Summer Diet: How to Eat Whole Grains
We all know that whole grains have excellent health benefits for our bodies, but there should be a specific way to eat them for seasonal wellness. So, how should we eat whole grains in the summer?
Brown rice is as its name suggests, unpolished rice with most grains still covered in the bran layer. Brown rice can be bought in regular supermarkets. The best brown rice is intact in appearance, with a yellowish-brown or light brown color and a fragrant aroma. Before making brown rice porridge, the rice should be soaked for about 30 minutes, then cooked just like regular rice porridge. Brown rice porridge can stimulate gastric juice secretion, aiding digestion and nutrient absorption. However, diabetics should avoid drinking this plain brown rice porridge directly, as it may cause a sudden spike in blood sugar.
Sorghum is suitable for making snacks
"Red Sorghum" once gave a generation a special affection for the highlands, but you might never have imagined that such a rugged food is actually best eaten as a snack.
Sorghum rice, whether used for porridge or as a main dish, can be a bit coarse. However, when ground into flour to make snacks, it becomes much finer and more nutritious. Sorghum rice is best for making a snack called sorghum cakes. This involves grinding sorghum rice into flour, then adding baking powder, sugar, eggs, and a moderate amount of water to form a thick, sticky dough. The sorghum dough is then flattened, steamed, lightly fried in oil, and sprinkled with sesame seeds.
Sorghum cakes can be difficult to digest for people with slightly weaker gastrointestinal function. You can try making sorghum soup instead. For example, adding a little sorghum to lotus root soup or corn soup can add a richer texture to an already nutritious broth.
Coix seed soup is the most nourishing
Coix seed looks more like a kernel than a grain, so it is also called Job's tears in many places. More people are now fond of eating coix seed because its unique growing environment means it has fewer pollutants. It thrives in damp, shaded areas and is often grown in the mountains or along small rivers.
The plump, fresh, and sticky coix seed is liked by many, but few know its many health benefits. Traditional Chinese medicine says that coix seed can strengthen bones and muscles, fortify the spleen and stomach, reduce edema, alleviate rheumatism, and clear lung heat. For women, coix seed is a great tonic. Its rich vitamin B1 can make the skin smooth and fair, and it may also help prevent uterine cancer.
Coix seed is slightly cool in nature, so it is not suitable for making porridge or eating on its own. It is perfect for stewing with foods that have a warming effect. You can stew it with chicken legs and tomatoes. This is not only easy to digest but also provides excellent nourishment. Coix seed is not easily digested, so it should not be eaten in excess, especially by the elderly, children, or those with a cold stomach or gastritis. It should be consumed in moderation.
Glutinous rice is most suitable for making fermented rice wine
Glutinous rice can be used for congee or tangyuan (glutinous rice balls), but the healthiest and most wonderful way to use it is to make fermented rice wine (jiuniang). Glutinous rice aids digestion and has a calming effect, relieving fatigue and dizziness. These effects are more prominent when made into fermented rice wine, and it is also more convenient to consume, with less restriction on the amount.
We can mix glutinous rice, coix seed, coarse powder of lotus seeds and Chinese yam, Job's tears, coarse powder of Poria cocos, and a suitable amount of yeast starter. Place the mixed ingredients in an enamel basin, add an appropriate amount of water, and steam for 1 hour in a steamer. Take it out, let it cool, mix in the yeast starter, and place the basin in an environment of about 25°C. After 36-48 hours, the ingredients will ferment into fermented rice wine. If you like it sweet, you can add rock sugar. Fermented rice wine can be consumed at noon and in the evening. It not only aids digestion but also calms the mind and soothes the stomach.
In addition, coix seed strengthens the spleen and promotes urination, lotus seeds and Chinese yam nourish the spleen and kidneys, and Poria tonifies qi. The combination of these ingredients makes a nourishing and healthy blend. The resulting fermented rice wine is truly the most nutritious and healthy combination.
Oat eight-treasure rice is good for weight loss
Oats are usually eaten soaked in milk, but occasionally making eight-treasure rice with oats can have better beauty and anti-aging effects. Oats contain various enzymes that not only inhibit the formation of age spots but also slow down the aging of human cells, making them the best health food for middle-aged and elderly patients with cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases.
More importantly, the rich soluble fiber in oats promotes the excretion of bile acids, lowers blood cholesterol, reduces the intake of high-fat foods. Because soluble fiber absorbs a lot of water, it provides a strong feeling of fullness, and regular consumption has a particularly good effect on weight loss.
Oat eight-treasure rice is made by soaking oats, black glutinous rice, long glutinous rice, brown rice, white rice, soybeans, black beans, lotus seeds, coix seed, and red beans in water for an hour, then cooking until done. Eight-treasure rice has more abundant dietary fiber and carbohydrates, making it suitable to be eaten as a staple food.
When we eat at a restaurant, we sometimes encounter a rice porridge that tastes different from the congee we make at home. Although it's also made from rice, its texture and aroma are much better than plain congee. This is brown rice porridge. The biggest feature of brown rice is that it contains the germ, which is high in vitamins and fiber. Regular consumption can help reduce fat and cholesterol. Brown rice is also rich in zinc, which can improve rough skin.