Peaches in warm ginger syrup
Ripe summer peaches poached briefly in a brown-sugar and fresh ginger syrup — sweet with a gentle kick, a dessert that warms rather than chills a Yang-deficient stomach.
- 25 min
- Serves 2
- Poach
- Easy
Why it suits you: A Yang-deficient constitution has cold hands and feet and dislikes the cold; long days in air-conditioning plus iced desserts easily bring stomach pain or loose stools. Peaches are sweet and warm, one of few warming summer fruits, and cooking them with ginger and brown sugar satisfies a sweet craving while warming the stomach and dispelling cold.
Method
Prep 10 min · Cook 15 min- 1Grate the ginger and squeeze out the juice through muslin or with the back of a spoon; keep the pulp for the syrup.
- 2Put the water, ginger pulp, red dates and sugar in a pan, bring to the boil and simmer for 10 minutes, then strain out the pulp.
- 3Add the peaches and simmer for 3 minutes until just tender. Turn off the heat, stir in the ginger juice and serve warm.
Cautions
- Add the ginger juice at the end so it doesn't turn bitter, and use less if you have a sore throat or feel overheated.
Chef's tips
- Choose peaches that are just ripe and still slightly firm, so they hold their shape.
The TCM view
Peach is sweet, sour and warm, generating fluids, moistening the intestines and gently moving blood. Mature ginger is pungent and warm, warming the middle, dispelling cold and settling the stomach; brown sugar warms the middle and nourishes blood, and red dates support the spleen. Warming without drying, it helps a Yang-deficient body withstand the chill of air-conditioning and cold drinks.
