Food feng shui

Balance: Yang foods include deep-fried food (above), while yin foods include salads (below).

FENG SHUI, the traditional Chinese practice of placement and arrangement of space to achieve harmony with the environment, is fast gaining popularity around the world. The art of feng shui has even found its way into the realm of food.

As people become more health-conscious, they start applying feng shui principles to food. Although food does not have good or bad feng shui in itself, believers in feng shui say that certain foods, through their energy composition or visual appearance, are able to add or subtract from the feng shui of their surroundings.

The concept of yin and yang can also be applied to food. Yang foods are said to increase the body’s heat (that is, raise the metabolic rate), while yin foods have the opposite effect. Generally, yang foods – especially fat – tend to be dense in energy, while yin foods have higher water content. The Chinese ideal is to eat both types of food to keep the body in balance and avoid problems such as acne and bad breath as a result of excessive yang energy. Excessive yin energy may result in the person being lethargic or anaemic.

There are foods that are classified as “neutral” as they are considered to have a good balance of yin and yang. No one particular food is purely yin or yang. Food is classified based on the dominant characteristic. Moderation is best and it is good to maintain a diet that contains a healthy balance of yin and yang food.

Examples of yin food are spinach, celery, duck, eggplant, crab and soy sauce. Garlic, salt, chicken, turkey, pineapple, beef and vinegar are said to have yang properties, while neutral foods include abalone, potato, rice, grains, crackers, biscuits and lemon.

Interestingly, cooking methods are said to have yin or yang properties too.

Yin methods include boiling, poaching, steaming or food eaten fresh or raw. Deep-frying, roasting, stir-frying and baking are said to give food its yang properties.

Taking this into consideration, how then would you decide on a menu for the Chinese New Year reunion dinner? Keep in mind that it is customary to include certain dishes as they are believed to usher in wealth, happiness and good fortune, for example, serving a whole fish to signify abundance, baked rice cakes to symbolise prosperity, and longevity noodles to connote long life.

As the reunion dinner will be typically yang, you can try to keep a balance by opting for steamed fish instead of deep-fried fish. You can also choose food with less salt as salt is believed to have extreme yang polarity.

To enjoy guilt-free indulgence at the reunion feast, you can balance out the rest of the day’s diet by choosing a “neutral” breakfast with wheat crackers and cereals, and a yin lunch of salad and fruits. Consuming nutritious biscuits or cereal products which are “neutral” at regular intervals will ensure that your meals are balanced and will keep energy levels high throughout this busy stretch!

If you know how to balance the yin and yang properties in food, you don’t have to worry about over-indulging or compromising your health during this festive period. Reading labels on food products can also help in identifying the right amount of yin and yang, and help you plan your menu.

While it is common for most people to look for the negative (such as preservatives or chemical additives) when reading labels, this practice can also be used to pick up the right stuff to ensure that we pack a balanced diet to support our active lifestyles. – Article courtesy of Jacob’s

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