Food Therapy to Harmonize Menstruation

For women, menstruation is an important time during the monthly cycle. On one hand, you want to discharge the shielded uterine lining completely. On the other hand, you also want to nourish the blood in order to regenerate a new cycle.

In this post, I’m going to share with you an excellent food therapy to achieve these two important purposes during menstruation. This is a beef stew that warms the uterus, eases period pain, and nourishes the qi, blood, yin and yang. It’s deliciously too!

Here’s the recipe:

Ingredients:

1 lb. cut beef. The best cuts of meat for stew are either the front shoulder or rear end, for example, chuck shoulder, chuck roast, bottom round roast, or pot roast.

1 cup organic soybeans. You can substitute edamame, black or adzuki beans.

Ginger, 6-8 oz. Cut into small tubes or thin slices.

1 green onion. Cut into 3-4 pieces.

1 red bell pepper. If you like a bit of a spicy taste, use red hot pepper. Cut into slices.

5 garlic cloves. Cut into pieces.

¼ cup cilantro or parsley

2 star anises

½ cup sake or rice wine

1 cup soy sauce

3 tablespoons brown sugar

Directions:

Soak the soybeans overnight. Cook with water until the beans turn soft. Set aside.

Boil a pot of water. Put the cut beef in the boiling water for a couple of minutes. Take it out and set aside.

Mix the star anise, brown sugar, soy sauce and sake or rice wine to make a sauce.

Put some oil in a large pot. Heat it up slightly. Then put the green onion, garlic, ginger and red pepper into the pan and stir briefly.

Add the sauce and cut beef. Stir a couple of minutes, then add water to cover it.

Turn the heat up to high until the soup boils. Then turn the heat down to low and continue to boil the soup for about 40 minutes.

Add the soybeans and boil for another 10 minutes.

Lastly, add the cilantro or parsley. And it’s ready to serve.

Overall, this stew is pungent and warming. It strengthens the spleen and stomach, moves qi and blood while tonifying them, nourishes kidneys yin and invigorates kidney yang, and harmonizes the Earth, Metal, Water, Fire and Wood Elements. It’s beneficial for the wintertime or for women during menstruation.

For women during menstruation, it has the effect of warming the uterus and dispelling cold – a common cause of dysmenorrhea. Additionally, it regulates qi and moves blood, which helps dispel blood stasis and relieve period pain. At the same time it nourishes qi, blood, yin and yang to replenish their loss during menstruation.

Try out this stew next time when you menstruate. And please let me know how you like it!

P.S. The stew is a bit warming. So if your body tends to run hot, you may want to reduce the amount of ginger and garlic.

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