Chinese Name: 胖大海
Thermal Nature: Cold
Flavor: Sweet
Organ Meridian: Lung, large intestine
Properties: Dispel heat, moisturize lungs, soothe throat, encourage bowel movement
Best Use For: Treating sore throat or cough due to dryness, relieving constipation
Serving Per Day For One Person: 2 to 3 pieces
Dietary Caution: Not known
Suitable For: Balance body constitution, any body type that has cough without phlegm
Also Known As: Houttuynia Cordata
Chinese Name: 鱼腥草
Thermal Nature: Cold (Slight)
Flavor: Pungent
Organ Meridian: Lung
Properties: Cools the body and helps with detoxification, dissolves phlegm, promotes urination
Best Use For: Relieving nasal blockage
Serving Per Day For One Person: 10 to 15g
Dietary Caution: People with weak spleen should avoid consuming the chameleon plant alone. Not suitable to be cooked for a prolonged period of time.
Suitable For: All types of body constitution
Also Known As: Taraxacum Mongolicum
Chinese Name: 蒲公英
Thermal Nature: Cold
Flavor: Sweet, bitter
Organ Meridian: Liver, stomach
Properties: Cools the body and helps with detoxification, relieves swells and eases water retention in the body
Best Use For: Detoxifying, removing toxins in the liver
Serving Per Day For One Person: 10 to 15g
Dietary Caution: People with weak spleen should avoid consuming dandelions alone
Suitable For: All types of body constitution
Also Known As: Lonicera Japonica
Chinese Name: 金银花 (Jin Yin Hua)
Thermal Nature: Cold
Flavor: Sweet
Organ Meridian: Lung, heart, stomach
Properties: Cools the body, helps with detoxification, expels heat (wind-type)
Best Use For: Cooling the body when the person has heat-type flu (sore throat, fever etc), treating acne that is caused by heat toxins (due to wrong diet or foods)
Serving Per Day For One Person: 9 to 15g
Dietary Caution: Honeysuckle is a very cooling herb, do not consume it for long term. People with weak spleen should also avoid consuming honeysuckle alone.
Suitable For: All types of body constitution
Also Known As: Chrysanthemum Morifolium
Chinese Name: 菊花
Thermal Nature: Cold (Slight)
Flavor: Sweet, bitter
Organ Meridian: Lung, liver
Properties: Expel heat, relieve headache due to cold, relieve pain around the eye area
Best Use For: Treating heat-type flu. There are various kinds of chrysanthemum, please refer here for more details on the differences.
Serving Per Day For One Person: 5 to 10g
Dietary Caution: People with weak spleen should avoid consuming chrysanthemum alone
Suitable For: All types of body constitution
Also Known As: Rehmannia Glutinosa
Chinese Name: 生地黄
Thermal Nature: Cold
Flavor: Sweet
Organ Meridian: Heart, liver, kidney
Properties: Cools the blood, promotes Yin
Best Use For: Relieving heatiness in the blood, treating fever caused by Yin deficiency
Serving Per Day For One Person: 10 to 15g
Dietary Caution: People with weak spleen and loose stools should avoid consuming sheng di huang
Suitable For: Yin deficiency body constitution
Also Known As: Polygonatum Odoratum
Chinese Name: 玉竹
Thermal Nature: Cold
Flavor: Sweet
Organ Meridian: Lung, stomach
Properties: Nourish Yin, relieve cough, quench thirst
Best Use For: Treating Yin deficiency in the lungs, relieving dry cough, relieving Yin deficiency in the stomach (dry mouth, poor appetite, etc)
Serving Per Day For One Person: 6 to 12g
Dietary Caution: People with bloated stomach should minimize consumption of solomon’s seal alone
Suitable For: Yin deficiency body constitution
Name: Gynoacemma Pentaphllum
Chinese Name: 绞股蓝
Thermal Nature: Cold
Flavor: Sweet, bitter
Organ Meridian: Spleen, lung
Properties: Strengthen the spleen and boost energy, dissolves phlegm and stops coughing, cools the body and helps with detoxification
Best Use For: Jiao gu lan is an excellent herb and food to relieve cough that arise due to weakness in the lungs. It is also used for strengthening the spleen. During the Covid-19 period, jiao gu lan is a very common herb used to relieve covid symptoms because it has detoxifying and strong cooling properties.
Serving Per Day For One Person: 10 to 15g
Dietary Caution: People with weak spleen should avoid consuming jiao gu lan alone as it is very cooling for the body
Chinese Name: 酱油
Thermal Nature: Cold
Flavor: Salty
Organ Meridian: Spleen, stomach, kidney
Properties: Cools the body, helps with detoxification
Best Use For: Relieving summer heat
Dietary Caution: Overconsumption of soy suace will cause phlegm in the body
Suitable For: Balanced body constitution
Chinese Name: 紫菜
Thermal Nature: Cold
Flavor: Sweet, salty
Organ Meridian: Lung, spleen, bladder
Properties: Dissolves phlegm, stops cough, reduces dampness in body
Best Use For: Relieving sore throat, coughing, insomnia due to lack of Yin and water retention
Serving Per Day For One Person: 15 to 30g
Dietary Caution: People with weak spleen and stomach (loose stools) should avoid consuming seaweed
Suitable For: Balanced body constitution
