{"id":3439,"date":"2011-07-15T00:01:21","date_gmt":"2011-07-15T04:01:21","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/yang-sheng.com\/?p=3439"},"modified":"2011-12-06T23:50:39","modified_gmt":"2011-12-07T04:50:39","slug":"longevity-eight-treasure-congee","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/yang-sheng.com\/?p=3439","title":{"rendered":"Longevity Eight Treasure Congee"},"content":{"rendered":"

Longevity Eight Treasure Congee<\/span><\/h2>\n

by Dr. Helen Hu<\/span>\"Dr.<\/a><\/p>\n

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\n<\/span><\/dd>\n<\/dl>\n<\/div>\n

Chinese porridge or congee (Zhou: \u7ca5) is a thick soup that is made from grains. There are various ways of making and serving congee, and no special skill is required. Congee can be sweet or salty, thick or thin, with many or few ingredients, it all depends on your own personal taste.<\/span><\/p>\n

Medicinal congee, is based on varieties of natural grains combined with selective vegetables, fruits, nuts, seeds, meat, eggs and certain herbs according to their property for healing, promoting well being and longevity.\u00a0 As part of Traditional Chinese Medicine Food Therapy, medicinal congee has been refined, developed since period in Spring and Autumn and Warring States (770-220 BC)<\/span><\/p>\n

Eight treasure congee is also called \u201cThe Eighth Winter Day Congee\u201d (La Bao Zhou) and Buddha Congee.<\/span><\/p>\n

According to TCM principles of rather using food as tonics rather than herbs \u201c The Eighth Winter Day Congee\u201d \u00a0is consumed like winter tonic food on special days of each winter (Luna Calendar, the Eighth of December) as a Traditional Chinese Holiday. The original recipe uses eight ingredients.\u00a0 The number eight is a lucky number in the Chinese culture, even though many versions of it may have more ingredients than eight, people still call it Eight Treasure Congee.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Different versions of eight treasure congee have different ingredients for different types of healing.\u00a0 Most ingredients include Chinese red date, red bean, black walnut, pine nut, dried persimmon, sweet rice, millets, tapioca, peanuts, apricot seed, sunflower seed, pumpkin seed, peach kernel seed and black sesame seeds.\u00a0\u00a0 The Eight days of Winter coincide with Buddha\u2019s\u2019 \u201cbecoming immortal day\u201d \u00a0so that the Buddha temple adopts the folk day\u2019s tradition and makes the Eight treasure congee\u00a0 the same day, \u00a0later people call it \u201cBuddha congee\u201d..<\/span><\/p>\n

A well known fact regarding longevity, \u201cBa Ma County \u2018in Guang Xi province of China, the majority of villagers lived up to 100 and more, all consumed congee in their two meals out of the three per day. This gives the name of Longevity Eight treasure congee<\/span><\/p>\n

Here are a few versions of \u2018Longevity\u2019 Eight treasure congee:<\/span><\/p>\n

One of the most respected Shaolin monks Ji Qin, who was still active after he reached 100 years old, every morning, would climb five peak mountains in only 20-30 minutes. One of his secrets was to consume \u201cLongevity Eight treasure congee\u201d daily. According to a high rank monk Wan Zhang stated, \u201cIt can strengthen the Spleen (the earth element of the body) and harmonize stomach, nourishing the Kidney organ (water element of the body) in order to promote longevity.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Shaolin Longevity Eight treasure congee ingredients <\/span><\/p>\n

Millets: 150g <\/span>\"\"<\/span><\/a>
\n Rice: 50g<\/span>
\n Peanut: 25g<\/span>
\n Walnut: 15g<\/span>
\n Pine nuts: 5g<\/span>
\n Red bean: 10g<\/span>
\n Hawthorns: 10g<\/span>
\n Chinese red date: 5 pieces (without kernel)<\/span>
\n Rock sugar<\/span><\/p>\n

Cooking instructions: Put all nuts and beans in a ceramic pot with 500ml water to cook for one hour, then add millets and rice and continue cooking at a low temperature till everything becomes very soft and smooth. Then add rock sugar, red dates and hawthorn fruit at the end and continue cooking for another 10-15 minutes.<\/span><\/p>\n

Intake: Eat it warm at noon time every day.\u00a0\u00a0 Half bowl for elderly and 1 to 1 \u00bd bowls for young\u00a0adults.<\/span><\/p>\n

The congee should be consumed during spring, fall and winter seasons.<\/span><\/p>\n

Longevity Eight Treasure Congee<\/span><\/p>\n

Spring rice (or sushi rice): 50g<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Longevity<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

Yi yi ren: 30g<\/span>
\n Sunflower seed: 10g<\/span>
\n Lotus seeds: 30g (pre soak overnight)<\/span>
\n Mung bean: 20g (peeled)<\/span>
\n Black bean: 20g\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 (pre soak overnight)<\/span>
\n Chinese red date: 5 pieces<\/span>
\n Go ji berry: 15 g<\/span><\/p>\n

Cooking instructions: Pre soak all beans overnight then cook in water for one hour, add rice, yi yi ren, go ji berries and dates in the pot and continue to cook at low temperature till congee become very soft.<\/span><\/p>\n

Intake: Eat it warm 1- 2 times per day, better to add black sesame and black walnut power in the congee before eating.\u00a0 One can add sugar to the taste or with salty vegetables.<\/span><\/p>\n

Eight treasure congee <\/span><\/p>\n

Dang shen (Codonopsis Root):\u00a0 3g<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Eight<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

Bai zhu (Atractylodes Rhizome): 3g<\/span>
\n Qian shi (Euiyale Seeds):3g<\/span>
\n Fu ling (Hoelen): 3g<\/span>
\n Lian zi (Lotus Seeds):3g<\/span>
\n Bai bian dou (Hyacinth Bean):\u00a0 15g<\/span>
\n Yi yi ren (Coix Seeds): 10g<\/span>
\n Shan Yao (wild Chinese yam): 10g<\/span>
\n White rice: 150g<\/span><\/p>\n

Cooking instruction: \u00a0Put Codonopsis Root and Atractylodes Rhizome in a cheese cloth, cook in boiling water for 40 minutes. \u00a0\u00a0Use the herbal juice only with more water if needed, put all the rest of ingredients and rice in the pot, and then cooks at medium temperature until everything become soft and smooth.<\/span><\/p>\n

Intake: Eat it as breakfast or alone at dinner, twice a day.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Euiyale<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

This form of congee is better for people who have a lot<\/span>
\n of dampness, fatigue, water\u00a0retention and gain weight.<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Eight Treasure Congee<\/span><\/p>\n

Rice: 50g<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Eight<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

Sweat rice; 30g<\/span>
\n Millets: 30g<\/span>
\n Soybean: 20g<\/span>
\n Red bean: 20g<\/span>
\n Mung beans: 20g<\/span>
\n Chinese red date: 3-4 pieces<\/span>
\n Dried lychee fruit: 10g<\/span><\/p>\n

Cooking instructions: Soak all beans overnight then boil in water for one hour, add rice, sweet rice, millet, dates and lychee fruit in the pot and cook at low temperature till congee become very smooth.<\/span><\/p>\n

Intake:\u00a0 It can be seasoned with sugar or salted vegetables. \u00a0Eat it warm 1 \u2013 2 times per day.<\/span><\/p>\n

Function: this form of congee can nourish blood, improve sleep and strengthen body energy.<\/span><\/p>\n

For more information about food therapies, please check the new book website at <\/span>www.bodywithoutmystique.com<\/span><\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n

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