The Chinese medicinal diet is about making dishes with Chinese herbs, food and condiments. Such a diet is in response to the different symptoms of a disease and its diagnosis according to TCM. They are popular in Chinese households where the knowledge of certain foods as medicine has been passed down from generation to generation. There are hundreds of food recipes for menopause and many of them can be eaten on a regular basis.

Generally, the medicinal dishes for menopause mainly focus benefiting the kidney so as to resume the body in harmony. For symptomatic problems, replenishing the blood and qi, soothing the liver, invigorating the spleen or heart may be needed.

	Warming the kidney | Nourishing kidney and enriching yin | Invigorating heart and spleen | Soothing liver and regulating qi

Food Recipes for Warming the Kidney

In TCM theory, when there is kidney yang deficiency, the body fails to transform the essence leading to a decline in endocrine and physiological functions. Warming the kidney helps boost the overall body condition in menopausal women, particularly for those with dull complexion, limb coldness, fatigue, back soreness and urinary frequency.

1. Ginseng, antler and sea cucumber soup

Ingredients	Ginseng (6g), deer antler (1g), dried sea cucumber (250g)
Method	Soak the sea cucumber overnight, clean and cut into small cubes; slice the ginseng, and grind the deer antler. Bring to the boil 750ml water in a pot, add in the sea cucumber and cook for 15 minutes; discard floating foam and add in salt, millet wine and ginseng slices; cook for a further 30 minutes; add in deer antler powder and cook for 5 more minutes, add pepper and sesame oil to taste, and thicken with cornstarch paste. Sprinkle green onion on top and serve hot.
Benefits	Ginseng enriches the primordial energy of the body; deer antler warms the kidney; sea cucumber replenishes essence and promotes storage of marrow.

2. Cassia bark and venison stew

Ingredients	Cassia bark (5g), processed rhemannia rhizome (10g), venison (500g)
Method	Cut the venison into pieces, marinate with salt, sesame oil, ginger, rice wine and pepper for 20 minutes. Wash the other two ingredients. Add a little vegetable oil in a pot and heat up; put in the venison and stir slightly, then fill with water to about 1cm from the top, bring to a boil and further cook for 15 minutes; add in the rhemannia rhizome and cassia bark, cook in low heat for about 2 hours. Serve hot.
Benefits	Cassia bark and venison are pungent and hot in nature which promote yang elements of the body; processed rhemannia rhizome invigorates the kidneys and enriches essence.

3. Stir-fried shredded pig's kidney

Ingredients	Pig's kidney (2 pieces), and cistanche (12g), snow peas (1 cup)
Method	Boil the cistanche to make a sauce and put aside. Cut the kidneys in half and devein, slice and marinate them with salt, sesame oil, soy sauce, ginger, rice wine and sugar for 20 minutes. Stem the snow peas. Add some vegetable oil in a pot and heat up; put in the kidneys and stir-fry for 2 minutes; add snow peas and stir briskly for 2 minutes more; add in the prepared herbal sauce, add salt to taste, bring to a boil and cook 2 more minutes. Sprinkle green onion and pepper on top and serve hot at once.
Benefits	Both cistanche and pig's kidneys can boost kidney functioning.

4. Stir-fried shredded chives and eels

Ingredients	Chinese chives (150g), eels (500g), fragrant Solomonseal rhizome (10g), Solomon's seal rhizome (10g)
Method	Wash and soak the two herbal ingredients to make them tender, cut into proper size; chop the Chinese chives in 3cm sections; cut the eels in half and devein, then slice. Add some vegetable oil in a pot and heat up, put in eel slices and deep-fry for a while; add in millet wine, the herbs and 50ml water, cook for 15 minutes, add salt and pepper or ginger to taste, put in the Chinese chives, stir-fry for 3 minutes more and dish up. Serve hot at once.
Benefits	The two herbal ingredients tonify the spleen and kidney, and enrich the kidney essence. Both Chinese chives and eels boost kidney functioning.

5. Mutton, wolfberry and chestnut stew

Ingredients	Wolfberry (15g), chestnut (200g), mutton (250g)
Method	Cut the mutton in pieces, marinate them with salt, sesame oil, soy sauce, ginger, rice wine and sugar; wash the wolfberry and peel the chestnuts. Add a little vegetable oil in a pot and heat; put in the mutton and stir slightly; then fill with water to about 1cm from the top, bring to a boil and further cook for 15 minutes; add in the wolfberry and chestnut, cook in low heat for about 2 hours. Serve hot.
Benefits	The ingredients warm the kidneys, promote blood and qi production.

6. Cornus fruit porridge

Ingredients	Cornus fruit (15g), brown sugar (10g), rice (30g)
Method	Wash the cornus fruit and rice, put in a pot with 1000ml of boiling water. Bring to a boil, return to simmer and cook as porridge. Add brown sugar and serve hot.
Benefits	This dish enhances the liver and kidney functioning, consolidates the storage of essence.

Cistanche		Cornus fruit		Hairy deer antler