What to Eat During Major Heat

During Major Heat, the oppressive heat can easily lead to a loss of appetite and indigestion. It’s best to consume light, easy-to-digest foods such as loofah, bitter melon, pumpkin, lettuce, winter melon, and bean sprouts, which help to cool the body and stimulate the appetite. Avoid excessive consumption of cold drinks and iced foods, as they can damage the spleen and stomach. Drink plenty of water, with warm boiled water being the best option (aim for 2000-2500 ml per day, adjusting based on activity levels). Homemade drinks like sour plum soup, mung bean soup, winter melon soup, and tremella lily porridge can also help to cool and quench thirst.

When consuming cooling fruits, it’s important to control the quantity and not eat too much at once, as different fruits have specific consumption guidelines.

  1. Watermelon: Contains water and vitamins, and can quench thirst, promote diuresis, and relieve heat. It helps replenish the body’s water and nutrients and removes excess heat through sweat. However, do not consume too much at once (500 grams is appropriate), and limit daily intake to 3000 grams.
  2. Plum: Cooling in nature, plums contain vitamins and dietary fiber. Eating plums in moderation during summer (up to 5 at a time, no more than 10 a day) can help cool the body and relieve heat.
  3. Peach: Rich in vitamins and carbohydrates, peaches have cooling and thirst-quenching properties. Moderate consumption (1 at a time, 2-3 per day) can help alleviate heat and thirst.

Recommended Cooling Recipes for Major Heat

Mung Bean and Pumpkin Soup

Ingredients: 60 grams mung beans, 500 grams pumpkin, salt.

Method:

  1. Wash the mung beans and mix them with a little salt (3 grams) while still damp, marinate for 5 minutes, then rinse.
  2. Peel and deseed the pumpkin, wash, and cut into 2 cm cubes.
  3. Boil 500 ml of water, add mung beans, boil for 3 minutes, add a little cold water, then bring to a boil again.
  4. Add pumpkin, cover, and simmer for about 30 minutes until mung beans are tender.
  5. Season with a little salt and serve.

Spicy Mixed Vegetables

Ingredients: 1 block tofu, 60 grams tender green beans, 60 grams tomatoes, 20 grams wood ear fungus, sesame oil, vegetable oil, salt, chopped green onion.

Method:

  1. Dice the tofu, green beans, tomatoes, and wood ear fungus.
  2. Blanch each ingredient separately in boiling water, then drain.
  3. Heat a wok, add a little vegetable oil, add peppercorns, and stir-fry to release aroma.
  4. Add chopped green onion, salt, tomatoes, and MSG, stir well.
  5. Pour the mixture over the blanched ingredients, drizzle with sesame oil, and mix well.

Mushroom and Chicken Soup

Ingredients: Chicken, dried shiitake mushrooms, dried tea tree mushrooms, goji berries, red dates, salt, ginger, cooking wine.

Method:

  1. Clean and cut the whole chicken into large pieces. Place in cold water with a little ginger and cooking wine, bring to a boil, and skim off foam.
  2. Soak dried mushrooms and tea tree mushrooms for half an hour, then wash.
  3. Add mushrooms and red dates to the boiling chicken soup, simmer for about 1.5 hours.
  4. Add a few goji berries and season with salt. Let sit for 5 minutes before serving.

Three Dietary Taboos for Heatstroke

  1. Avoid Drinking Large Amounts of Water: When experiencing heatstroke, drink small amounts of water frequently. Drinking large amounts at once can dilute stomach acid, impair digestion, and trigger excessive sweating, leading to significant loss of water and salts.
  2. Avoid Excessive Consumption of Raw and Cold Foods: People with heatstroke often have weak spleens and stomachs. Consuming too many raw and cold foods can damage spleen and stomach yang energy, causing diarrhea and abdominal pain.
  3. Avoid Eating Greasy Foods: After heatstroke, reduce the intake of greasy foods to avoid overburdening the digestive system. Greasy foods can cause blood to pool in the gastrointestinal tract, reducing blood flow to the brain, leading to fatigue and indigestion.

Refrigerator Is Not a Safe Box

Food should be stored properly and categorized in the refrigerator. While refrigerators can inhibit bacterial growth, some microorganisms can still thrive, such as Listeria, which can survive in low temperatures and pose health risks.

Cold Storage:

  • Place food in the fridge as soon as possible.
  • Separate raw and cooked foods, and store them in different areas.
  • Pre-treat vegetables by removing dirty packaging and rotten parts before storing them in the fridge.
  • Seal food properly without over-packaging to ensure the fridge’s cooling effect.
  • Clean the fridge regularly, especially if contaminated.

Storage Times:

  • Fish and meat: 2-3 days.
  • Eggs: 1-2 months.
  • Leafy vegetables: 3 days.
  • Other vegetables: Best consumed within a week.

Freezing:

  • Frozen foods can be stored for long periods but their quality declines over time. Consume within two months for best quality.

Refrigerator Layout:

  • Top shelf: Ready-to-eat foods, leftovers, yogurt.
  • Second shelf: Foods needing cooking.
  • Middle shelf: Seafood, meats, eggs, milk.
  • Bottom shelf: Foods needing high cooking temperatures, like poultry.
  • Vegetable drawer: Vegetables and fruits (separate fruits to avoid ethylene gas affecting vegetable shelf life).
  • Door: Condiments, juices, water, oils.

Maintain proper storage to ensure food safety and quality during Major Heat.