Coughing?  Stuffy Nose?  Congestion?  Try this Chinese Herbal Tea with Licorice, Cinnamon, and Luo Han Guo

Coughing? Stuffy Nose? Congestion? Try this Chinese Herbal Tea with Licorice, Cinnamon, and Luo Han Guo

Coughing? Stuffy Nose? Congestion? Try this Chinese Herbal Tea with Licorice, Cinnamon, and Luo Han Guo

Tea Name:

Chinese Herbal Tea with Licorice, Cinnamon, and Luo Han Guo

Traditional Chinese Name:

止咳茶 (zhǐké chá) – direct translation here is “anti-cough” tea.  There are many teas that have earned the right to this label, so it’s just easier to use it as such instead of labeling all the ingredients.

Nature:  Cooling

Taste: Sweet

For more videos, you can follow us on YouTube.

This tea is perfect for tonifying blood and Qi and clearing the toxicity that comes with stuffy congestion in the lungs and nose (commonly associated with a thick, green or yellow phlegm).  It moistens the stuffy stuff (like phlegm) and helps to stop coughs.

A great way to check if this tea is good for you is to check the condition of your tongue.  If it’s got a thick, yellow or white coating on top, it’s a good indication there’s excess yin in the body.  That totally makes sense because I went swimming when I was already feeling a little under the weather.  And with the cold pool, that’s excess yin in my body and the dampness!

You can check this article that explains the balance of yin and yang in the body, AN INTRODUCTION TO YIN AND YANG IN OUR EVERYDAY SOUPS AND FOOD.

 

What’s involved?

Prep time: 2 mins

Cook time: 13 mins

Total time: 15 mins

Serves: 2 cups

Ingredients
Cooking Instructions
  1. In a stovetop safe pot, add all the ingredients (except the rock sugar)
  2. Add in your water
  3. Boil on high until it fully boils and then reduce to a low-medium heat for another 10 mins
  4. Add in the rock sugar and let it fully dissolve
  5. Serve and enjoy!
Any benefits?
  • This Chinese herbal tea is great if you’ve got a lot of congestion, particularly in the nose and lungs (the thick type)
  • This tea also helps relieve coughs
  • It is a slightly warming tea, helping to drive the excess yin from the body
  • Excess yin tends to show up if you’ve been overexposed to cold or damp conditions (such as swimming, outdoor winter sports, or cold exposure)

For videos, visit us on YouTube.

EQUIPMENT USED

To answer your questions on what equipment I'm using, I've built a section here where you can find and explore what I'm using to make soups.  Ingredients are a little harder, but I will do my best as I source them around.  However, you can always message me on Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, or Facebook, and I will reply and try to point you in some direction!  

A great help for fish or small bones in soups, including small ingredients such as barley, fox nuts, spices just to keep everything together.

A MUST HAVE in the kitchen!  Energy saving, cost effective, and perfect for busy chefs!  Check out my article here that explains it.

Another MUST HAVE in the kitchen for soups!  It's so fine that it will scoop off the top oil and foam layer when using meats in your soup!

I use these types of stove top safe tea pots to make most of my herbal teas!

EXPLORE MORE

What’s the best way to blanch meats for Chinese Soups?

WHAT'S THE BEST WAY TO BLANCH MEATS FOR CHINESE SOUPS?(Do you use cold water?  Boiling water?  With ginger?  With instant coffee?  With salt?  What's the best way for flavour and taste experience?)One guiding principle in Traditional Chinese Medicine is the yin yang...

Hong Kong Styled Russian Borscht Soup

Soup Name: Hong Kong Styled Russian Borscht (with oxtail) Traditional Chinese Name: 羅宋湯 (luó sòng tāng) Nature:  Warming Taste: Savory, sweet, and slightly sour For more videos, you can follow us on YouTube.  Did you know the secret ingredient to an HK-styled...

What are good replacement ingredients for peanut allergies in Chinese Soups?

Here are suggestions for replacement ingredients for peanuts in Chinese soupsOne guiding principle in Traditional Chinese Medicine is the yin yang theory.  In the natural world, there exists a balance between 2 opposing and co-existing forces and yet, they also exist...

Healing Chinese Chicken Herbal Soup with Fish Maw

Soup Name: Healing Chinese Chicken Herbal Soup with Fish Maw Traditional Chinese Name: 花膠雞湯 (huā jiāo jī tāng) Nature:  Warming Taste: Sweet and savory For more videos, you can follow us on YouTube.  The star of this soup is FISH MAW.  This takes collagen to the...

Delicious One Pot Vegetable Vermicelli Soup for Dinner

Soup Name: Delicious One Pot Vegetable Vermicelli Soup for Dinner.  Literal translation from Chinese is "Mixed vegetables vermicelli pot soup". Traditional Chinese Name: 雜菜粉絲鍋湯 (zá cài fěnsī guō tāng) Nature:  Neutral Taste: Sweet and savory For more videos, you...

Hong Kong Styled Russian Borscht Soup

Soup Name: Hong Kong Styled Russian Borscht (with oxtail) Traditional Chinese Name: 羅宋湯 (luó sòng tāng) Nature:  Warming Taste: Savory, sweet, and slightly sour For more videos, you can follow us on YouTube.  Did you know the secret ingredient to an HK-styled...

ABC Soup in a Collagen Rich Salmon Head and Chicken Feet Broth

Soup Name: ABC Chinese Soup in a collagen rich Salmon Broth (with Chicken Feet) Traditional Chinese Name: 雜菜蕃茄三文魚湯 (zá cài fānjiā sānwènyú tāng) Nature:  Slightly cooling Taste: Sweet and savory For more videos, you can follow us on YouTube.  Taking collagen to...

5 Tips for Exercising in the Cold (from a Traditional Chinese Medicine Perspective)

5 Tips for Exercising in the Cold (from a Traditional Chinese Medicine Perspective)One guiding principle in Traditional Chinese Medicine is the yin yang theory.  In the natural world, there exists a balance between 2 opposing and co-existing forces and yet, they also...

Turn leftover rice into a delicious, warming congee with shrimp and yams

Soup Name: Shrimp Congee with Fresh Yams and Lettuce Traditional Chinese Name: 蝦粥 (xiā zhōu) Nature: Neutral Taste: Sweet  For more videos, you can follow us on YouTube. Want something easy?  Want something delicious? This is the perfect lunch to make in 30 minutes...

Making a Delicious Lotus Root with Vegetables in Pork Broth Chinese Soup (with Roasted Fresh Peanuts!)

Soup Name: Making a Delicious Lotus Root with Vegetables in Pork Broth Chinese Soup (with Roasted Fresh Peanuts!) Traditional Chinese Name: 蓮藕豬骨湯 (Lián'ǒu zhū gǔ tāng) Nature: Neutral Taste: Sweet  For more videos, you can follow us on YouTube. For this post, I made 6...

GIVE YOUR LOVE OF SOUP.

FOLLOW US AND SHARE.

A Chinese Herbal Tea to Nourish, Heal, and Strengthen the Lungs

A Chinese Herbal Tea to Nourish, Heal, and Strengthen the Lungs

A Chinese Herbal Tea to Nourish, Heal, and Strengthen the Lungs

Tea Name:

Nourishing, Healing, and Strengthening Chinese Herbal tea for the lungs (and cooling)

Traditional Chinese Name:

羅漢果雪梨茶 (luó hàn guǒ xuě lí chá)

Nature:  Cooling

Taste: Sweet and sour

(You can read this article on the impact on your body of different food tastes!)

For more videos, you can follow us on YouTube.

I’m making this tea out of a request from one of my readers who is from NYC and now dealing with all the crazy smog, dust, and smoke that you’ve been getting from Canada!  WE ARE SO SORRY!  Toronto isn’t as bad today, but I hear it’s going to get worse over the weekend.  Regardless, I immediately went to my pantry and pulled out my handy dandy luo han guo and designed a cooling, strengthening, and healing tea for your lungs.  The idea is because it’s dry heat, you’ll want something that’s going to help cool the body and lungs and clean it out.  You can add a few slices of dried tangerine peels as well. 

Let’s hope it clears soon and that there’s some relief in the weather with some rain to help put out all the raging fires across Canada and US.  In the meantime, stay safe and have some healing herbal teas!  Sending lots of love out there!!

❤️❤️❤️

 

This tea is perfect for nourishing, healing, cooling, and strengthening the lungs and supporting dry coughs (caused by excess heat or yin deficiency) and sore throats.

The only fresh ingredient you’ll need is the fresh snow pears, but everything else can be found in your soup pantry! 

It’s a quick boil, suitable for the whole family, you can also drink both hot and cold (although you know my take on drinking cold things as one who has studied Traditional Chinese Medicine, lol).  Enjoy! 

 

What’s involved?

Prep time: 10 mins

Cook time: 15 mins

Total time: 25 mins

Serves: 2 cups

Ingredients

 

  • rock sugar optional, but taste test first!
Cooking Instructions
  1. Using the flat side of a large blade, smash the luo han guo until you can remove the middle of the fruit.  I will only use the dried skin for this tea.  Use about half as the golden luo han guo isn’t as sweet as it’s brown counterpart.
  2. Cut up your fresh snow pear, keeping the skin on.  I will cube into bite-sized pieces so I can also eat with the tea using a spoon!  Delicious and refreshing!
  3. In a stove top safe tea pot, add all the ingredients together and boil on medium heat for 5 minutes until it fully boils and reduce to a low boil for 10 minutes as to try not to reduce too much of the water.  
  4. When it’s ready, you’ll notice that the tea has turned into a beautiful golden yellow colour.  This is a good indication that the luo han guo is seeping out into the tea!  
  5. Serve and enjoy!  Don’t forget to eat the fresh snow pears as part of your tea!
Any benefits?
  • This soup is perfect for nourishing and tonifying the lungs
  • It helps with cough, especially a dry cough where there is Yin deficiency (or appears as heaty)
  • It’s a sweet tea that is perfect for the whole family
  • It’s a cooling tea and helps cool and lubricate the lungs

For videos, visit us on YouTube.

The monk fruit!  This is the slightly less dry version.  You’ll notice it’s more green and less brown.  This one is a little more expensive, coming in at $2 CAD per monk fruit.  You’ll also notice a thin layer of sugared coating, so it is a bit sticky to touch, but that’s just the sugars of the fruit on the skin.  The great thing about the greener version is that it isn’t as pungent or sweet, so you can use half in a soup to give is just enough of that flavour.  If it’s the heavily dried version, I will only use a quarter in 3L of soup water.  This is also great in teas!!  

EQUIPMENT USED

To answer your questions on what equipment I'm using, I've built a section here where you can find and explore what I'm using to make soups.  Ingredients are a little harder, but I will do my best as I source them around.  However, you can always message me on Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, or Facebook, and I will reply and try to point you in some direction!  

A great help for fish or small bones in soups, including small ingredients such as barley, fox nuts, spices just to keep everything together.

A MUST HAVE in the kitchen!  Energy saving, cost effective, and perfect for busy chefs!  Check out my article here that explains it.

Another MUST HAVE in the kitchen for soups!  It's so fine that it will scoop off the top oil and foam layer when using meats in your soup!

I use these types of stove top safe tea pots to make most of my herbal teas!

EXPLORE MORE

What’s the best way to blanch meats for Chinese Soups?

WHAT'S THE BEST WAY TO BLANCH MEATS FOR CHINESE SOUPS?(Do you use cold water?  Boiling water?  With ginger?  With instant coffee?  With salt?  What's the best way for flavour and taste experience?)One guiding principle in Traditional Chinese Medicine is the yin yang...

Hong Kong Styled Russian Borscht Soup

Soup Name: Hong Kong Styled Russian Borscht (with oxtail) Traditional Chinese Name: 羅宋湯 (luó sòng tāng) Nature:  Warming Taste: Savory, sweet, and slightly sour For more videos, you can follow us on YouTube.  Did you know the secret ingredient to an HK-styled...

What are good replacement ingredients for peanut allergies in Chinese Soups?

Here are suggestions for replacement ingredients for peanuts in Chinese soupsOne guiding principle in Traditional Chinese Medicine is the yin yang theory.  In the natural world, there exists a balance between 2 opposing and co-existing forces and yet, they also exist...

Healing Chinese Chicken Herbal Soup with Fish Maw

Soup Name: Healing Chinese Chicken Herbal Soup with Fish Maw Traditional Chinese Name: 花膠雞湯 (huā jiāo jī tāng) Nature:  Warming Taste: Sweet and savory For more videos, you can follow us on YouTube.  The star of this soup is FISH MAW.  This takes collagen to the...

Delicious One Pot Vegetable Vermicelli Soup for Dinner

Soup Name: Delicious One Pot Vegetable Vermicelli Soup for Dinner.  Literal translation from Chinese is "Mixed vegetables vermicelli pot soup". Traditional Chinese Name: 雜菜粉絲鍋湯 (zá cài fěnsī guō tāng) Nature:  Neutral Taste: Sweet and savory For more videos, you...

Hong Kong Styled Russian Borscht Soup

Soup Name: Hong Kong Styled Russian Borscht (with oxtail) Traditional Chinese Name: 羅宋湯 (luó sòng tāng) Nature:  Warming Taste: Savory, sweet, and slightly sour For more videos, you can follow us on YouTube.  Did you know the secret ingredient to an HK-styled...

ABC Soup in a Collagen Rich Salmon Head and Chicken Feet Broth

Soup Name: ABC Chinese Soup in a collagen rich Salmon Broth (with Chicken Feet) Traditional Chinese Name: 雜菜蕃茄三文魚湯 (zá cài fānjiā sānwènyú tāng) Nature:  Slightly cooling Taste: Sweet and savory For more videos, you can follow us on YouTube.  Taking collagen to...

5 Tips for Exercising in the Cold (from a Traditional Chinese Medicine Perspective)

5 Tips for Exercising in the Cold (from a Traditional Chinese Medicine Perspective)One guiding principle in Traditional Chinese Medicine is the yin yang theory.  In the natural world, there exists a balance between 2 opposing and co-existing forces and yet, they also...

Turn leftover rice into a delicious, warming congee with shrimp and yams

Soup Name: Shrimp Congee with Fresh Yams and Lettuce Traditional Chinese Name: 蝦粥 (xiā zhōu) Nature: Neutral Taste: Sweet  For more videos, you can follow us on YouTube. Want something easy?  Want something delicious? This is the perfect lunch to make in 30 minutes...

Making a Delicious Lotus Root with Vegetables in Pork Broth Chinese Soup (with Roasted Fresh Peanuts!)

Soup Name: Making a Delicious Lotus Root with Vegetables in Pork Broth Chinese Soup (with Roasted Fresh Peanuts!) Traditional Chinese Name: 蓮藕豬骨湯 (Lián'ǒu zhū gǔ tāng) Nature: Neutral Taste: Sweet  For more videos, you can follow us on YouTube. For this post, I made 6...

GIVE YOUR LOVE OF SOUP.

FOLLOW US AND SHARE.

Cooling Snow Pears and Apples in a Chrysanthemum Tea

Cooling Snow Pears and Apples in a Chrysanthemum Tea

Cooling Snow Pears and Apples in a Chrysanthemum Tea

Tea Name:

Cooling Snow Pears and Apples in a Chrysanthemum Tea

Traditional Chinese Name:

雪梨蘋果菊花清熱茶 (xuě lí píng guǒ jú huā qīng rè chá) 

Nature:  Cooling

Taste: Sweet and sour

(You can read this article on the impact on your body of different food tastes!)

For more videos, you can follow us on YouTube.

When it’s hot, stuffy and the temperatures are blowing the thermometers through the roof, this deliciously sweet and tart tea is perfect for this type of weather!

The mercury hit 32 C yesterday and what better way to cool the body than with a cooling, sweet tea that can help reduce internal heat, clears and disperses dryness, and moistens the lungs and stomach.   

The amazing thing about this tea is that you can also enjoy the snow pear and apples as part of the tea.  With the right cook time of 10 minutes, parts of the fruit are still semi-crunchy!  So delicious!  And you don’t need to add any sugar or honey because of the natural sugars of the fruit.

 

What’s involved?

Prep time: 10 mins

Cook time: 20 mins

Total time: 30 mins

Serves: 2 cups

Ingredients
Cooking Instructions
  1. Cut up your snow pears and apples into cubes, keeping the skin on.  This helps hold it together and not disintegrate, but actually, from a Traditional Chinese Medicine benefit perspective, it’s the skins that hold the most value!  I talk about this below a little more!
  2. In a stove top safe ceramic or glass pot, add all your ingredients together
  3. Boil on medium high for 10 minutes, or until it’s bubbling for at least a good 5 minutes to really get the flavours out
  4. Serve and enjoy!
  5. You don’t need to add any honey or sugars at all!  

Snow pear are amazing for cooling and moisturizing the body, targeting the lungs and stomach.  It’s perfect for yin deficiencies (which includes cough) and reducing fire in the body and lungs.

It’s actually the skin of the snow pear that has the most power!  That’s why I keep them on when I’m making a tea with them or a soup.  And they provide a good source of fiber for the body.

Alternatively, if you don’t eat snow pear skins when you’re having the fruit, I would suggest to keep the peeled skin to dry, or freeze in a ziploc to save for use in soups or teas, but you don’t need to eat them!

 

EQUIPMENT USED

To answer your questions on what equipment I'm using, I've built a section here where you can find and explore what I'm using to make soups.  Ingredients are a little harder, but I will do my best as I source them around.  However, you can always message me on Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, or Facebook, and I will reply and try to point you in some direction!  

A great help for fish or small bones in soups, including small ingredients such as barley, fox nuts, spices just to keep everything together.

A MUST HAVE in the kitchen!  Energy saving, cost effective, and perfect for busy chefs!  Check out my article here that explains it.

Another MUST HAVE in the kitchen for soups!  It's so fine that it will scoop off the top oil and foam layer when using meats in your soup!

I use these types of stove top safe tea pots to make most of my herbal teas!

EXPLORE MORE

What’s the best way to blanch meats for Chinese Soups?

WHAT'S THE BEST WAY TO BLANCH MEATS FOR CHINESE SOUPS?(Do you use cold water?  Boiling water?  With ginger?  With instant coffee?  With salt?  What's the best way for flavour and taste experience?)One guiding principle in Traditional Chinese Medicine is the yin yang...

Hong Kong Styled Russian Borscht Soup

Soup Name: Hong Kong Styled Russian Borscht (with oxtail) Traditional Chinese Name: 羅宋湯 (luó sòng tāng) Nature:  Warming Taste: Savory, sweet, and slightly sour For more videos, you can follow us on YouTube.  Did you know the secret ingredient to an HK-styled...

What are good replacement ingredients for peanut allergies in Chinese Soups?

Here are suggestions for replacement ingredients for peanuts in Chinese soupsOne guiding principle in Traditional Chinese Medicine is the yin yang theory.  In the natural world, there exists a balance between 2 opposing and co-existing forces and yet, they also exist...

Healing Chinese Chicken Herbal Soup with Fish Maw

Soup Name: Healing Chinese Chicken Herbal Soup with Fish Maw Traditional Chinese Name: 花膠雞湯 (huā jiāo jī tāng) Nature:  Warming Taste: Sweet and savory For more videos, you can follow us on YouTube.  The star of this soup is FISH MAW.  This takes collagen to the...

Delicious One Pot Vegetable Vermicelli Soup for Dinner

Soup Name: Delicious One Pot Vegetable Vermicelli Soup for Dinner.  Literal translation from Chinese is "Mixed vegetables vermicelli pot soup". Traditional Chinese Name: 雜菜粉絲鍋湯 (zá cài fěnsī guō tāng) Nature:  Neutral Taste: Sweet and savory For more videos, you...

Hong Kong Styled Russian Borscht Soup

Soup Name: Hong Kong Styled Russian Borscht (with oxtail) Traditional Chinese Name: 羅宋湯 (luó sòng tāng) Nature:  Warming Taste: Savory, sweet, and slightly sour For more videos, you can follow us on YouTube.  Did you know the secret ingredient to an HK-styled...

ABC Soup in a Collagen Rich Salmon Head and Chicken Feet Broth

Soup Name: ABC Chinese Soup in a collagen rich Salmon Broth (with Chicken Feet) Traditional Chinese Name: 雜菜蕃茄三文魚湯 (zá cài fānjiā sānwènyú tāng) Nature:  Slightly cooling Taste: Sweet and savory For more videos, you can follow us on YouTube.  Taking collagen to...

5 Tips for Exercising in the Cold (from a Traditional Chinese Medicine Perspective)

5 Tips for Exercising in the Cold (from a Traditional Chinese Medicine Perspective)One guiding principle in Traditional Chinese Medicine is the yin yang theory.  In the natural world, there exists a balance between 2 opposing and co-existing forces and yet, they also...

Turn leftover rice into a delicious, warming congee with shrimp and yams

Soup Name: Shrimp Congee with Fresh Yams and Lettuce Traditional Chinese Name: 蝦粥 (xiā zhōu) Nature: Neutral Taste: Sweet  For more videos, you can follow us on YouTube. Want something easy?  Want something delicious? This is the perfect lunch to make in 30 minutes...

Making a Delicious Lotus Root with Vegetables in Pork Broth Chinese Soup (with Roasted Fresh Peanuts!)

Soup Name: Making a Delicious Lotus Root with Vegetables in Pork Broth Chinese Soup (with Roasted Fresh Peanuts!) Traditional Chinese Name: 蓮藕豬骨湯 (Lián'ǒu zhū gǔ tāng) Nature: Neutral Taste: Sweet  For more videos, you can follow us on YouTube. For this post, I made 6...

GIVE YOUR LOVE OF SOUP.

FOLLOW US AND SHARE.

Oh how I love thee, my salted orange!  Let me count the ways…

Oh how I love thee, my salted orange! Let me count the ways…

Oh how I love thee, my salted orange! Let me count the ways…

Tea Name:

The Salted Orange

Traditional Chinese Name:

鹽蒸橙子 (yán zhēng chéngzi)

Nature:  warm

Taste:  sweet, salty

For more videos, you can follow us on YouTube.

What?  Salted oranges?

Let’s start by saying that if you see a Traditional Chinese Medicine doctor (and even all the old ladies at the wet mart that I meet), that if you’ve got a cough, you SHOULD NOT be consuming oranges.  Especially, if they are cold and super sweet.  From a TCM perspective, this exasperates the cough even more because it’s sweet and the cold creates excess yin, which makes you cough even more.

However, there are ways to modify the nature of the orange!  Almost magic, but not quite.  You literally have to increase the temperature of the orange by simply steaming it!  It’s the same principle in how lettuce is a cooling ingredient, but once fried with ginger and garlic, it becomes neutral or even warming. 

Similarly, you expose the orange to some heat and shift its nature from cool to warm and then add salt to it.  Salt itself, is also a warming ingredient that is salty to taste and softens hardness, eliminates accumulations and dissolves abscesses.  It is amazing for reducing toxic heat, which is normally found with sore throats, and helps reduce swelling, which is also a symptom that sore throats often bring.

From a western perspective, fresh oranges have ample amounts of vitamin C, but does begin to denature and breakdown at temperatures of 86 degrees Celsius.  However, you can still benefit from these benefits if you soak it in warm water (below 86C) and add salt to it as well.  But the Chinese do love their warm healing tonics and teas!

 

What’s involved?

Prep time: 2 mins

Cook time: 10 mins

Total time: 12 mins

Serves: 1 person

Ingredients

     

    Cooking Instructions
    1. Cut the orange with the flatter side of the orange down so it can sit properly in a shallow bowl
    2. I will use a chopstick to break up some of the orange so the juices can be released prior to steaming, this is optional
    3. Generously sprinkle the salt on top of the orange.  Again, optionally, you can poke the salt directly into the orange.
    4. Begin to boil your steamer or pot
    5. Once your steamer is ready, put your orange into the pot, ensuring it’s not submerged into the water
    6. Cover and steam on medium for 10 minutes
    7. Once done, remove from the steamer and allow it to cool slightly
    8. Using a spoon, break up the orange inside, mixing up the salt and juices and enjoy!

    Alternatively, you can use the microwave to do it, heating it at 2 minute intervals at a time, covered, until your desired internal temperature.  Be sure to mix it around at the end of every cycle to check.  The microwave is a just a bit more inconsistent in its cooking.

    The other option is that you can directly half the orange and share with someone!  My mom’s done this with me and my sisters and have made 4 halves and the whole family could enjoy this.

    The best thing about this is that it’s such a portable recipe!  You can bring it with you camping, you could take it with you on vacation, and the ingredients are so readily available!  It’s literally, a tonic on the go!!

    Try it and let me know how it goes!

    The Q&A (from TikTok)

    A huge thanks to my TikTok community for the engagement on this video.  I’m now answering some of these common questions and answers here.

    Can I also add honey?

    From a TCM perspective, honey is also sweet and may exasperate the cough further and the point of this particular recipe is to really add salt (see above benefits of salt) to neutralize the sweet and really work to soften the sore throat.  If you really want to add honey, do it in small amounts (orange itself is quite sweet already) and do it once it’s cooled to around 60C as any benefits of honey and the degradation of the product.  I don’t add this to boiling teas at all.

    Will it help relieve the sinuses?

    This is not a recipe to help clear sinuses or relieve phlegm and dispel moisture from the body.  Ingredients that will do this include dried tangerine peels, apricot kernals, or barley, to name a few.  A few like this Snow Pears and Chen Pi (Tangerine Peels) for Coughs and Congestion, will also do the trick.  This recipe is really for soothing and healing the sore throat and some cough relief, albeit quite topical.  

    Can I drink this every day?

    Yes, if you’re feeling the sore throat and cough for a few days, you can definitely consume this daily.  The key is that it’s not completely cooling and is warmed enough it doesn’t create excess yin or yang in the body.  The only thing I would caution is the sugar consumption because an orange still does contain sugar, except we’ve neutralized it with salt, but the calories are still there.

    How do I know if it’s working?

    This is the age old question of Traditional Chinese Medicine (and even for any holistic approach to wellness).  Trust.  LOL.  Western medicine is usually more symptom based whereas Traditional Chinese Medicine takes a Confucianism (source: Western medicine and traditional Chinese medicine: encouraging the twain to meet).  So long as you keep to the understanding and practice of achieving and restoring balance in the body, mind, and spirit and that everything is connected, it’s working.  You can read up on “Getting Started with TCM in Soups“.

    What’s the best salt for this?

    I’m using kosher salt here, but you can use table salt or Himalayan salt as well.  The point is to be using any type of natural salt to neutralize the sweet taste (and nature), but the calories as the same. 

     

    THANK YOU TO MY COMMUNIty (AS ALWAYS!)

    CHECK OUT OTHER SIMILAR HEALING HERBAL SOUPS

    Learn more about how these types of teas and soups can help improve your overall blood circulation and how you actually know that it's working?

    It's not a perfect science (still working to perfect it), but I'd say the methodology and thinking is sound 🙂

    Would love to hear your thoughts!

     

    EXPLORE MORE

    What’s the best way to blanch meats for Chinese Soups?

    WHAT'S THE BEST WAY TO BLANCH MEATS FOR CHINESE SOUPS?(Do you use cold water?  Boiling water?  With ginger?  With instant coffee?  With salt?  What's the best way for flavour and taste experience?)One guiding principle in Traditional Chinese Medicine is the yin yang...

    Hong Kong Styled Russian Borscht Soup

    Soup Name: Hong Kong Styled Russian Borscht (with oxtail) Traditional Chinese Name: 羅宋湯 (luó sòng tāng) Nature:  Warming Taste: Savory, sweet, and slightly sour For more videos, you can follow us on YouTube.  Did you know the secret ingredient to an HK-styled...

    What are good replacement ingredients for peanut allergies in Chinese Soups?

    Here are suggestions for replacement ingredients for peanuts in Chinese soupsOne guiding principle in Traditional Chinese Medicine is the yin yang theory.  In the natural world, there exists a balance between 2 opposing and co-existing forces and yet, they also exist...

    Healing Chinese Chicken Herbal Soup with Fish Maw

    Soup Name: Healing Chinese Chicken Herbal Soup with Fish Maw Traditional Chinese Name: 花膠雞湯 (huā jiāo jī tāng) Nature:  Warming Taste: Sweet and savory For more videos, you can follow us on YouTube.  The star of this soup is FISH MAW.  This takes collagen to the...

    Delicious One Pot Vegetable Vermicelli Soup for Dinner

    Soup Name: Delicious One Pot Vegetable Vermicelli Soup for Dinner.  Literal translation from Chinese is "Mixed vegetables vermicelli pot soup". Traditional Chinese Name: 雜菜粉絲鍋湯 (zá cài fěnsī guō tāng) Nature:  Neutral Taste: Sweet and savory For more videos, you...

    Hong Kong Styled Russian Borscht Soup

    Soup Name: Hong Kong Styled Russian Borscht (with oxtail) Traditional Chinese Name: 羅宋湯 (luó sòng tāng) Nature:  Warming Taste: Savory, sweet, and slightly sour For more videos, you can follow us on YouTube.  Did you know the secret ingredient to an HK-styled...

    ABC Soup in a Collagen Rich Salmon Head and Chicken Feet Broth

    Soup Name: ABC Chinese Soup in a collagen rich Salmon Broth (with Chicken Feet) Traditional Chinese Name: 雜菜蕃茄三文魚湯 (zá cài fānjiā sānwènyú tāng) Nature:  Slightly cooling Taste: Sweet and savory For more videos, you can follow us on YouTube.  Taking collagen to...

    5 Tips for Exercising in the Cold (from a Traditional Chinese Medicine Perspective)

    5 Tips for Exercising in the Cold (from a Traditional Chinese Medicine Perspective)One guiding principle in Traditional Chinese Medicine is the yin yang theory.  In the natural world, there exists a balance between 2 opposing and co-existing forces and yet, they also...

    Turn leftover rice into a delicious, warming congee with shrimp and yams

    Soup Name: Shrimp Congee with Fresh Yams and Lettuce Traditional Chinese Name: 蝦粥 (xiā zhōu) Nature: Neutral Taste: Sweet  For more videos, you can follow us on YouTube. Want something easy?  Want something delicious? This is the perfect lunch to make in 30 minutes...

    Making a Delicious Lotus Root with Vegetables in Pork Broth Chinese Soup (with Roasted Fresh Peanuts!)

    Soup Name: Making a Delicious Lotus Root with Vegetables in Pork Broth Chinese Soup (with Roasted Fresh Peanuts!) Traditional Chinese Name: 蓮藕豬骨湯 (Lián'ǒu zhū gǔ tāng) Nature: Neutral Taste: Sweet  For more videos, you can follow us on YouTube. For this post, I made 6...

    GIVE YOUR LOVE OF SOUP.

    FOLLOW US AND SHARE.

    ON YOUTUBE

    ON INSTAGRAM

    ON FACEBOOK

    Cough Reducing and Lung Nourishing Tea

    Cough Reducing and Lung Nourishing Tea

    Cough Reducing and Lung Nourishing Tea

    Soup Name:

    Cough Reducing and Lung Nourishing Tea

    Traditional Chinese Name:

    止咳茶 (zhǐké chá)

    Nature:  Slightly warming

    Taste: Sweet

    For more videos, you can follow us on YouTube.

    I was naughty this weekend and took a ride in -5C (probably colder with wind chill) weather and will likely be chastised by my Chinese doctor because “he told me so…”  LOL.

    Here’s why.  When there is exposure in both cold and windy conditions (which are usually yin pathogens into the body), there’s a possibility that the body isn’t strong enough to fight it and then the body becomes imbalanced and you have excess yin in the body.  Symptoms include pale complexion, having a wet, pale, tongue, runny nose, phlegm in the nasal passages and when it gets bad, it’s phlegm in the lungs.

    For me, I have a slight dry cough (no phlegm in the lungs), but severe runny nosy and phlegm in the nose, including cold limbs.  You can play with the balance of monk fruit vs tangerine peel depending on where the phlegm is.

     

    What’s involved?

    Prep time: 20 mins

    Cook time: 15 mins

    Total time: 35 mins

    Serves: 3 cups

    Ingredients
    • 1 quarter of dried monk fruit shell (reduce this if you’ve got more phlegm and increase the tangerine peel, this ingredient is great for dry cough)
    • 1 piece of dried tangerine peel (reduce this if you’ve got a very dry cough and increase the dried monk fruit)
    • 4 slices of fresh ginger
    • 2-3 pieces of rock sugar (to taste)
    • 4 cups of boiling water
    Cooking Instructions
    1. Soak your tangerine peel in warm water for 15 minutes and scrape off the extra flesh from the skin (as it’s bitter).  This is an optional step.
    2. Add all the ingredients (except the rock sugar) into a pot (or a stove safe tea pot)
    3. Boil on low-medium heat for 15 minutes
    4. Before serving, add in the rock sugar and allow that dissolve fully
    5. Serve and enjoy!

    TIP:

    • Monk fruit (or dried luo han guo) is really good for that dry, dry cough.  You’ll know because the cough sounds hollow and there’s no phlegm.
    • Tangerine peel is best suited if everything is phlegmy and helps dry the dampness in the body.  You’ll know this because the cough has phlegm and the lungs feel and sound congested.
    • Do consult your doctor if you’re not sure about your condition.  This is not a substitute for any medical advice.

     

     

    The monk fruit!  This is the slightly less dry version.  You’ll notice it’s more green and less brown.  This one is a little more expensive, coming in at $2 CAD per monk fruit.  You’ll also notice a thin layer of sugared coating, so it is a bit sticky to touch, but that’s just the sugars of the fruit on the skin.  The great thing about the greener version is that it isn’t as pungent or sweet, so you can use half in a soup to give is just enough of that flavour.  If it’s the heavily dried version, I will only use a quarter in 3L of soup water.  This is also great in teas!!  

    Thank you so much to the community for sharing your comments and progress!

    ❤️❤️❤️ 

    This is a recent instagram follower who used the monk fruit (or luo han guo) tea to help with a dry cough.  And yes, this is your definite go-to ingredient for dry cough, where dried tangerine peel is your go-to for the more phlegm and wet cough.

    EXPLORE MORE

    What’s the best way to blanch meats for Chinese Soups?

    WHAT'S THE BEST WAY TO BLANCH MEATS FOR CHINESE SOUPS?(Do you use cold water?  Boiling water?  With ginger?  With instant coffee?  With salt?  What's the best way for flavour and taste experience?)One guiding principle in Traditional Chinese Medicine is the yin yang...

    Hong Kong Styled Russian Borscht Soup

    Soup Name: Hong Kong Styled Russian Borscht (with oxtail) Traditional Chinese Name: 羅宋湯 (luó sòng tāng) Nature:  Warming Taste: Savory, sweet, and slightly sour For more videos, you can follow us on YouTube.  Did you know the secret ingredient to an HK-styled...

    What are good replacement ingredients for peanut allergies in Chinese Soups?

    Here are suggestions for replacement ingredients for peanuts in Chinese soupsOne guiding principle in Traditional Chinese Medicine is the yin yang theory.  In the natural world, there exists a balance between 2 opposing and co-existing forces and yet, they also exist...

    Healing Chinese Chicken Herbal Soup with Fish Maw

    Soup Name: Healing Chinese Chicken Herbal Soup with Fish Maw Traditional Chinese Name: 花膠雞湯 (huā jiāo jī tāng) Nature:  Warming Taste: Sweet and savory For more videos, you can follow us on YouTube.  The star of this soup is FISH MAW.  This takes collagen to the...

    Delicious One Pot Vegetable Vermicelli Soup for Dinner

    Soup Name: Delicious One Pot Vegetable Vermicelli Soup for Dinner.  Literal translation from Chinese is "Mixed vegetables vermicelli pot soup". Traditional Chinese Name: 雜菜粉絲鍋湯 (zá cài fěnsī guō tāng) Nature:  Neutral Taste: Sweet and savory For more videos, you...

    Hong Kong Styled Russian Borscht Soup

    Soup Name: Hong Kong Styled Russian Borscht (with oxtail) Traditional Chinese Name: 羅宋湯 (luó sòng tāng) Nature:  Warming Taste: Savory, sweet, and slightly sour For more videos, you can follow us on YouTube.  Did you know the secret ingredient to an HK-styled...

    ABC Soup in a Collagen Rich Salmon Head and Chicken Feet Broth

    Soup Name: ABC Chinese Soup in a collagen rich Salmon Broth (with Chicken Feet) Traditional Chinese Name: 雜菜蕃茄三文魚湯 (zá cài fānjiā sānwènyú tāng) Nature:  Slightly cooling Taste: Sweet and savory For more videos, you can follow us on YouTube.  Taking collagen to...

    5 Tips for Exercising in the Cold (from a Traditional Chinese Medicine Perspective)

    5 Tips for Exercising in the Cold (from a Traditional Chinese Medicine Perspective)One guiding principle in Traditional Chinese Medicine is the yin yang theory.  In the natural world, there exists a balance between 2 opposing and co-existing forces and yet, they also...

    Turn leftover rice into a delicious, warming congee with shrimp and yams

    Soup Name: Shrimp Congee with Fresh Yams and Lettuce Traditional Chinese Name: 蝦粥 (xiā zhōu) Nature: Neutral Taste: Sweet  For more videos, you can follow us on YouTube. Want something easy?  Want something delicious? This is the perfect lunch to make in 30 minutes...

    Making a Delicious Lotus Root with Vegetables in Pork Broth Chinese Soup (with Roasted Fresh Peanuts!)

    Soup Name: Making a Delicious Lotus Root with Vegetables in Pork Broth Chinese Soup (with Roasted Fresh Peanuts!) Traditional Chinese Name: 蓮藕豬骨湯 (Lián'ǒu zhū gǔ tāng) Nature: Neutral Taste: Sweet  For more videos, you can follow us on YouTube. For this post, I made 6...

    GIVE YOUR LOVE OF SOUP.

    FOLLOW US AND SHARE.

    Pu’er Chinese Tea:  A Traditional Chinese Medicinal Perspective

    Pu’er Chinese Tea: A Traditional Chinese Medicinal Perspective

    A PU’ER Chinese (TEA) LOVE STORY

    Chinese pu’er tea:  Why I love it! As part of my overall health regime.

    One guiding principle in Traditional Chinese Medicine is the yin yang theory.  In the natural world, there exists a balance between 2 opposing and co-existing forces and yet, they also exist in each other.  Our bodies, minds, and souls are designed the same way in that to be healthy, we need to be in harmony between these 2 bipolar states.  Yin is receptive and passive, calm and slow, embodying cold and damp qualities (when we are sleeping).  Yang is its exact opposite in aggressive and active, embodying heat, dryness, and movement (when we are awake).

    One of our mission at The Chinese Soup Lady is to bring these principles into the foods and drinks we consume in order to support harmony.

    How do Chinese Teas support Traditional Chinese Medicine concepts?

    Chinese teas can also be defined in nature and tastes similar to other ingredients used in soups and herbal teas (and in Chinese medicine).  

    Knowing this, you can:

    • Drink the teas that match your current body condition and needs
    • Mix and match according to the nature of the ingredients and strengthen the benefits of created teas
    • Integrate teas as part of your diet to balance yin and yang
    • Know the best times and conditions in which to consume teas
    • Compliment existing soup and herbal teas to optimize your balance diet

     

     

    A Pu’er Love Affair

    Pu’er is one of those teas that kind of fall into a wine category in that it’s got it’s own fermenting and vintaging process.  It’s even got a wide range of flavours, tastes, depths, ages, and price points!

    I love how this tea starts bitter, but ends with golden after tastes.  And depending on the roast, the age, the area it’s from, the company that processed it, you get so many different flavours and end games.  And it’s truly this comfort drink I enjoy in the evenings, especially after a big meal or a long night out.

    Pu’er as an ingredient:

    • is cooling in nature
    • and bitter to taste
    • It’s perfect for clearing heat
    • eliminating toxins from the body
    • aiding in sleep
    • targets the spleen and liver
    • does have a high caffeine content (which does elevate heart rate in some)

     

    Generations to Generations

    I love the traditions that come with Chinese tea drinking.  Most of these are passed down from generation to generation.  

    My grandfather (from my mom’s side) had this beautiful traditional tea set, usually used for “kung fu” tea.  However, you can literally use this for any types of teas!  And it’s a great experience if you have guests!

    I remember so vividly how my grandfather made his “kung fu” tea in Hong Kong.  He would pour boiling water in all the cups, ensuring that the temperature of the cups were hot enough and then steeping some tea, always pouring out that first steep to get rid of impurities.  And then, he’d pour out really quickly into these tiny tea cups.  We’d take them like shots.  It was highly entertaining!

    This is what tea brings me.  These amazing memories and wonderful traditions that are passed down from generation to generation.

    Pu’er versus other Chinese Teas

    There are so many varieties of teas that even within the pu’er (aka pu’erh) families, they have their own varieties as well!

    Pu’er is very different from green, red, or black tea, although it does fall into the category of darker, black teas because of it’s processing and fermenting.

    There are 2 methods of processing pu’er which will yield in:

    • raw pu’er – dried and naturally fermented, partially pan-fried to stop the fermenting process, rolled, fully dried
    • cooked pu’er – picked, intentional bacteria introduction to ferment, then fired and cooked, and rolled

    This is why you’ll taste different depths, char, flavours in a pu’er.  There are so many factors that it depends on such as length of fermentation, species of bacteria, cooking time and method, humidity of drying time and length, location of tea leaves, and condition of tea leaves during time of harvest.  The longer the process, the longer the fermentation, the quality of the leaves, the mixing or leaves, and the post storage life will determine the price and rarity of the pu’er blend. 

     

     

    Pu’er can be purchased as loose leaf teas, which is the more modern way, or are the left over leaves.  The more traditional pu’er is found in round cakes, where they’ve been packed and dried and wrapped in paper.  It’s really quite an experience to use one of these because you literally break off what you need!  

    I’ve found this really nice organic pu’er as tea bags, which are great for traveling and on the go!  You can explore it here!

    EXPLORE MORE

    What’s the best way to blanch meats for Chinese Soups?

    WHAT'S THE BEST WAY TO BLANCH MEATS FOR CHINESE SOUPS?(Do you use cold water?  Boiling water?  With ginger?  With instant coffee?  With salt?  What's the best way for flavour and taste experience?)One guiding principle in Traditional Chinese Medicine is the yin yang...

    Hong Kong Styled Russian Borscht Soup

    Soup Name: Hong Kong Styled Russian Borscht (with oxtail) Traditional Chinese Name: 羅宋湯 (luó sòng tāng) Nature:  Warming Taste: Savory, sweet, and slightly sour For more videos, you can follow us on YouTube.  Did you know the secret ingredient to an HK-styled...

    What are good replacement ingredients for peanut allergies in Chinese Soups?

    Here are suggestions for replacement ingredients for peanuts in Chinese soupsOne guiding principle in Traditional Chinese Medicine is the yin yang theory.  In the natural world, there exists a balance between 2 opposing and co-existing forces and yet, they also exist...

    Healing Chinese Chicken Herbal Soup with Fish Maw

    Soup Name: Healing Chinese Chicken Herbal Soup with Fish Maw Traditional Chinese Name: 花膠雞湯 (huā jiāo jī tāng) Nature:  Warming Taste: Sweet and savory For more videos, you can follow us on YouTube.  The star of this soup is FISH MAW.  This takes collagen to the...

    Delicious One Pot Vegetable Vermicelli Soup for Dinner

    Soup Name: Delicious One Pot Vegetable Vermicelli Soup for Dinner.  Literal translation from Chinese is "Mixed vegetables vermicelli pot soup". Traditional Chinese Name: 雜菜粉絲鍋湯 (zá cài fěnsī guō tāng) Nature:  Neutral Taste: Sweet and savory For more videos, you...

    Hong Kong Styled Russian Borscht Soup

    Soup Name: Hong Kong Styled Russian Borscht (with oxtail) Traditional Chinese Name: 羅宋湯 (luó sòng tāng) Nature:  Warming Taste: Savory, sweet, and slightly sour For more videos, you can follow us on YouTube.  Did you know the secret ingredient to an HK-styled...

    ABC Soup in a Collagen Rich Salmon Head and Chicken Feet Broth

    Soup Name: ABC Chinese Soup in a collagen rich Salmon Broth (with Chicken Feet) Traditional Chinese Name: 雜菜蕃茄三文魚湯 (zá cài fānjiā sānwènyú tāng) Nature:  Slightly cooling Taste: Sweet and savory For more videos, you can follow us on YouTube.  Taking collagen to...

    5 Tips for Exercising in the Cold (from a Traditional Chinese Medicine Perspective)

    5 Tips for Exercising in the Cold (from a Traditional Chinese Medicine Perspective)One guiding principle in Traditional Chinese Medicine is the yin yang theory.  In the natural world, there exists a balance between 2 opposing and co-existing forces and yet, they also...

    Turn leftover rice into a delicious, warming congee with shrimp and yams

    Soup Name: Shrimp Congee with Fresh Yams and Lettuce Traditional Chinese Name: 蝦粥 (xiā zhōu) Nature: Neutral Taste: Sweet  For more videos, you can follow us on YouTube. Want something easy?  Want something delicious? This is the perfect lunch to make in 30 minutes...

    Making a Delicious Lotus Root with Vegetables in Pork Broth Chinese Soup (with Roasted Fresh Peanuts!)

    Soup Name: Making a Delicious Lotus Root with Vegetables in Pork Broth Chinese Soup (with Roasted Fresh Peanuts!) Traditional Chinese Name: 蓮藕豬骨湯 (Lián'ǒu zhū gǔ tāng) Nature: Neutral Taste: Sweet  For more videos, you can follow us on YouTube. For this post, I made 6...

    GIVE YOUR LOVE OF SOUP.

    FOLLOW US AND SHARE.