a culinary genealogy
In Chinese tradition, the postpartum diet is made up of warming foods that new moms can eat to replenish their body, boost circulation, and stimulate milk production. After childbirth, there is a 4-6 week “confinement” period, in which the birthing parent’s body recovers from the very taxing 9+ month journey it just went on. New parents are encouraged to stay indoors, dress warmly, avoid the cold, and reduce visitors.
We’ve gotten many requests over the years for Chinese postpartum recipes, so this category includes all the relevant recipes new moms, partners, relatives, and friends can make! Some general guidelines include: avoiding foods that are spicy, fried, preserved/overly salty, cold or chilled, or raw. Fish and shrimp are allowed, but other seafood like crab, lobster, oysters, clams, and other shellfish are “cooling” to the body, rather than warming. Take a look at the recipe collection below!
