1. Duck

The traditional dietary custom of Nanjing people is to eat duck during the "summer heat" season. Ducks, especially shelducks from the Jiangning Hushu area in Nanjing, are the most popular. It is reported that the ducks there are sweet in taste and cool in nature, and are suitable for fatness and leanness. If they are not free, old Nanjing people will go to the delicatessen to buy half a duck and take it home; if they are free, they will stew "radish duck stew" or make "braised duck cubes" at home to give to their neighbors. This is what the saying goes " Send ducks when the heat is over, and everyone will be free of illness." Hangzhou people are used to dividing ducks into old ducks, young ducks, and big ducks. In terms of nutrition, old ducks have more lean meat and less water content. They have better taste and nutrition. They are suitable for making soup to relieve the heat, while meat Duck is mostly used to make roast duck, sauce duck, etc. Here is a little tip on how to distinguish old ducks from young ducks: Old ducks generally have more even hair, a harder beak and soles, are yellow or black in color, and have harder bones to the touch. In addition, of the same size, an old duck weighs more than a young duck.

2. Longan

The "summer heat" is here, and the "summer escape" is over. Old Fuzhou people no longer drink herbal tea after the "summer heat", but eat more "qi-tonifying" and "blood-tonifying" things. Old Fuzhou people are used to eating longan, which is peeled and soaked in porridge. Autumn is about to enter after the summer heat. There is a saying in traditional Chinese medicine of "replenishing autumn", so it makes sense to drink less herbal tea and eat more longan. At this time, we should pay attention to "tonifying qi" and "tonifying blood", and avoid cold foods; at the same time, longan is warm in nature, which is beneficial to the heart and spleen, replenishes qi and blood, and has the effect of nourishing qi. It is beneficial to eat it in this solar term; but it is not used for dietary therapy. It is too rigid. There is no rule that you must eat longan soaked in porridge during this solar term. Many people can also eat it this way, which is beneficial.

3. White meatballs

In addition, another food that old Fuzhou ate during the summer heat was white meatballs. White meatballs are actually glutinous rice balls. The preparation is very simple. Grind the glutinous rice flour into small pieces, boil the soup, and add some sugar. The taste is sweet, which can not only replenish carbohydrates, but also relieve the mouth greasiness in summer. Glutinous rice has the effect of nourishing yin, so you can drink some glutinous rice porridge appropriately in autumn. Glutinous rice is sweet in taste and warm in nature. It enters the spleen, kidney and lung meridians, and can nourish the body's healthy qi. It has the functions of replenishing qi, strengthening the spleen, promoting body fluids and stopping sweating. After eating, the whole body will heat up, which can protect you from the cold and nourish you. Eating some glutinous rice food appropriately in autumn will have a very good tonic effect on the body.

4. Herbal tea

The custom of decoction of herbal tea during summer heat has been popular since the Tang Dynasty. During the summer season, every household has the habit of making herbal tea. They first go to the pharmacy to prepare the prescription, and then make the tea at home to prepare the drink. This means that you have to eat something "bitter" in autumn, which is very effective in clearing away heat, removing internal heat, digesting food, and removing lung heat. There are benefits. If you feel dry in the mouth before and after the heat, make tea with Ophiopogon japonicus or Dendrobium which are dry and cold in nature, which can help relieve heat and nourish yin; add snow pear, honey and Sichuan scallop soaked in water and drink it, which can reduce phlegm and relieve cough. The function of promoting body fluid and nourishing the lungs is also suitable for people with Qi deficiency. However, you should drink less herbal tea during the summer season, because the heat is not serious at this time, but herbal tea is too bitter and cold, which can easily damage the spleen and stomach, and is not beneficial to the lungs and kidneys.

5. Sour plum soup

In the 1960s and 1970s, there were tea stalls selling sour plum soup on the streets of Wenzhou, so there is a proverb that "sour plum soup in the summer heat will reduce all the anger". Making sour plum soup is very simple. Just brew the dried plums with boiling water at night and add rock sugar. After cooking and letting cool, put it in a wooden covered ice bucket to lower the temperature. It tastes sour and sweet, sweet and slightly salty, and has a very good taste. The organic acid content in ebony plums is very rich, which can effectively inhibit lactic acid, reduce fatigue, and remove harmful substances that cause blood vessel aging. Therefore, drinking sour plum soup during the summer season can relieve heat, refresh the mind, produce body fluids, quench thirst, and rejuvenate muscles and vascular tissues. In addition, when eating too much meat, drinking sour plum soup can also help balance the pH in the body.