Summer’s sweltering heat can zap your energy, mess with your appetite, and leave you feeling more irritable than inspired. So how can you stay healthy and balanced when the temperature keeps climbing?
Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) offers a time-tested approach, based on the idea that “medicine and food share the same origin.” In other words, what you eat can help you heal — and thrive — especially when you align your meals with the rhythms of nature.
Understanding summer’s energy phases
According to TCM, summer unfolds in two stages. The first stage — from early summer to the solstice — is associated with the fire element and has a focus on heart health. The second stage, which follows the solstice and continues through the hottest weeks, corresponds to the earth element. During this later phase, the focus shifts to caring for your spleen and stomach, especially as heat and humidity peak.
Drawing on both classical TCM texts and folk traditions, the following remedies offer simple, seasonal ways to care for digestion, clear internal dampness, and restore energy — without turning your kitchen into an herbal pharmacy.
Easy recipes to support your spleen and stomach
When the heat builds and your appetite dips, supporting digestion becomes more important than ever. In Traditional Chinese Medicine, the spleen and stomach work together as the body’s central processing unit — turning food into energy and keeping everything running smoothly. But when these organs get overloaded or weakened, digestion can stall, and fatigue sets in.
The good news? You don’t need complicated tonics to give them a boost. TCM emphasizes foods that are mildly sweet and grounding — like root vegetables and whole grains — as everyday medicine. Below are some simple recipes that support your system, restore balance, and taste good, too.
1. Vegetable and pumpkin porridge
A simple, nourishing dish recorded in the Compendium of Materia Medica. Just cook fresh vegetables into a rice porridge, focusing on ingredients like pumpkin, which supports the spleen. Think of it as comfort food with a purpose.
2. Sweet potato porridge, rice, or steamed sweet potato
Mildly sweet and naturally starchy, sweet potatoes are a go-to for strengthening digestion. Porridge made with them is a great breakfast option, but you can also enjoy them steamed or mixed into rice. Save the roasted version for cooler weather, since it generates more internal heat in the body.
3. Lotus seed powder porridge
This one’s for those who feel thirsty all the time or have a sensitive stomach. A warm porridge made from glutinous rice and ready-made lotus seed powder helps soothe digestion, calm excessive sweating, and ease loose stools. Bonus: it tastes like something your grandmother would swear by.
4. Ginger juice with egg
There’s an old TCM saying: “Eat radish in winter and ginger in summer — no need for a doctor’s prescription.” In some parts of China, people consume ginger juice with eggs during the hottest part of the year. Eggs offer nourishment, while peeled ginger stimulates appetite and warms up the digestive system — perfect if you’ve been spending long hours in air conditioning or reaching for one too many iced drinks. Pro tip: Peeled ginger is warming, unpeeled is cooling. For digestive support, go peeled — and eat this before noon for the best effect.
5. Chicken and ginger porridge
This combination supports digestion and replenishes energy, especially for those who tend to feel tired, cold inside, or run-down during seasonal transitions. In TCM, chicken is believed to strengthen the spleen, while ginger gently warms the digestive system and helps restore internal balance. Simmer them into a soothing soup or porridge that’s easy to digest and deeply nourishing. It’s particularly helpful for older adults or anyone recovering from illness. For extra flavor and a nutrient boost, try adding a century egg, which is rich in protein, vitamins, and essential minerals.
Clear out dampness, recharge your energy
Hot, sticky weather can leave you feeling heavy and sluggish — but ironically, the relief we get from air conditioning isn’t always helpful either. Sure, it feels great — but according to TCM, spending too much time in chilly indoor environments can actually disrupt your internal balance. Combined with humid weather, it may contribute to what’s known as internal dampness, which can show up as bloating, fatigue, or a general sense of being “off.” The spleen is responsible for clearing dampness, so this is the time to give it a little extra support.
Luckily, you don’t need anything fancy to restore that balance. These traditional recipes are easy to make, deeply nourishing, and naturally help your body clear out excess moisture while rebuilding strength from the inside out.
1. Red bean and job’s tears soup
Job’s tears (also known as coix seeds) are a go-to ingredient in TCM for draining dampness and supporting digestion. Paired with adzuki beans — famous for reducing swelling and promoting urination — they create a detoxifying, gently sweet soup. Swap out white sugar for rock sugar or honey to boost the spleen and lungs without spiking your blood sugar.
2. Four-ingredient soup
Made with lotus seeds, Chinese yam, gorgon fruit, and poria mushroom stewed with pork stomach, this tonic is a classic for year-round spleen support. Some modern recipes swap gorgon fruit for job’s tears — but they’re not the same. Gorgon fruit helps firm up the kidneys and reduce water retention, so if you can find it, don’t skip it.
3. Duck soup with winter melon (traditionally made with mature duck for deeper flavor)
A summer favorite for a reason. Winter melon helps flush out heat and toxins, while duck meat replenishes yin energy and clears spleen dampness. Toss in some job’s tears for even greater benefits. It’s rich, grounding, and deeply restorative — like a reset button in soup form.
Final thoughts
You don’t need fancy supplements or extreme diets to stay balanced through summer. With a few humble ingredients — many of them already in your kitchen — you can work with your body’s natural rhythms to feel lighter, stronger, and more in sync with the season.
Translated by Cecilia
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