(Confinement) Black Bean, Rice and Ginger Water

Soup Name: (Confinement) Black Bean, Rice and Ginger Water - sometimes called Teas

Traditional Chinese Name: 黑豆姜水 (Hēi dòu jiāng shuǐ)

Introduction:

This is a traditional confinement drink that is said to help reduce “wind” in the body and “warm” it up to help with the healing process after giving birth. These are common ingredients found in various confinement soups, teas and recipes (especially ginger). Some people make a large batch of the black bean and ginger mixture and steep it like teas for drinking everyday throughout their confinement. For more information on what confinement is and the Chinese ingredients associated with confinement, please see our Confinement Soups page.

Ingredients:

Prep:

1 teaspoon of oil

2 tablespoons of ginger juice, pulp optional

1 cup of black beans, rinsed

1 cup of white rice, rinsed

1/2 cup of water, to cook rice

Drink/Tea:

1 cup of boiling hot water

How do I prepare it

1. In a frying pan, heat up oil on medium heat.


2. When oil is hot, add black beans, white rice and ginger juice and cook for 2 minutes, constantly stirring


3. Add 1/2 cup of water and continue to stir and mixture until all the water evaporates. Be sure to adjust the heat accordingly to prevent burning.


4. Once mixture is dry and golden brown (see picture below) and cooked, set aside and cool.


5. In a cup, scoop 1 tablespoon of mixture and add hot water to it. Steep for 10 minutes and drink hot.

Any benefits?

• Effective drink in removing “wind” from the body


• Helps warm the body


• Assists in helping those in confinement get lots of fluid into the body and to help flush the system


• Also helps to improve water levels in the body (especially for those mothers who are breastfeeding)

Any precautions?

• The “heatiness” of this drink may be too much for some people (especially those with naturally “colder” bodies), so start slow with the ginger if you’re uncertain


• The more ginger you add, the spicier this drink gets. It is far subtler if you use just the ginger juice.