The arrival of the "End of Heat" period signifies that the hot "Sanfu" days are coming to an end, but the weather remains hot. At this time, it's important to adjust your diet, focusing on clearing summer heat, strengthening the spleen, and promoting urination to drain dampness. So, what should you eat for health during the End of Heat? The editor will now introduce you to the best foods for this period, so don't miss out.
1. Savory Pancake with Egg
"Jiaozi in the first fu, noodles in the second, and a savory pancake with egg in the third." As we enter the End of Heat, the scorching days are drawing to a close, and the weather begins to cool down, making the simple and convenient savory pancake a popular choice. Among these three wheat-based foods—jiaozi, noodles, and savory pancakes—the cooking method for the pancake is the best. Because it doesn't require boiling or blanching in water, the loss of various soluble vitamins and minerals is minimized.
The method for making a savory pancake with egg is simple. Spread the batter into a pancake, and when it's evenly heated and starting to set, quickly pour the beaten egg onto it. While the pancake and egg are certainly good, they lack dietary fiber, potassium, and vitamin C. To balance the nutrition, add a side of cold-tossed vegetables. Therefore, when eating the pancake, you can add a few slices of marinated beef and some shredded tofu. You can also add vegetables; incorporating some seasonal wild greens is also a great idea.
Pancake with Egg
2. Duck
In the early autumn of the End of Heat, eating meat can feel greasy and easily lead to internal "heat" and irritability. Therefore, when choosing meat, you should opt for meats that are cooling in nature or neutral in nature. As the saying goes, "Eat duck to prevent the summer slump." This is because duck meat is cooling in nature and has the effects of strengthening the spleen and Qi, nourishing Yin, and moistening the stomach, as well as promoting urination to reduce swelling. Moreover, from the perspective of the Traditional Chinese Medicine principle of "treating heat with cold," people with internal heat are suitable for eating duck meat. It is even more beneficial for those who are weak, have poor appetite, have a fever, dry stools, or suffer from edema. Duck meat is also rich in protein and other nutrients that people urgently need in the summer.
Not only that, duck meat contains more B vitamins and vitamin E than other meats, which can effectively prevent beriberi, neuritis, and various inflammatory conditions, and also has anti-aging effects. Duck meat is also rich in niacin, which is one of the components of two important coenzymes in the human body and has a protective effect on patients with heart diseases such as myocardial infarction.
Five-Fruit Duck
3. Cucumber
The old cucumber can be considered a great "magic weapon" for clearing summer heat. An old cucumber refers to a fully ripened cucumber. The skin of a cucumber is typically green, but it gradually turns yellow after a long time, hence the name "old cucumber." It has a strong ability to clear heat and relieve summer heat, but with less of a "cold" nature, making it an excellent food for dealing with hot weather during the mid-fu period. Traditional Chinese Medicine believes that cucumber is sweet, cool, and slightly bitter in nature, and non-toxic. It enters the spleen, stomach, and large intestine meridians; it has the effects of clearing heat, promoting urination, clearing heat and detoxifying; it is mainly used for treating thirst, sore throat, eye inflammation, and scalds. It also has weight-loss benefits.
When eating cucumbers, be sure not to throw away the blossom end. Because the blossom end contains more cucurbitacin C, a bitter compound that is a rare food for detoxification and beauty. Animal experiments have confirmed that this substance has significant anti-tumor effects.
Marinated Cucumber
4. Lotus Root
"The lotus plant is a treasure all over, and the autumn lotus root is the most nourishing." Autumn is the season when fresh lotus root is available. Eating some lotus root can have the effects of nourishing Yin and clearing heat, moistening dryness and quenching thirst, and calming the mind. For the elderly, lotus root is an excellent food for nourishing the spleen and stomach. In addition, lotus root is also a health food for people with high blood pressure, liver disease, loss of appetite, iron-deficiency anemia, and malnutrition.
Lotus root is especially suitable for the old, young, women, and the weak, and is particularly recommended for those with high fevers, hemoptysis, high blood pressure, liver disease, loss of appetite, iron-deficiency anemia, and malnutrition to eat more. It should be reminded that postpartum women should not eat lotus root too early; it's best to wait a few weeks after childbirth. Those with weak digestive function or loose stools should not eat raw lotus root.
Hot and Sour Pink Lotus Root Slices
5. Mung Bean Congee
On a scorching summer day, many housewives will cook a large pot of mung bean soup for their family to drink. Mung bean is cold and sweet in nature, with the effects of clearing heat and detoxifying, and relieving summer heat and quenching thirst. However, for people with weak constitutions, such as those with cold hands and feet, abdominal bloating, or diarrhea, it is best not to drink too much of it. You can choose a milder method of preparation, such as cooking mung bean congee.
When cooking mung bean congee, do not add alkali. Mung beans are rich in B vitamins, which are an important component of their heat-relieving properties and can compensate for nutritional losses from sweating. Alkali can severely destroy various B vitamins, and at the same time, the flavonoid antioxidant components in mung beans will also be lost if alkali is added. If you want the congee to be thicker, you can add a small amount of oatmeal or glutinous rice to "thicken" it.
Rice and Mung Bean Congee
Homemade yogurt
Skin bean mud pie
Banana cake roll
Shrimp pie
Cracked chicken root