February 4 is roughly the the southern hemisphere equivalent of 立秋 Li Qiu, Autumn Begins. It is the first term of autumn in the solar calendar but in China it is still hot, indeed the dog days of heat are ongoing. But it is an autumnal time as farmers need to prepare for harvest and an acknowledgement that cooler days are on their way.
White fungus soap is a traditional autumn food. Its main ingredients are white fungus* and lotus seed, that together moisten and nourish the body, and are thought to rejuvenate skin, improve immunity and digestion.
This moistening is important because Chinese autumns are dry. But while in Perth autumns we may expect some rain, our long summer is parching and needs to be remediated. And there’s gonna be plenty of hot dry days yet.
Soak 1/3 cup of lotus seeds in hot water for one hour.
Soak one flower of white fungus in room temperature water for 5 minutes, it will expand to three times its dry size. Rinse away any dirt or impurities and cut the dark yellow base of the fungus away with scissors, then shred the remaining part to smaller pieces.
Split the lotus seeds in half and remove any green sprouts as they are bitter.
You could add Chinese red dates or dried longan fruit for sweetness, half a dozen of each should do. Soak them before using. Gouji berries could also be used but add these towards the end of cooking as they can become bitter when cooked for more than a few minutes.
Simmer the ingredients in a covered pot for 45 minutes.
A bit of rock sugar may be used for sweetening if desired.

*White fungus 银耳 yin er is also known as snow fungus.You can find it and lotus seed 蓮子 lián zǐ at Chinese grocers.

It’s 36 degrees for days in Spring and that fan feels so good. But wind is the seasonal pathogen of spring, and we are easily damaged by it. I wrote a little more about that on the Insta.

To which I will add, neck pain can be made worse by wind.

The Chinese Medicine classics recognised that when the weather was different to what it should be in a season we should act according to the real situation instead of the seasonal ideal (for instance Huang di Nei Jing Chapter 71 line 477). The seasonal ideal of spring is warming, but when it is unseasonally hot we should cool ourselves instead. This is best done with water – swims, cool showers, and cooling foods and drinks. But not icy cold, as extremes generate their opposites, which in this case is heat. But as well as wind being the dominant qi of spring that brings wind diseases, it is a time of rising warm energy or yang. Migraines and hayfever are conditions that can be made worse by the seasonal rising yang. Wind can stir and unsettle rising yang, so rising yang illnesses can by made worse by wind, and they often involve combinations of both.

So again, try to avoid the wind. That little fan that blows on your face on the treadmill – turn it off.

Photo: Andre Zaripov