#CONJI FOOD HOW TO#

Along that line of thinking, herbs are frequently added to the porridge to enhance its medicinal effects. Like the smoothie, a congee can be adapted to meet many varied medicinal needs. Only if that did not eliminate the patient's disease should the treatment progress to using acupuncture or herbs. The famous Chinese physician Sun Si-miao said that the superior doctor should first adjust the patient's diet and lifestyle. Congee is a nourishing food because the warmth supports normal Spleen qi function even in times when the Kidney qi may be weakened.

In Chinese theory, the Kidney qi supplies the fire for warming the digestive fire to support digestion. Think of the Spleen like a cauldron: for food to break down appropriately, the cauldron has to be heated by a fire beneath it. There is also a Stomach but that merely receives the food we eat the actual breaking down of food, unappetizingly called the 'rotting and ripening' function, happens in the Spleen. What we consider our 'stomach' is actually more akin to the Chinese idea of the Spleen (italicized here to denote the Chinese concept of the organ, not the physical organ in our bodies). This thinking can perhaps be best understood when we look at the Chinese concept of how digestion functions. This is as good as a decoction of ginseng.'(2) Gentle and digestible, an old Chinese text states, 'when treating the depleted patient, use thick rice soup. It particularly benefits the stomach and intestines and is most suitable for babies, people with gastro-intestinal complaints, and people with long-term illnesses. It is basically rice cooked with extra water or stock for a long time. Therefore, medicinal foods can either be seen as healthy foods or medicinal prescriptions' (1).Ĭongee, also known as Jook, is a loose rice soup has been considered a medicinal food in China since the Han Dynasty in 206 BCE.

In Chinese medicine there is a saying, 'medicine and food have the same source. Susan Saccomanno, ND, LAc - Mederi Center, OR | February 2019

#CONJI FOOD HOW TO#

How to Prepare and Enjoy the Health Benefits of Congee (Chinese Rice Porridge)ĭr.

Conji food