Our staple food is typically rice, specifically white rice. In daily life, there are many grains like millet, brown rice, glutinous rice, etc., each with distinct nutritional benefits. Do you know the advantages of regularly eating millet? While many people often drink millet porridge, they may not be aware of its specific nutritional value.Nutritional Value of Millet Millet, also known as foxtail millet, aids digestion, replenishes deficiencies, and benefits the lower abdomen. It is suitable for those with blood deficiency, weak constitution, or poor appetite. It is particularly beneficial for postpartum women experiencing low milk production, fatigue, and loss of appetite due to postnatal weakness. It can be consumed as breakfast.Millet porridge is especially beneficial for new mothers during winter and spring. In northern China, many women traditionally nourish their bodies postpartum with millet porridge sweetened with brown sugar.Unlike most grains, millet contains 0.12mg of carotene per 100g and boasts the highest vitamin B1 content among all grains. With 72.8g of sugar per 100g, millet provides significantly more calories than rice. Additionally, its rich vitamin B1 and B2 content helps prevent indigestion and mouth ulcers.
Nourishing the Spleen and Stomach: As Li Shizhen noted in Compendium of Materia Medica, millet "treats vomiting, dysentery, deficiency syndromes, and opens the intestines and stomach." In fact, vomiting, dysentery, and deficiency syndromes all relate to impaired spleen and stomach function. Thus, millet's primary efficacy lies in nourishing these organs.Traditionally, sweet flavors and yellow hues are associated with the spleen. Millet is yellow in color and sweet with a hint of saltiness, hence its ability to "harmonize the stomach and warm the middle burner." Northern women traditionally avoid meat during postpartum confinement, relying primarily on millet porridge for nourishment—a practice rooted in this principle.
Nourishing the Kidneys: The saying "humans transform grains into essence" means all grains nourish vital energy and kidney qi. Among grains, millet possesses the strongest kidney-tonifying properties. Li Shizhen noted: "Millet has a salty-mild taste and a cold nature that descends and permeates; it is the grain of the kidneys."This means millet has a slightly cold nature and a faint salty taste. As salty flavors enter the kidneys, millet also benefits kidney qi and replenishes vital energy, earning it Li Shizhen's designation as the grain of the kidneys.
Nourishing the heart and calming the spirit: The Compendium of Materia Medica further states that drinking millet soup "enhances small intestine function and nourishes the heart while calming the spirit."Millet is rich in nutrients, with the highest tryptophan content among grains. Tryptophan regulates sleep patterns. Consuming millet porridge before bed promotes restful sleep. For insomnia caused by gastrointestinal issues, its efficacy surpasses that of sleeping pills. Beauty and Skin Care: Millet also offers cosmetic benefits.In northern Shaanxi, a local saying goes: "The women of Mizhi, the men of Suide, the stone slabs of Qingjian, and the coal of Yaogou." Mizhi in northern Shaanxi is renowned for its beautiful women—one of the Four Great Beauties of ancient China, Diaochan, hailed from Mizhi. Logically, one might question how such beauty could flourish in the arid, rain-scarce northwest, battered by fierce northwesterly winds. Yet Mizhi consistently produces stunning women.The reason lies in their millet consumption. According to the "Chronicles of Mizhi County": Mizhi derives its name from the Mizhi River. Situated in the hilly, gully-ridden region of the Loess Plateau, the Mizhi River flows 100 paces southeast of the county seat. Its fertile soil is ideal for millet cultivation, and the people of Mizhi have thrived on this grain.
Eliminating bad breath: Millet reduces bacterial growth in the mouth. Rich in amino acids, it possesses antibacterial properties and helps prevent vaginal inflammation in women.
For the elderly, the infirm, and postpartum women, millet is arguably the most ideal nourishing food. The Compendium of Materia Medica states that millet "treats stomach disorders and dysentery; when cooked into porridge, it benefits the lower abdomen, replenishes deficiencies, and opens the intestines and stomach."Traditional Chinese medicine also describes millet as "harmonizing the stomach and warming the middle jiao." Perceived as sweet and salty in flavor, it is believed to clear heat, quench thirst, strengthen the stomach, dispel dampness, harmonize digestion, and promote restful sleep. It is particularly suited for those with internal heat or weak spleen-stomach function. For individuals with poor appetite, consuming millet can stimulate and nourish the stomach, aiding digestion, preventing nausea, and alleviating vomiting.
Under work pressures, stomach discomfort has become common among modern people. Loss of appetite has become a frequent complaint at mealtimes, while various digestive aids and stomach-stimulating medications dominate television advertisements. In reality, there exists a stomach-nourishing food that is both the greenest and most side-effect-free: millet.
What are some stomach-nourishing porridges?
Milk Porridge
Ingredients: 100g rice, 500g milk
Preparation: Rinse rice thoroughly. Bring to a boil over high heat, then reduce to low heat and simmer until porridge forms. Pour in milk, stir well, and continue simmering for 40-50 minutes. Serve plain or season with sugar or salt to taste.
Benefits: Replenishes qi and fluids, nourishes the stomach, and promotes tissue regeneration.
Suitable for: Stomach disorders characterized by qi and yin deficiency—manifesting as shortness of breath, fatigue, dry mouth, and internal heat—as well as upper gastrointestinal bleeding.
Double Fish Soup
Ingredients: 100g fish maw, 100g fresh fish mint
Preparation: Soak fish maw in water for half a day, then cut into thin strips. Add 1500ml water, bring to a boil over high heat, then reduce to low heat and simmer for about 50 minutes. Add fresh fish mint and boil for another 10 minutes. Season to taste, then consume the fish maw and drink the hot broth.
Benefits: Clears stomach heat, promotes tissue regeneration, and alleviates pain.
Suitable for: Individuals with stomach heat, characterized by persistent burning sensations in the stomach, and those experiencing upper gastrointestinal bleeding caused by heat.
Pepper Pork Tripe Soup
Ingredients: One fresh pork tripe, 15g white pepper
Method: Crush the pepper and stuff it into the cleaned tripe. Secure the opening with thread. Simmer in a clay pot until tender. Add a small amount of cilantro for flavor. Remove the tripe, discard the pepper inside, and consume the meat with the broth.
Benefits: Warms the middle burner, strengthens the spleen, harmonizes the stomach, and alleviates pain.
Suitable for: Individuals with cold stomach syndrome, such as those prone to diarrhea after consuming cold foods.
Citron Rice Porridge for Stomach Nourishment
Ingredients: 10-15g citron,50-100g japonica rice, rock sugar to taste
Method: Simmer citron to extract broth, strain, then add japonica rice and rock sugar to cook into porridge.
Suitable for: Patients with liver stagnation and stomach distension.
Cordyceps and Lily Duck Soup
Ingredients: 3g Cordyceps sinensis, 25g lily bulbs,100g duck meat
Method: Simmer duck meat for 30 minutes, then add Cordyceps sinensis and lily bulbs. Simmer for another 20 minutes. Season to taste. Consume the soup along with the duck meat and Cordyceps.
Benefits: Strengthens the spleen, nourishes the stomach, moistens the lungs, and tonifies the kidneys.
Suitable for: Individuals with spleen-stomach deficiency, lung-kidney insufficiency, and qi deficiency.