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Quail eggs have been consumed by Chinese for thousands of years. Since ancient times, this delicacy has been prized as a dietary and healing food. There is an old Chinese saying, “要吃飞禽，鸽子鹌鹑” (meaning: if you want to eat birds, pigeon and quail are the best”.
Benefits:
- In Asian countries, quail eggs are considered remedy against digestive tract disorders such as gastritis, stomach ulcer and duodenal ulcer.
- Quail eggs promote good memory, enhance brain activity and regulate the nervous system. As many women become forgetful during pregnancy or in postnatal stage (mainly due to hormonal changes), quail eggs becomes a good healing food.
- Quail eggs can also improve skin color and strengthen hair making it shiny and voluminous.
There are a dozen of recipes for preparing the quail eggs in Chinese cooking. But I simply like the one that goes with smoked salmon or Chinese prosciutto (火腿) thinly sliced.
Recipe:
1. Fill a medium pot halfway with water and bring to a boil.
2. Gently tap and break off the top or narrow part of the quail egg shell, taking care not to rupture the yolk inside.
3. Pour egg into pot of boiling water. Poach for 1 – 2 minutes until yolk is warmed and egg white is cooked around yolk. Remove egg with a slotted spoon.
4. Place the poached quail egg on a slice of smoked salmon or prosciutto, then put them on a slice of toast, enjoy.
The strawberry guava is a native of Brazil, whence it was carried to southern China at an early period, presumably by the Portuguese. From China it was taken to Europe, where it was for some time considered being native to China. So it was called Chinese guava.
When I went to Taipei, I tried the actual guava fruit. Guava can be hard like an apple or very mushy like a fully ripped banana. If you get them almost ripe; they taste sweet and almost melt instantly in your mouth…
Consume guava juice helps to relieve constipation during pregnancy. And the edible rind of guavas has more than five times the vitamin C of an orange.
Recipes:
- 1 ½ cup of milk
- 1 vanilla bean
- 1 guava, peeled, cut into cubes
- ½ cup of ice
- ½ table spoon of honey
In a blender, mix 1-5 on high for 1 minute. Enjoy.
Red wine beef stew (French: Boeuf bourguignon) is a traditional French recipe. It’s a stew prepared with beef braised in red wine. The slow cooking and simmering in the wine tenderized the meat, while keeping the meat flavor in the dish.
This traditional French recipe was brought to Shanghai since the middle of 1800. The French Concession was established in 1849, when the French Consul to Shanghai obtained a proclamation from the Governor of Shanghai, which conceded certain territory for a French settlement. The French brought in many of the traditional cousins and made it home permanently in Shanghai. Boeuf Bourguignon is one of French dishes made into Chinese families without much modification. And quickly, the Chinese put the red wind and beef stew onto the pregnancy and recovery menu (月子菜).
Benefits:
Beef is high in protein and iron, cooked with wine will also help to convert bad cholesterol to good cholesterol.
During postpartum recovery, eat moderate amount of red meat will help you restore energy and produce less ‘gassy’ breast milk.
Recipe:
1. Bacon – cut in 1/2″ pieces, 5 pieces
2. Beef chuck — cut 1. 5″ cubes, 3 lbs
3. Carrot – 1 piece sliced
4. Onion – 1 piece sliced
5. Salt and pepper to taste
6. Flour – 4 tablespoon
7. Condensed beef broth — (10oz)
8. Tomato paste – 1 table spoon
9. Whole thyme -3/4 teaspoon
10. Bay leaf – 1 piece
11. White onions – half pound
12. Butter – 2 table spoon
13. Red wine – 1 cup
Cook bacon in large skillet until crisp. Add beef cubes and turn beef cubes until they are brown. Place browned beef in 3 1/2-quart slow cooker.
Brown carrot and onion. Season with salt and pepper; stir in flour. Add condensed beef broth, mix well and add to slow cooker. Add cooked bacon, tomato paste, garlic, thyme, bay leaf and onions. Cover and cook on Low 8-10 hours.
One hour before serving: add wine, to slow cooker.
Thicken gravy with flour combined with melted butter or margarine. Stir into stew and cook on High until thickened.
There are many ways of making boeuf bourguignon, I always use a slow cooker. Many Chinese use a clay pot (砂锅) instead of a slow cooker. The outcome is more or less the same.
Black soybeans are high in antioxidants called anthocyanins, which help fight the free radicals in our system, so black soybeans are a powerful nutritional weapon in the fight against cancer and the aging process. Black beans are high in iron and manganese, those are important building blocks of a healthy pregnancy diet.
In Chinese culture, women are encouraged to drink black bean milk when planning for pregnancy. Chinese traditional medicine also indicated that black soybean milk is beneficial to women who had experienced miscarriages, or had difficulty to get pregnant.
Recipes:
- Black soybeans – 3 cups
- Water – 9 cups
Raise black soybeans and soak them in water overnight. Put the soaked black soybeans and water into a mixer and mix well.
Pour blended black soy bean into a large bowl add 2 cups of water. Filter the contents through a coffee filter.
Pour black soy bean milk into a pot and bring to boil on low heat. Add two tea spoons of honey for taste.
I like it cold. If you want extra flavor, add ½ cups of black sesame seeds to the black soybeans while soaking overnight. The rest of the process is the same.
Chinese also believe that eating sesame seeds can help enhance their silky hair texture. I think it definitely helps, but I still cannot resist the multi shelves of hair products at Target. 
From ancient times the lotus has been a divine symbol in Asian traditions representing purity and virtue.
This has also taken root in Chinese cultures with a famous statement made by a scholar
“I love the lotus because while growing from mud, it is unstained.” (“出淤泥而不染，濯清涟而不妖”)
In Buddhist iconography, Buddha is often represented on a pink lotus. The lotus represents purity of the body and mind as if floating above the muddy waters of human desire.
Lotus root contains many vitamins and minerals. Eating lotus root during postpartum can help new mothers increase appetite, help digestion and promote milk secretion.
The most commonly used part of this plant is the root, though the lotus seed and leaves are also known for their nutritional factors. The skin of the lotus root is smooth and light brown in color after washing clean from mud. When sliced in half, the root resembles a wagon wheel because there are many air pockets in it.
Mother always fills those air pockets with sweet rice and steams it. It is fun to make and taste terrific.
Recipe:
- Lotus Roots (4-6 pieces, 8 inches in length)
- Sweet Rice ( 1 cup, washed and soaked in water for 20 minutes)
- Sugar ( 1 cup)
Wash lotus roots clean, cut the stem point of the lotus root to make the air pockets exposed. Stuff the sweet rice into the air pockets, use a chopstick to push the sweet rice as in as possible. Make sure the air pockets are tightly stuffed. Then, put the cut of stem back onto the lotus roots and secure the cover with a toothpick. Put the stuffed lotus roots into a high pressure cooker; add water and 1 cup of sugar to just cover those lotus roots. Cook in high heat for 40-50 minutes. Take the lotus roots out and let them cool. Slice the lotus roots, sprinkle some powdered sugar and enjoy.
Bitter melon has been used in various Asian medicines for a long time. Bitter melons come with various shapes and sizes, but they all taste bitter.
When I was little, it was almost a punishment to eat the bitter melon. So, I tried various methods to make it taste better such as adding powdered sugar and dipping into honey. Well, the best recipe that I have found is to mix bitter melon juice with pineapple juice. It became one of the most effective postpartum weight control drinks. Many of my friends lost 5-10 lbs by persistently taking the juice for two to four weeks. Simply an 8 oz glass per day.
Benefits
- Aids in sugar regulation by suppressing the neural response to sweet taste stimuli
- Useful for those with diabetes mellitus
- Useful as an emtic, purgative, and as an anthelmentic, in jaundice, and piles
- Helps with indigestion
Pregnant women should not use bitter melon. Hypoglycemia, or low blood sugar, may be negatively affected by bitter melon because it may trigger or worsen the condition.
Recipe
- 1 bitter melon
- half pineapple (if you don’t have fresh pineapple, use canned one)
- three table spoon of honey for taste
- eight ice cubes
Rinse and pit bitter melon. Cut it into cubes. Pare pineapple and cut it into cubes. If you use the canned pineapple, you are ready to go.
Put bitter melon and pineapple into the blender, add honey and ice cubes, blend for about one minute. It is an acquired taste, but you will like it.
Burdock (牛蒡), a root vegetable, is native to Europe and Northern Asia and is now widespread throughout the United States as well. In Traditional Chinese Medicine, burdock is often used with other herbs for sore throat and colds.
Burdock contains insulin, a natural dietary fiber, and has also been used to improve digestion in Japanese and Chinese culture.
Burdock looks like a long stick. See photo below. I always see the root part in the store, but never knew the green leave on top.
I had Burdock and Celery juice when I had colds and sore throat during pregnancy. It was great. I did not want to take any medicine when I was pregnant. It was miserable without and relieve until burdock’s rescue.
Benefits:
1. Relief colds and sore throat
2. Cure constipation and insomnia (you get insomnia in 3rd trimester, so this is a good recipe as well)
3. Rich in fiber and vitamin B
Recipe:
1. Two burdock
2. Three celery sticks
3. Two table spoons of honey
Rinse, pare burdock and cut them into small sections; soak in the water. Rinse and cut celery sticks into small sections. Put item 1-3 into the mixer to mix. Drink within 20 minutes. You can take the burdock and celery juice for three days to relieve your cold symptoms.
I remember when I was a kid in Shanghai; I would put walnut between the door henges and just shut the door until it cracked open, not the side where the knob is but the other side. I did not know there was such thing called “nut cracker’ existed until my 1st Christmas in America.
Walnuts are considered to be an Herb in Chinese medicine. They are said to tone kidneys, strengthen the back and knees, moisten the intestines and move the bowel. It is also used by the elderly and pregnant women to relieve constipation.
Many Chinese like to have walnut during the 1st trimester as it contains a good source of Omega 3 fatty acids and is very good for the baby’s brain development. Of course, this is only the recent discovery. In the old days, Chinese women were told “Walnut is good for you, so eat some when you just got pregnant.” No other explanations….. Weird Chinese myth……I am the type like to beat a dead horse….. It is really not a smart move growing up in a Chinese family.
I read about the Western version of walnut’s nutritional facts in recent years. Guess what mother said:” I told you it was good for you before those research facts even came out.” One thing is universal – mothers are always right.
Benefits:
- Walnuts are a very good source of Omega 3 fatty acids. Since pregnant women should avoid fish (high in mercury). Walnuts can be beneficial to the baby, especially if you consume during the 1st trimester.
- Shrimp is a good source of calcium and phosphorus. And it is high in protein and low in calories.
Recipe:
- 1 lb of large or medium peeled
- 1/2 cup honey glazed walnuts – I usually get them directly from a grocery store, so this part is not made from scratch.
- 2 1/2 cups oil
- 1/2 cup cornstarch
- 1/2 cup egg whites
- 3 tablespoons of mayonnaise
- 1 tablespoon of fresh lemon juice
- 1/2 tablespoons of condensed milk
Mix cornstarch and egg whites together to form a sticky texture and mix with Shrimp. Set aside. Mix honey, mayonnaise, lemon juice, and condensed milk in a medium bowl until smooth. Heat oil until boiling; deep fry the shrimp until golden brown. Drain and fold in honey mayonnaise mixture. Mix well, sprinkle with honey glazed walnuts.
The Chinese consider the Lychee (荔枝) a symbol of romance and love. The legend has it that an emperor in Tang Dynasty had the fruit and thought it was delicious. So he ordered a Pony Express type of delivery to send the fruit from modern Guangdong (the southern part of China) to the capital (the middle part of China) for his favorite concubine Yang (杨贵妃) overnight.
As the demand for Lychee increases in modern day China; more people want to enjoy the fruit that was once favored by concubine Yang (杨贵妃). Today, you can find Lychees grown in CA, TX, FL and HI, and the fresh fruits are sold at a very reasonable prices; much lower priced than in China where they are grown extensively.
Mom loaded up Lychees when she saw “Buy 1 lb and get another lb for free”. I thought it was funny that the American pricing gimmick such as “everything ends with a .99” and ‘buy 1 get 1 free” type of things do work on a Chinese lady who wants to get a bargain on everything. Then, I thought about the story of concubine Yang and the Lychee fruit. Is it a true legend or some “branding” tricks? But discard all the marketing effort we ‘People’ put on the fruit; Lychee is considered good for the male when plan to conceive.
Benefits:
1. Lychee is jammed packed with anti-aging and disease fighting antioxidants. Lychees are filled with nutrients such potassium, bowel regulating fiber and a 72 mg of vitamin C per 100 grams of sweet, juicy flesh.
2. In Chinese medicine, Lychee is used to increase sperm quality and support kidney function (有壮阳, 益气, 补血的功效).
3. Lychee also helps to prevent blood clots, severe cell damage and reduces strokes, up to 50%, in heart attack patients
Recipe:
- 3-4 lbs fresh lychees
- 2 lbs granulated sugar, you could also replace 2 lbs of sugar with 2 lbs of honey
- 1/5 oz citric acid
- 1/5 tsp tannin
- 1 tsp yeast
- water to 1 gallon
- wine yeast
Put the water on to boil. Meanwhile, peel and chop the lychees. Place the chopped fruit and the sugar in a large pot, pour boiling water over them and stir until sugar dissolves. Allow to cool. Add all other ingredients, including the activated yeast. Cover the pot with cloth. Stir daily for 4-5 days. Strain liquid and discard pulp. Pull into an air-tight container for 30 days. You can enjoy it right after 30 days, or you can bottle and rack for 6 months to a year. The longer it ages, the better it tastes.
Many of you have tried the Thai style spicy coconut chicken soup (Tom Ka Kai). This version is not spicy. And it does not have the sweet and sour flavor in Tom Ka Kai. Spicy food is not recommended during postpartum recovery especially if you plan to breast feed the baby. The taste of your breast milk changes daily based on your diet, thus, hot and spicy food may create certain taste which babies dislike. Spicy food will also impact the quality of the breast milk.
In Korean culture, it was noted that hot, cold and spicy food consumed during postnatal recovery may cause postpartum depression.
My mother once told me that coconut was not commonly seen in Shanghai in 1970s. She got a large fresh one as a gift shortly after I was born. A family friend sent it from the southern part of China. Of course, my father did not know how to open the hard shell, so both of them struggled with a crying baby (me, of course), and finally, he used a nail and a hammer. Minutes later, the fresh coconut was cracked open and all the juice was lost. So, she scooped out the remaining part of coconut meat and stewed with chicken. It was her version of coconut chicken soup; she wished that she could have more juice or milk from the coconut. But my father claimed that he would never want to open up another fresh one. When she told me that story years later, it reminded me how a young couple grow old together, starting by cracking open a fresh coconut.
Benefits:
- Coconut supports thyroid function. It promotes loss of extra weight by increasing metabolic rate. Thus, consider it as a postnatal must have while choosing your diet.
- Coconut prevents wrinkles and age spots, which many women start developing after given birth. It promotes healthy looking hair and complexion.
- Coconut also helps to relieve pain and irritation caused by hemorrhoids. Immediate use after labor and delivery will help you regain some normality.
- Chicken, as you may already know, contains plenty of protein and mineral. I don’t need to list any more…..
Recipe:
- Fresh coconut – 2, if you don’t have fresh coconuts, 2 canned coconut juice or milk will do
- 12 cups chicken broth
- 1 1/2 tablespoons salt
- 3 slices of fresh ginger
- 1 teaspoon poultry seasoning
- 1/4 cup water
- 3 cups diced, cooked chicken meat
- 1 cup diced taro
In a large saucepan or Dutch oven, combine broth, salt, ginger, and poultry seasoning. Bring to a boil. Stir in fresh coconut milk. Add diced taro and chicken meat. Reduce heat, cover, and simmer 40 minutes.
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