Wood
Spring
Liver · Gallbladder
Sour greens, sprouts, herbs
Food energetics · field notesVol. 01 / 2026
A seasonal guide to
Eating in
balance
An introduction to the living language of food, through the lens of Traditional Chinese Medicine.
01 / Principles
Nothing exists
in isolation.
In Chinese medicine, food is more than fuel. Each ingredient carries a temperature, flavor, direction, and nature that can support or challenge the body’s own rhythm.
Yin and Yang describe two complementary forces: cooling and warming, stillness and movement, substance and activity. Health is not a fixed point—it is the art of tending the relationship between them.
“Let food be thy medicine
and medicine be thy food.”— traditional principle
and medicine be thy food.”— traditional principle
02 / The living map
Five elements,
one ecosystem.
Every season has a character. Every character has a taste. Use this map as a way to notice—not a list of rules.
Fire
Summer
Heart · Small intestine
Bitter leaves, berries, light grains
Earth
Late summer
Spleen · Stomach
Sweet roots, squash, warming grains
Metal
Autumn
Lung · Large intestine
Pungent aromatics, white foods
Water
Winter
Kidney · Bladder
Salty broths, dark beans, seeds
03 / Organ map
The body
as landscape.
The Zang-Fu organs are understood as networks of function. Their correspondences offer a poetic, practical way to eat with the season.
OrganFlavorColorSeasonQuality
LiverSourGreenSpringPlan · movement · vision
HeartBitterRedSummerJoy · connection · spirit
SpleenSweetYellowLate summerNourishment · thought · center
LungPungentWhiteAutumnGrief · boundaries · breath
KidneySaltyBlack / blueWinterWill · wisdom · reserves
04 / In practice
Begin with
one meal.
01Eat with the season. Choose what is growing close to home.
02Favor warm, cooked food when digestion feels fragile.
03Notice how a meal leaves you feeling. Your body is the best translator.