Typically, winter in North America is cold and dry. After spending all day in a heated office, parched mouths and sore throats are common. Also, long periods of time spent hunched at a computer can lead to back pain—particularly as the shoulders stiffen. According to traditional Chinese medicine, these troubles can be attributed to excessive “bone-fire” in the body.

“Bone-fire” is a whole-body condition producing general discomfort throughout, with chronic pain in the joints and neck (cervical vertebra). Emotional agitation accompanies these malaises. In traditional Chinese medicine, bone-fire is considered to be a state of “yin excess and yang deficiency,” that may be remedied with a bowl of Bone-Fire Clearing Soup…

Ingredients:
fresh kudzu root, 1 lb of pork bone, some dried mussel meat, 3 dried oysters, 3 drops of black vinegar, 5 red dates, 3 slices of ginger root, and 8 rice-bowls of water.

Preparation:
Put the ingredients in a cooking pot and heat at low-medium temperature for about 2 hours. Serve and enjoy!

The key ingredient in Bone-Fire Clearing Soup is the fresh kudzu root. Known for its cooling nature, in folk medicine it is widely used to treat bone-related pain, particularly in the cervical vertebra. It also lowers blood pressure and acts as an anti-diuretic.

(Warning: This recipe is not for those who suffer from “cold stomach” or “excess dampness.”)