Category Archives: Food Therapy

Kanji is very thin gruel. (Chinese medicine uses ‘congee’ to describe the same gruel).

Kanji is given when agni is very low and a lighter diet is needed. It is usually made by cooking one part grain in 14 parts water until soup is very thin.
The Way of Ayurvedic Herbs – KP Khalsa & Michael Tierra, page 58.

Factor   English

DetaiL

Prakruti (or Svabhava)   Nature of the food  Basic energetics, ex. heavy

Karana (or Samskara)  Processing method  Modifications, ex., decoction, roasting, churning

Samyoga

Food combining  Avoiding improper combinations

Rasi (or Matra) Food quantity  Appropriate amounts for health

Desa  Habitat, climateAppropriate for season and location

KalaCurrent state of patient  Effect of food on that stage of disease

Upayoga samstha  Rules for eating  Personal tolerances

Upayokta   Wholesomeness of patient  Readiness to eat

The Way of Ayurvedic Herbs – Karta Purkh Singh Khalsa & Michael Tierra,  page 42.

• Clarified butter made by placing a pound of unsalted butter in a skillet over low heat, low enough to melt the butter but not so high as to burn it to allow the saturated fats of the butter to separate out from the pure unsaturated butter fat.
• Ghee is the pure  golden oil poured off from the settlings at the bottom of the pan.
• One of the few oils that will not become rancid and does not require refrigeration.
• According to Ayurvedic theory, 1 or 2 teaspoons of ghee each day is important for the health of the whole body, aids circulation and digestion, adds softness and luster to the skin, and is also one of the recommended ingredients in kichari.
• TCM perspective of ghee is that of a yin tonic.
• Tibetians are famous for having a warm drink made of old ghee dissolved in hot water called sampah.

In India, kichari, the combination of brown rice and mung beans that represents a perfect combination of life-sustaining protein and carbohydrates, has been celebrated as medicine and is routinely prescribed by Ayurvedic herbalists to patients for all diseases. There is a saying in India that kicharee taken for 3 weeks will cure all curable diseases.

The use of kichari diet in India is similar to that of the 10-day brown rice diet of Japan and China.

Basic kichari is also called mung dahl and rice in East Indian restaurants.

The Way of Chinese Herbs by Tierra, Michael page 90.

Traditional Chinese Medicine Five Element Perspective of Five Flavors

“Behind the flavors we most crave lies what we most need”.

• Earth: A craving for sweets (earth-spleen energy – may reflect physical or emotional deficits, such as a lack of protein, reassurance , love, centeredness, carbohydrates, sense of self, mother’s affection, security, satisfaction, feeling connected).  
• Metal: A craving for spices (metal-lungs-large intestine, i.e., the organs of letting go, moving on, needing a new experience, clearing congestion out of one’s life).
• Water: A craving for salt (kidneys-adrenals-bladder, the element of storage and reserve, the need to retain moisture to keep our bodily tissues soft and youthful, willpower, focus, tolerance, endurance, the need for minerals, drive, motivation, hormonal reserve, determination, libido).
• Wood: A craving for sour flavors (wood-liver-gallbladder, the element of regulation and control). Sourness astringes, helps to retain essence engenders greater courage, prevents us form losing too much of ourselves to others.
• Fire: A craving for bitterness (fire-heart-small intestine; allied to the emotion of joy). Related to the small intestine, separates the pure from the impure. The heart represents the mind and thoughts. Purity of our mind and thoughts can enhance our ability to more deeply love another, freeing our heart of unneccessary obstacles as the bitter taste clears obstruction from our circulatory system.

The Way of Chinese Herbs by Tierra, Michael pages 84-86

Chinese diet that integrates wholesome simple foods, including whole grains: beans and legumes; lightly cooked vegetables; seasonal fruits; small amounts of organic, lean meat; and eggs with a complement of special therapeutic foods and herbs, such as vegetables, nuts, various fungi, and special herbs.

Chinese qing dan diet also known as the Japanese macrobiotic diet in the West.

(The Way of Chinese Herbs by Tierra, Michael pages 80 & 82.)