Mung beans have the effect of clearing heat and detoxifying, so drinking mung bean soup in the summer is a good choice. So, are there any taboos to drinking mung bean soup in the summer? Who should avoid drinking it? In recent days, the temperature has been rising continuously, and people have strongly felt the arrival of summer. Mung bean soup is a must-have for clearing heat and relieving summer heat, and everyone likes to drink some in the summer. However, drinking mung bean soup also requires attention. Drinking it incorrectly not only fails to relieve summer heat but can also harm the body. Let's look at the taboos of drinking mung bean soup below.
Taboos of Drinking Mung Bean Soup
1. Do not cook mung bean soup in an iron pot
When cooking mung bean soup, using an iron pot is the least suitable. Most of the active ingredients in mung beans are in the skin. When flavonoids in the mung bean skin react with metal ions, they may form darker-colored compounds, causing the mung bean soup to turn black. Consuming it can cause gastrointestinal discomfort and indigestion. Therefore, a clay pot is the ideal choice for cooking mung bean soup.
2. Do not add alkali when cooking mung bean soup
Mung beans are rich in Vitamin B, an important component of their heat-relieving properties, which can compensate for nutrient loss from sweating. Alkali can severely destroy Vitamin B. At the same time, the flavonoid antioxidant components in mung beans will also be lost due to the addition of alkali, causing structural changes and the color to turn yellow. Therefore, it is best not to add alkali when cooking mung bean soup. If you want the soup to be thicker, you can consider adding a small amount of oats or glutinous rice to "thicken" it.
3. Do not drink mung bean soup every day
It's fine to drink mung bean soup in moderation. Generally, adults can drink it 2 to 3 times a week, one bowl at a time. For children, it depends on their specific constitution. It's best to consult a doctor first, because the protein content in mung beans is higher than that of chicken, and large-molecule proteins need to be converted into small-molecule peptides and amino acids by enzymes to be absorbed by the human body. The digestive function of a child's stomach and intestines is relatively poor, making it difficult to digest mung bean protein in a short time, which can easily lead to diarrhea due to indigestion. Generally, children can start adding a small amount of mung beans when they begin eating congee at 2 to 3 years old. They can only drink an adult's amount after the age of 6.
4. Do not drink mung bean soup on an empty stomach
From a Traditional Chinese Medicine perspective, mung beans are relatively cool in nature. Drinking them on an empty stomach can easily harm the spleen and stomach. People with a cool constitution already have symptoms like cold limbs, fatigue, cold pain in the waist and legs, and loose stools. Eating mung beans can worsen these symptoms and even trigger digestive system diseases such as diarrhea, joint and muscle pain caused by stagnant qi and blood, and chronic gastritis caused by a cold stomach and weak spleen and stomach.
5. Do not drink excessive amounts of mung bean soup
Although mung bean soup is delicious, it should not be consumed in excess. The oligosaccharides in mung beans can easily cause bloating, and mung beans are a food that is not easily digested. Excessive consumption can easily damage the spleen and stomach. For women, excessive drinking of mung bean soup can also easily lead to problems like bloating and menstrual cramps.
6. Mung beans cannot sometimes be eaten with Chinese medicine
Mung beans themselves are a Chinese medicine. When suffering from heat-related illnesses such as external wind-heat invasion or internal summer heat, taking mung bean soup appropriately while taking Chinese medicine can have a synergistic effect. However, people with symptoms like a weak stomach and intestines, limb soreness and fatigue, chills all over the body, cold pain in the waist and legs, and diarrhea should avoid eating mung beans when taking Chinese medicine. Otherwise, it will not only reduce the efficacy of the medicine but also worsen the condition. Therefore, whether you can eat mung beans while taking Chinese medicine cannot be generalized; it should be determined based on the nature of the illness (cold or heat, deficiency or excess) and the properties of the Chinese medicine being taken.
People Who Should Not Drink Mung Bean Soup
1. Women during menstruation
Women during menstruation are in a state of blood loss and have a constitution that leans towards being cold. Therefore, they should not drink the relatively cool mung bean soup, as it can lead to qi stagnation and blood stasis, causing abdominal pain or worsening menstrual cramps and discomfort.
2. People with a cool constitution
Because mung beans are cool in nature, people with a cool constitution who drink mung bean soup may easily experience symptoms like diarrhea. It may also reduce the immunity of the digestive system. Therefore, people with a cool constitution should avoid drinking mung bean soup.
3. People with a weak constitution
Mung beans contain a high amount of protein, which needs to be converted into small-molecule peptides and amino acids by enzymes to be absorbed by the human body. People with a relatively weak constitution generally have weaker gastrointestinal function and find it difficult to digest mung bean protein in a short time, which can easily lead to indigestion and diarrhea.
Recommended Mung Bean Soup Recipes
1. Lily and Mung Bean Soup
Ingredients: 20g of raw mung beans (or 25g of cooked mung beans), 15g of dried lily (or 30g of soaked lily), 5g of white sugar, 180ml of drinking water.
Method: Remove impurities from the mung beans and wash them. Separate the lily petals and wash them. Place the mung beans in a pot, add water and bring to a boil, then turn down the heat and cook until the mung beans bloom. Add the lily. When the lily and mung beans are cooked and tender, add sugar. Once the sugar has dissolved, ladle into a serving bowl.
2. Rock Sugar Sago and Mung Bean Soup
Ingredients: Sago, mung beans, rock sugar.
Method: Wash the sago and mung beans separately and soak them in two separate pots. For the mung beans, add enough water to cover them by about 3cm. For the sago, fill a small saucepan with water. I soaked the sago in a small saucepan. You need more water for the mung beans, so use a large soup pot for them. Soak for half an hour.
Place the soaked mung beans with their soaking water on the stove and bring to a boil over high heat until the water is mostly gone. By now, some of the mung beans will have started to bloom. Rinse them twice with cold water, then add more boiling water and continue to cook until all the mung beans have bloomed. Turn off the heat.
Drain the water from the soaked sago. Pour the sago into a sieve. In another small saucepan, bring a fresh batch of water to a rolling boil, then add the sago and simmer over low heat. Stir occasionally with a spoon to prevent it from sticking to the bottom. It's best to cover the saucepan while simmering. Simmer until the sago becomes completely transparent, then turn off the heat. Pour the cooked sago into the mung bean soup and add rock sugar to taste. Chill it in the refrigerator and it's ready to drink.