and sweet flavor that virtually duplicates human mother's milk. This suggests that soft grain porridge would be a particularly suitable staple food around which to build a Natural breakfast. In fact, traditional Chinese medicine has determined that the Stomach is the organ most active between 7:00 and 9:00 a.m., the time when we commonly consume breakfast. The Stomach likes warm and moist foods, and dislikes dry foods. Thus, to harmonize with the morning energy, it may be best to take the advice of your grandmother and have warm porridge rather than dry toast or cold cereal.
Many Americans are used to having fruit and sugars on their cereal. However, sugary sweet foods, including fruits, generally have a yin, condensing, cold energy, according to Chinese herbalists. This energy is just the opposite of the tendency of morning Qi and thus there are not particularly appropriate foods for the first meal of the day. The cold and damp nature of sweets or fruit may be temporarily stimulating, but can in fact put a damper on the digestive "fire" of the Spleen entirely, leaving it unable to transform more nourishing foods into Qi. This may lead to the all too common experience of midmorning, low energy "Blues", and cravings for stimulants, or more sweets, to offset a dietary depletion of Qi.
The principles of traditional Chinese medicine suggest that the attempt to use sugary sweet or fruit laden breakfast foods to tonify the Spleen is a poor substitute for regular staple use of grains at all meals. These more substantially sweet foods nourish the Spleen and thus Qi at a much deeper level than the superficial stimulation afforded by sweets. For breakfast, oats, barley, millet, and rice are particularly suitable for porridge.
To harmonize with morning Qi, it is important to have more yang, ascending, warm energy foods with a mildly pungent taste. These may be fresh or prepared by steaming or fermentation, both of which are techniques which have an enlightening energy. Steamed greens fit this bill, as do sprouts, salt pickled (not vinegar pickled) vegetables especially pickled pungent greens, radish, or onions and fresh or dried chives and parsley. Things that sprout or grow upward help us to rise to the challenge of a new day.
No one would think of feeding an infant bacon, sausage, steak or other such foods. According to traditional Chinese medicine, digestion of these sorts of foods is difficult, and they may be best eaten in small quantities at a time when our digestive fire is stronger. If flesh foods are taken in quantity at this time when we are attempting to reawaken, the result may be that, before we know it, we are digesting ourselves back to sleep!
Example: Soft porridge, garnished with a small amount of sprouts, or fresh or dried parsley or chives. Steamed greens. Salt pickled vegetables.
LUNCH
The noon meal occurs in the middle, summertime of the day. At noon, as in the summer, the Sun's energy is felt most strongly on Earth, and the Qi of Nature is expanding strongly outward. This time is characterized by a Natural predominance of yang Qi in the forms of heat and fire. These quickly consume and transform yin Qi "i.e. matter" to radiate energy in all directions.
As noted briefly above, Chinese medicine teaches that the Spleen is responsible for transformation of gu Qi "yin material food" into refined zhen Qi or true, functional human life energy. The Spleen is most active between the hours of 9:00 and 11:00 a.m., readily transforming food into energy. In corroboration of the Chinese view, western science has found that individuals who consume the majority of their calories in the morning have more energy and no difficulty maintaining their weight, whereas those who consume the majority of their calories in the evening tend to be sluggish and gain a disproportionate amount of weight.
Since the noon meal follows the time of day when the Spleen has been move active in transforming food into energy, and is at the time of predominance of yang Qi, this is the time that our yang digestive fire is strongest. Traditional herbal wisdom maintains that the way to harmonize with yang predominant noon or summer Qi is to eat more pungent and hot foods. Hot foods such as hot soups and hot whole grains are the ideal basis for a noon meal. This may seem unusual to Americans, who are used to lunching on cold sandwiches, salads, iced soft drinks, fruits and juices, and ice cream and milkshakes.
Hot entrees may be seasoned with hot energy herbs such as ginger, garlic, red or green pepper, basil, and scallions. Mustard and radish greens are also hot and pungent, and are ideal foods for the noon meal.
Although yang Qi is predominant at noon, it is not without its yin complement. As in the Taiji diagram, it is the tiny spot of yin in the ocean of yang that holds it all together in the extreme. In the noon meal, it is important to include some small amount of yin, cool, even raw foods to provide dynamic contrast. Ideally, this may come from salty condiments, sea vegetables, or salty marinated salads in the style of Japanese cooking. Salt has a decidedly cool and condensing energy that provides a pleasant anchor for the upward and outward energy of hot pungent foods; additionally, according to the Nei Ching, the salty flavor can tonify the Heart. Since noon is also the time of day when the Heart is most active, according to traditional Chinese physiology, the salty flavor may be important at the noon meal. Isn't it interesting that common sense refers to a well seasoned, salty meal as "hearty"!
In summary, noon is the most appropriate time to have a good sized, dynamic, and hearty meal. This also may seem unusual to Americans, who often eat a small lunch on the run, or no lunch at all. A large noon meal followed by a xiuxi, or afternoon siesta, is in fact a common practice in China and other traditional cultures around the world.
Example: Hot vegetable soup with hot pungent and/or salty seasoning and a garnish of scallions. Hot whole grain, pasta, or fresh Chinese style flat or steamed bread. Stir fried vegetable with fresh or pickled mustard or radish greens, or salt marinated salad with pungent vegetables such as onions. Roasted and salted seeds and/or roasted seaweed condiments.
DINNER
The evening meal occurs at the time of day corresponding to the autumn season, and precedes the long winter like night. The natural movement of Qi at this time of day is downward and inward. Qi becomes more yin material, and less yang energetic. Naturally, things come to rest, condense their form, and conserve their energies. The Nei Ching refers to these as the times of harvest and storage.
Traditional Chinese medicine maintains that the Kidneys are the most active organs in the time period when many of us partake of dinner, 5:00 to 7:00 p.m. This is when the Kidneys restore our native vitality that is, during this time they once again store Qi within themselves to enable us to maintain inner life while outwardly we fall into a deathlike slumber.
As in autumn, the early evening is a time to celebrate the harvest of the fruits of the day's labors, and to flourish in gracious enjoyment of health and human company. It is also auspicious to nourish in oneself the yin Qi that characterizes the cool, damp and winter like night time.
According to Chinese medicine, sour, salty, and bitter foods have the condensing, moist, and warm or cold energies that characterize the evening and night. In general, Chinese medicine recommends against large or frequent consumption of chilled or raw foods, as these tend to injure the Spleen and Stomach, dampening their fire. Therefore, since salty, bitter, and some sour foods tend to have intrinsically cold energies, it is recommended that these usually be taken in cooked form. This way, one can reduce their impact on the system, yet derive the yin enhancing benefits that they offer.
The evening marks the rising to predominance of yin, materialized Qi. To reflect this in our evening meal, the ubiquitous serving of grains may be enhanced by emphasizing foods with more condensing and descending forms, and sour, salty, and bitter tastes. Rounded vegetables such as onions, hard "winter" or soft summer squashes, and cabbages have a condensing form, and root vegetables, small peas and pulses, and beans have a condensing and descending form. All of these foods can help us to condense and root our own energies for a long sedentary night. Kidney shaped beans in particular enhance the storage function of the Kidneys, especially if taken in the form of a salty soup and/or accompanied by salty sea vegetables.
Fruits and sweets also tend to have a condensing and descending form or energy, and thus the evening meal is the best time to enjoy dessert. But, as we noted above, since these foods also have a very cold and damp nature, it is best not to rely on them to excess, as they may easily weaken the Spleen. Books by western authors on Chinese cooking often lament that dessert is not a common feature of the Chinese diet, but this lack clearly reflects respect for the principles of Chinese medicine. According to the diagnostics of Chinese medicine, a craving for sweets is often indicative of a Spleen disorder. Interestingly, the "Nei Ching" also says that the proper food of the Spleen is salty. It seems that fruit and sweets are attractive mainly to individuals who are not regularly toning their Spleens with the substantial sweetness of grains at the core of their diet. The traditional Chinese diet also contains many salty condiments, and this combination of sweet grains and salty seasonings seems to keep the Spleens of the Chinese people very happy, as the dearth of Chinese sweets would seem to suggest.
The Nei Ching recommends peas and pulses (such as lentils) as sources of the sour taste. Brown rice, plum, or apple cider vinegar are also warm and sour foods appropriate for the autumn like evening. The bitter flavor may be gotten from wheat; roots such as burdock, turnip, rutabaga, and radish; and fruits such as almonds and apricots. Besides beans and sea vegetables, sea animals, coarse greens such as kale and collards, and chestnuts have a salty taste. All of these are foods to nourish yin Qi.
Although these flavors and foods may predominate in the evening meal, it is again important to provide some contrasting yang within the yin. By incorporating a wide variety of richly sour and salt seasoned dishes using root and round vegetables, one may harmonize with the condensing of Natural Qi. Yet contrasting herbs or garnishes with the pungent flavor such as Basil, oregano, thyme, sage, garlic, chives, or parsley can provide the inner but lifting yang that prevents the yin from imploding upon itself. Without such herbal enlightenment as pungent herbs can provide, a meal of condensing and descending foods may leave the diner feeling more like a log than like an energetic and enlightened being.
The eminent herbalist Dr. Michael Tierra, author of "Planetary Herbology" and "The Way of Herbs", points out that traditional Chinese dietetics allows for the inclusion of 24 ounces of animal flesh in one's daily diet, though more than this may introduce excess toxins into the system. Dr. Henry Lu, author of "The Chinese System of Food Cures", recommends consuming flesh foods in the form of soup, pointing out that a small quantity of flesh is easily digested and goes a long way in this sort of dish. Poultry is highly regarded in Chinese medicine for its tonic properties, light taste, and easily digestible flesh. The evening meal may be considered like the traditional harvest feast of thanksgiving for the bounty of the harvest, and by having a wider variety of foods, including some fish or fowl, and serving an occasional and simple cooked fruit (it is usually best to use dried and/or cooked fruit, to counteract its generally cold and damp nature) dessert, one can create that relaxed and festive atmosphere.
To top off the evening meal, it is quite appropriate to drink a roasted bitter root "coffee," such as may be made from roasted dandelion or roasted chicory roots. As well as being toning to the Kidneys, the bitter flavor of these roots is sedating, useful in clearing the excess fires and heat of agitation and irritability of the day, allowing one to settle down to a restful night.
Example:
Root vegetable soup with peas, beans, fish, and/or chicken, and salty seasoning.
Whole grains, pasta, or flat or steamed bread.
Sea vegetable side dish.
Cooked "coarse" greens, cabbage, or seasonally appropriate salad.
Salty seed condiments.
Seasonings and garnishes of salty, sour, and pungent taste.
Bitter root "coffee."
Such are the sorts of cycles in daily meals that are suggested by the principles of Chinese medicine. Perhaps with these in practice we may find a more sustainable diet, greater health, vitality and personal experience of the flow of Qi in the human body through harmony with the ever-cycling Qi of Nature.
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