Cucumber
For Chinese dietary therapy, Cucumber (黄瓜) is a food of Cool nature and Sweet flavor. A very cool, watery vegetable, classic in summer and in smashed salads with garlic.
Traditional energetics
- Nature
- Cool
- Flavor
- Sweet
- Affinity
- Stomach · Bladder
- Direction of Qi
- Descending · cools
- Season
- Summer
- Group
- Vegetables
How tradition reads it
A very cool, watery vegetable, classic in summer and in smashed salads with garlic.
Classic smashed with garlic, vinegar, and a few drops of sesame oil, which temper its coolness; tradition avoids excess with digestive cold.
In the kitchen
Raw in salads, quick-pickled, or briefly stir-fried.
Commonly available; no substitute needed.
Current nutrition note
Very low in energy and composed mostly of water.
Precautions
Wash the skin well if eaten raw; commercial pickles can be high in sodium.
Recipes with this food
Health notice. Educational and study content. It describes concepts of Traditional Chinese Medicine and does not replace diagnosis or treatment by a healthcare professional. Needling, medicinal herbs and invasive techniques must be applied by trained professionals. Safety guide.
