Chinese Dietary Therapy or Food Therapy is an important part of Traditional Chinese Medicine, dating back over three millennia.

Selecting foods that suit someone’s constitution, health condition and their environment can help boost immunity and support recovery from illness. As part of a consultation, a Chinese medicine practitioner will often recommend foods as part of a self care plan for their patient. Food therapy is an important self care tool that we can all use in our everyday life to help improve our health.

Aside from nutrient content, Food Therapy also places importance on eating according to what’s in season (as foods that are in season are nutrient rich and better suited to our needs) and on the characteristics of foods that are eaten. These characteristics are broadly known as the the five flavors (bitter, sour, sweet, pungent and salty) and the four natures (cool, cold, warm and hot). Food therapy takes into account, how certain types of foods affect the body and how some foods will be more beneficial for you at different times.

There are also some general guidelines for each season. These focus on seasonal foods and how they can help support the body in different seasons.

For instance, in Winter, Chinese Medicine advocates that we focus on protecting and supporting the energy of the kidneys. There are some great seasonal foods and recipes that are recommended for this.

I aim to provide some easy to prepare recipes for each season, based on seasonal foods and Traditional Chinese Medicine principles. These are general recipes that will suit most people and can be easily adapted to suit food preferences and dietary requirements.

Depending on a TCM diagnosis and presenting health care complaint, more targeted, individual dietary advice is provided during a Chinese Medicine consultation.

Most of the recipes will have more of a vegetarian focus, as that is my personal preference. However they can easily be modified to suit individual tastes.