Boost your Immune System with Breakfast!

Well, here we are – the kids are well into the school year and this amazing, seemingly everlasting (!), dry fall weather is snapping wet & cold before our eyes! Up here, north of town we are waking to a thin layer of frost most mornings.

As a patient said to me this week, “the days of eating ice cream are over for me!” which made me laugh – because, c’mon, all things in moderation, right?! – but also because it illustrates a great point.

Our “digestive fire” – or, our body’s ability to break down food and properly absorb it – changes with the seasons.

Many of us – my patient included – are aware that we have stronger digestive fire in the summer; we can easily digest cold foods, more complex foods, & raw fruits and vegetables.

Yet, in the winter – just like our colder & wetter outdoor environment – our digestive fire “damps down”. Lacking that external heat source (the sun!), we must apply heat to our foods to assist our ability to digest.

People often get really excited about the idea of “eating seasonally”.

What does "eating seasonally" mean, from a Chinese Medicine perspective?

First, it means eating local food – observing what grows where you live & eating it! 

And second, it means observing that our bodies actually change seasonally and need different things throughout the year – food and otherwise. In the winter our bodies predominantly crave warm and easily assimilated nutrition.

Like I talked about in my first blog post, Chinese Medicine understands that for illness to take hold in an individual, there must be:

1. a weakness in the “terrain” (or, a susceptibility to falling ill)

and 2. an opportunistic pathogen (wind, cold, damp, dryness – hello winter!)

Choosing warm, slow-cooked, and well-broken down foods in the winter is like bolstering your “terrain” (or your resistance to opportunistic pathogens). Your powerful immune system does its best work when it is supported by good digestive function – the ability to properly break down and absorb your food. 

Which leads me to... breakfast!

Congee is a medicinal Chinese porridge used for thousands of years to:

1. boost immunity (especially for school age kids and elders!)

2. improve your digestive function

3. & help your body recover from illness (frequent colds, the dreaded winter flu)

So what is congee?

Basically, it is a pulse (commonly white rice, but also millet, barley, sorghum & other grains) + a high proportion of water simmered over low heat for 2 - 4 hours.

Depending on your taste preferences (sweet, savory, spicy), what’s available to you locally, and what medicinal qualities are indicated for you (warming, sweet, pungent, etc), you can add many other ingredients, spices, and herbs.

So, in the spirit of supporting your digestive fire and keeping healthy this winter, here is a congee recipe with two versions to try!

Basic Congee:

1 cup rice

5 cups water

Put the above in a crockpot over night (& you’re done!) OR bring the above to a boil and then reduce to a simmer on the stove top for 2 – 4 hours.

Yes, it’s literally that easy.

Then, decide if you like it sweet or savory:

For a sweet congee, add local honey, 1/2 tsp cinnamon, 1/4 tsp nutmeg, raisins, apples or pears, & almonds.

For a savory congee, add diced green onions / fresh chives, black pepper, a soft boiled egg & some Blue Bus Krautchi.

As a Chinese herbalist, I can put together a congee recipe for any type of illness or complaint you have (including weight loss, allergies, frequent colds, difficult digestion, etc!). Feel free to get in touch with me, and I will start working on a custom herbal recipe for you.

Until next time!

Arista