Coix Seed and Spinach Drink

Herbal Tea Name: Coix Seed and Spinach Drink

Chinese Name: 薏苡仁菠菜饮

Formula

200 grams of spinach, 50 grams of coix seeds, and salt and MSG to taste.

Main Ingredients

How To Make

Remove the tough leaves and roots from the spinach, wash it thoroughly, blanch it briefly in boiling water until it changes color, then cut it into small pieces. Rinse the coix seeds thoroughly with water, place them in a pot, add an appropriate amount of water, and simmer until the liquid is reduced to a broth. Once cooked, add the spinach and simmer briefly. Season with MSG and salt to taste, then remove from heat, transfer to a bowl, and serve.

Efficacy

Strengthens the spleen and aids digestion; nourishes the blood and reduces swelling. Suitable for simple obesity, and particularly beneficial for those with concurrent blood deficiency.

Usage

Consume in the morning and evening.

Commentary

Taking spinach (Bo-cai) as the chief herb, the formula draws on its sweet flavor and cool property: it enters the Liver, Stomach, Large Intestine meridians and works to nourish blood, moisten dryness and calm the liver. Coix seeds (Yi-yi-ren) act as the deputy ingredient. Sweet, bland-cool in property, it enters the Spleen, Stomach, Lung meridians and works to clear damp-heat, strengthen the spleen and relieve impediment. Salt and MSG to taste serves as the envoy herb, harmonizing the whole, working to harmonize the flavor and unite the separate actions into one. The overall effect is to strengthen the spleen and aid digestion, nourish the blood and reduce swelling, restoring balance within the blood deficiency and blood framework.

Coix Seed and Spinach Drink,From *Proven Tea, Decoction, and Soup Recipes for Common Ailments*,Strengthens the spleen and aids digestion; nourishes the blood and reduces swelling. Suitable for simple obesity, and particularly beneficial for those with concurrent blood deficiency.