Why spring is the best time for spicy food – and you don’t have to be a chilli lover to feel the health benefits
- As we say goodbye to winter, traditional Chinese medicine teaches now is the best time to eat spicy food and help ‘dry out’ your system after months of dampness
- Spring is also when more green vegetables are available. Those with zero tolerance for spice should eat more of these to help strengthen organs like the liver
Spring is well underway in Hong Kong, but for many, it’s a time spent battling tiredness and lethargy. Eating spicy foods could be the pick-me-up that’s needed.
Hong Kong-based Chinese medicine practitioner Cecilia Cheung Po-wan says when the winter season is over, the sun is needed to melt the snow and to evaporate the dampness in the environment. The same, she says, applies to our bodies.
“We eat spicy foods to dry out our system after a few months of dampness. That’s the general principle,” she explains. What spicy dishes are best, however, depends on one’s tolerance to chillies, which get their kick from a chemical compound called capsaicin.
“Chilli heads” with a high tolerance for spice can consume fiery hot foods three to four times a week. Those with zero tolerance for spice should instead eat more vegetables, says Cheung. “Spring is when more vegetables are available and any kind of green vegetables are good. They help strengthen the liver which is active in spring,” she says.
Cheung adds people should not eat too many sour foods during springtime, as they can act as an astringent. “If you’re craving sour things, that means your liver may be overused, leading to fatigue, a lower immune system, and possibly even depression,” she explains.
Fruits are suitable, Cheung says, as long as they aren’t too sour like apples and oranges.
Science has also shown that eating spicy foods may benefit your health. A 2015 study from the Harvard School of Public Health found those who ate spicy foods almost daily had a 14 per cent lower risk of mortality than those who consumed spicy foods once a week.
Spicy foods may also promote weight loss and boost the body’s metabolism. In 2011, researchers at Purdue University in the US found that eating just one gram of red pepper (about 1/2 a teaspoon) after a meal can increase calorie burn.
According to the Chinese calendar, February 4 to the end of April is considered spring, so now is the best time to rid your system of any dampness. Here are some hot suggestions as to where you can indulge.
At Dynasty (3/F, Renaissance Harbour View Hotel, Wan Chai, tel: 2802 8888), executive chef Suen Kam-sing is dishing up some spicy dishes during April.
For those with a low spice tolerance, there’s stir-fried eel with peppers in spicy wine. The fresh eel slices are fried then stewed in dried chillies and Sichuan peppercorns together with crispy celtuce and served on a hot iron plate for extra sizzle. The restaurant’s steamed fresh grass carp fish head with preserved chilli sauce will also appeal to chilli lovers.
The traditional Hunanese dish is made with fish heads covered with a preserved chilli sauce made with pickled peppers and facing heaven chillies for an extra fiery sensation.
At Dong Lai Shun (Basement 2, The Royal Garden, 69 Mody Road, Tsim Sha Tsui East, tel: 2733 2020) executive chef Sze Chiu-kuen has a few spicy dishes on the menu. For a little kick, there’s a lamb braised brisket in a sour and spicy broth, and for a hotter sensation, he recommends the wok-fried spicy prawns in chilli that has a garnish of peanuts for some textural crunch.