Vegetable yakuzen– category –

Bamboo shoot comes into season in spring, and can be looked to for clearing excess heat from the body and moistening the intestines to settle the bowels. It is also said to help with skin trouble and to release toxins. It is an all-purpose spring vegetable that works simmered, in rice and much else. Cook it while fresh and enjoy the taste of the season.

Kombu is the seaweed the Japanese table cannot do without, and can be looked to for settling circulation and clearing excess damp from the body. It is also said to hold down fat levels and steady blood pressure. Bringing it into everyday cooking helps support healthy eating.

Nori is an ingredient Japanese food culture cannot do without, and can be looked to for settling circulation. It is held to be useful in humid seasons and when you want to clear excess heat. It keeps easily and works in a great many dishes, so do bring it to your table.

Barley is an ingredient that can be looked to for settling the gut and clearing excess heat and fluid. It is exactly right for the summer heat and humid weather. It is easy to cook and easy to bring to the everyday table, and it supports healthy living. Do try barley in season.

Turnip comes into season in winter and can be looked to for settling the gut. Gentle in taste and soft in texture, it works in a great many dishes. Bringing it to the everyday table supports healthy eating. Do try it in season.

Arrowhead is a vegetable that suits replenishing nourishment in the winter season. It can be looked to for regulating the flow of blood and easing what has stalled in the body. Cooked well it makes a dish full of flavour, so do bring it to your winter table.

Pak choi is said to ease heat in the body and settle inflammation. It is nourishing and a valued vegetable from spring into summer. It is easy to cook, so do make a point of it in everyday meals.

It is thought to clear excess heat from the body and moisten the intestines. In hot weather in particular it can be looked to for settling the gut. In a stir-fry it goes beautifully with garlic and chilli, which lift its aroma and texture.

Lotus root, considered auspicious because its holes suggest seeing through to the future, is easy to cook and works in a great many ways. Fried or simmered it grows sweeter, and its texture is a pleasure. It is also rich in fibre and can be looked to for settling the gut. To keep it, wrap it in newspaper against damp and store it somewhere cool and dark.

Rose flower is held to regulate the circulation of qi and clear what has stalled. It is also said to improve the flow of blood and ease pain and trouble brought on by blood stasis. It works well on concerns common to women, such as tightness or pain in the chest, a troubled gut and irregular periods. As well as drinking it as tea, bringing the dried flowers into cooking lets you feel what it does day to day.