YogaEvaVoya
Water Element Foods-Winter Foods
Winter time, the end of all seasons! One cools the surface of the body and warms the body's core.
It is the time to store physical energy, in the form of a little added weight for the cold season.
Warm soups, whole grains and roasted nuts are good on cold days. Dried foods, small dark beans, seaweeds and steamed winter greens fortify the kidneys in the winter.
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Cook foods longer, at lower temperatures and with less water.
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Water Element foods are all salty and dark foods (purple, black or blue). Also, fresh fish and salted fish, salted meat, caviar and other fish eggs, eggs, beans of all kinds.
Miso is a key ingredient in Japanese cooking and forms the base of the staple dish, miso soup. The paste, similar in texture to peanut butter, is typically a cultured mixture of soybeans, a grain (like rice or barley), salt, and koji (a mold). Depending on the variety, miso can be smooth or chunky and is fermented anywhere from a few weeks to several years.
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White or light miso (sometimes called sweet miso) can be light beige to yellow in color and tends to be lighter and sweeter in flavor thanks to a shorter fermentation time. It's made with less soybean content and more grains, like white rice.
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Red or dark miso ranges in color from light brown to almost black and is fermented for longer for a stronger, funkier, and saltier flavor. This miso is made with a higher proportion of soybeans and salt for an intense experience.
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Because miso is a fermented food, it is a natural source of healthy probiotics (also known as "good bacteria") and is beneficial for digestion. This is why traditional recipes for miso soup specify not to bring the soup to a boil. Note that miso is high in sodium; the levels vary depending on the type and brand...
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