Black chicken herbal soup (药材乌鸡汤)
The tonic soup of the later confinement weeks: silkie chicken simmered slowly with dang gui, astragalus, red dates and goji into a deep, restorative broth.
Guides
Recipes
Nourishing soups, common herbs and ingredients, foods said to support milk supply, and how eating changes across the confinement month.
Stage
Main
Method
Effort
Benefit
Chinese yam and pork rib soup (淮山排骨汤)
A gentle confinement soup: pork ribs simmered with Chinese yam, red dates and goji into a mild, strengthening broth, kind to digestion from the early weeks.
Dried scallop congee (瑶柱粥)
A savoury, nourishing confinement congee: soft rice simmered with dried scallops and ginger into a comforting bowl. Gentle enough for the earliest days.
Fish maw and chicken tonic soup (花胶炖鸡汤)
A restorative soup: collagen-rich fish maw double-boiled with chicken, dried scallops and red dates into a deep, nourishing tonic for the later weeks.
Ginger steamed pork patty (姜蓉蒸肉饼)
A gentle, home-style confinement dish: minced pork steamed with ginger and wood ear into a soft, savoury patty. Quick, comforting and kind to a small appetite.
Green papaya and fish soup (青木瓜鱼汤)
The classic confinement milk-supply soup: unripe green papaya and fish simmered into a milky, nourishing broth. Warm, gentle and eaten across the month.
Lotus root and pork rib soup (莲藕排骨汤)
A Cantonese confinement soup: lotus root simmered slowly with pork ribs, red dates and peanuts into a sweet, nourishing, quietly restorative broth.
Red bean and longan sweet soup (红豆桂圆糖水)
A warming confinement dessert: adzuki red beans simmered soft with dried longan and red dates into a sweet, blood-nourishing, gently restorative soup.
Sesame oil pork kidney (麻油腰花)
A Taiwanese confinement classic: pork kidney flashed in black sesame oil and old ginger. Warming and kidney-nourishing, cooked hot and fast for the early weeks.
Snow fungus and peach gum sweet soup (银耳桃胶糖水)
A gentle, silky confinement dessert: snow fungus and peach gum simmered with red dates and goji into a warm, nourishing sweet soup. Soothing and easy to eat.
Angelica and red date steamed pork ribs (当归红枣蒸排骨)
Pork ribs steamed with dang gui and red dates. A gentler way to take the classic blood nourishing herbs than a long boiled tonic soup.
Black sesame sweet soup (芝麻糊)
A warm, silky dessert of ground black sesame, gently sweet and deeply nourishing. A comforting way to take one of the confinement kitchen’s key ingredients.
Ginger-braised bean curd with mushrooms (姜焖豆腐)
Golden pan-fried bean curd braised with ginger and mushrooms in a light savoury sauce. A gentle, protein-rich vegetarian dish for any week.
Braised chicken with chestnuts (栗子焖鸡)
Chicken slow-braised with sweet chestnuts, old ginger and shiitake until tender. A homely, warming main for the settling and rebuilding weeks.
Broccoli with white fungus and goji (雪耳枸杞西兰花)
Crisp broccoli tossed with silky white fungus and goji berries in a light ginger glaze. A pretty, nourishing vegetable dish for any week.
Brown sugar ginger tea (红糖姜茶)
The everyday drink of the confinement month: old ginger simmered with brown sugar and red dates into a warm, sweet tonic. Simple, warming and made in minutes.
Chicken in rice wine (鸡酒)
The Cantonese confinement staple: chicken simmered with old ginger, wood ear and glutinous rice wine. Deeply warming, and a dish for the later weeks.
Coix and job’s tears rice (薏米饭)
Everyday rice cooked with job’s tears and red dates for a gently nourishing staple. A simple way to bring a traditional grain into daily meals.
Confinement mee sua with egg (月子面线)
Fine wheat mee sua noodles in a warming ginger and sesame oil broth, topped with a soft egg. A quick, comforting one-bowl meal for any time of day.
Five-spice braised pork belly (五香焖五花肉)
Pork belly slow-braised with old ginger, star anise and dark soy until meltingly tender. A rich, warming dish for the later weeks of the month.
Ginger and sesame minced pork (麻油姜末猪肉)
A fast weeknight confinement dish: minced pork stir fried with plenty of ginger in black sesame oil. Fifteen minutes, one pan, freezes well.
Ginger and spring onion steamed chicken (姜葱蒸鸡)
Chicken steamed with ginger and finished with a sizzle of spring onion oil. Clean, gentle and warming, a lighter chicken dish for any week of the month.
Ginger asparagus with white fungus and goji (姜炒芦笋银耳)
Asparagus stir-fried with ginger, soft white fungus and goji. A light, colourful vegetable side that still keeps to the warming palette.
Goji and chestnut steamed pork ribs (板栗枸杞蒸排骨)
Tender pork ribs steamed over sweet chestnuts and goji berries. A gentle, nourishing dish that suits the middle weeks of the month.
Green beans with wood ear (木耳炒四季豆)
Green beans and black wood ear stir-fried with ginger and garlic. A quick, crunchy vegetable dish with a blood nourishing note from the fungus.
Hong zao chicken (红糟鸡)
The Fuzhou confinement signature: chicken braised in red rice wine lees with old ginger, deep red, savoury and warming. A festive dish for the later weeks.
Longan and red date tea (桂圆红枣茶)
A warm, naturally sweet tea of dried longan and red dates. A gentle blood nourishing drink to sip through the day in place of cold water.
Longan and red date glutinous rice (桂圆红枣糯米饭)
Sticky glutinous rice steamed with dried longan and red dates, lightly sweet and warming. A comforting confinement treat for the settling weeks.
Millet congee (小米粥)
The quiet staple of the confinement month: golden millet simmered soft with red dates. Warm, easy to digest and gentle on a recovering system.
Peanut and pork trotter braise (花生炆猪手)
Pork trotter braised slow with peanuts until sticky and tender. A traditional dish for milk supply, distinct from the vinegar trotter of the first days.
Pork trotter in ginger and black vinegar (猪脚姜)
The Cantonese confinement classic. Trotters simmered for hours in sweetened black vinegar and old ginger, and the one dish worth buying the right vinegar for.
Pumpkin with dried shrimp (虾米焖南瓜)
Soft, sweet pumpkin braised with savoury dried shrimp and ginger. An easy, comforting vegetable dish that suits any week of the month.
Red date and goji tea (红枣枸杞茶)
The everyday drink of the confinement month: warm, faintly sweet, and made in one pot. What goes in it, why, and how to keep a flask going all day.
Red rice wine pork (红糟肉)
Pork belly braised in red rice wine lees with old ginger, deep red and savoury. The Fuzhou companion to hong zao chicken, for the rebuilding weeks.
Sesame edamame with wood ear (麻油毛豆炒木耳)
Edamame and black wood ear tossed in black sesame oil and ginger. A quick, protein-rich vegetable dish for the middle and later weeks.
Sesame oil chicken (麻油鸡)
The Taiwanese confinement signature. Chicken browned in black sesame oil with a mountain of old ginger, then simmered in rice wine until deeply savoury.
Sesame oil pork liver (麻油猪肝)
A classic blood nourishing confinement dish: pork liver flashed in black sesame oil and old ginger. Quick to cook, and eaten early in the month by tradition.
Sesame oil pork with wood ear (麻油木耳炒肉片)
Sliced pork stir-fried fast in black sesame oil and ginger with black wood ear. A quick, warming everyday plate for the middle and later weeks.
Sesame straw mushrooms with ginger (麻油姜炒草菇)
Straw mushrooms tossed in black sesame oil with plenty of old ginger. A quick, warming, umami-rich vegetable side for the middle and later weeks.
Slow-braised beef with carrots (萝卜炆牛腩)
Beef and carrots braised slow with star anise and ginger until tender. A warming, blood nourishing dish for building strength in the later weeks.
Braised daikon and carrot (炆萝卜红萝卜)
Daikon and carrot braised soft in a light savoury sauce with mushroom. A gentle, comforting vegetable dish that carries the flavour of whatever it cooks with.
Steamed barramundi with angelica and red dates
A delicate fish fillet steamed with a little angelica root, red dates and ginger. Gentle and nourishing, an easy way to bring herbs to the table.
Steamed chicken with dried lily flowers (金针蒸鸡)
Chicken steamed over dried lily flowers, shiitake and goji until just cooked. A light, gentle main for the middle weeks of the month.
Silky steamed egg custard (蒸水蛋)
The gentlest confinement dish: eggs whisked with warm broth and steamed to a soft, savoury custard. Easy to digest and kind to a delicate first week appetite.
Steamed fish with ginger and goji (枸杞蒸鱼)
A light, quick confinement dish for the early weeks: white fish steamed with ginger, goji and a little rice wine, finished with hot oil and spring onion.
Stir-fried kai lan with ginger (姜炒芥兰)
Warm greens for the confinement table: Chinese broccoli blanched and tossed with plenty of ginger and garlic. The side the rich dishes need.
Stir-fried lotus root with ginger (姜炒莲藕)
Crisp-tender lotus root stir-fried with ginger and a little sesame oil. A light, mineral-rich vegetable dish that balances the richer confinement table.
Sweet vinegar eggs (甜醋煮鸡蛋)
Eggs simmered in sweetened black vinegar with ginger, from the same tradition as the pig trotter vinegar. A warming, blood nourishing dish of the early weeks.