Mung Bean Porridge (Nokdu-juk): a Cool Summer Bowl

Half a cup of hulled mung beans is simmered in 5 cups of water for 30 minutes, then half a cup of soaked rice goes in for 20 more. A cool Wood and Water porridge for summer and autumn, 2 servings in 50 minutes.

Elements	Wood · Water
Good in	summer, autumn
Suits	a warm-running (hot) constitution
Serves	2 · 50 min

Green beans, a cool nature

Mung beans are green, the colour of Wood, and the haru data tags them that way. They are also one of the five foods the app lists as cool, alongside cucumber, pear, tofu and lotus root; the app says their cool nature brings heat down.

Salt gives the Water side: the tradition regards salty as the taste of Water, and Water produces Wood (水生木). Soaked rice is Earth and, in the app's words, supports the middle, giving the porridge its body.

Season and body type

This is one of the few haru recipes set for summer as well as autumn. Summer is the Fire season, and the tradition has long reached for cool foods such as mung beans in hot weather.

The nature is cool, so the tradition reads it as suiting a constitution with more heat, 열이 많은 체질. Read as the tradition's way of pairing food and temperament, not as medical advice.

Ingredients and their elements

Three ingredients, three elements: Wood, Earth and Water. None has a listed swap.

Mung bean porridge, 2 servings, 50 minutes
Ingredient	Amount	Element	Swap
Hulled mung beans	0.5 cup	Wood	-
Soaked rice	0.5 cup	Earth	-
Salt	0.5 tsp	Water	-

Ingredients

Hulled mung beans 0.5 cup (Wood)
Green mung beans have a cool nature that is read as bringing heat down.
Soaked rice 0.5 cup (Earth)
Earth energy that supports the middle.
Salt 0.5 tsp (Water)
Salty is the taste of Water.

How to make it

Simmer the mung beans in 5 cups of water for 30 minutes until very soft.
Add the soaked rice and simmer for 20 more minutes, stirring.
Season with salt.

Questions

Why hulled mung beans?

Hulled (split, yellow-green) beans soften faster and give a smooth porridge without straining out skins.

Is it eaten hot or cold?

Usually warm, even in summer; the cool nature belongs to the bean, not the serving temperature.

Can I sweeten it?

The app version is salted. Some families add a little sugar at the table, but salt keeps the Water note.

Solar terms in this season

Lixia 立夏, Start of Summer Xiaoman 小滿, Grain Buds Mangzhong Xiazhi Xiaoshu Dashu Liqiu Chushu Bailu Qiufen Cold Dew Frost Descent

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See it for your chart → Open Haru

Traditional Four Pillars (myeongni) and yin-yang five-element interpretation. Not a medical diagnosis or advice.