Home-made soy milk （養生豆漿）

《本草綱目》 記載，豆漿，性平味甘，利水下氣，治諸風熱，解諸毒。春秋飲豆漿，滋陰潤燥，調和陰陽。夏飲豆漿，消熱防暑，生津解渴。冬飲豆漿，祛寒暖胃，滋養進補。

Out of curiosity, one of my friend asked me recently what my comfort food is in China. I paused for quite a while for not knowing which one I should choose. There are just so many comfort foods to me throughout different seasons! But this one drink that always reminds me of China and my mom is soy milk, home-made soy milk!

Most of people of my grandparents, parents and even my generation thrived on soy milk when growing up. Milk, on the other hand, was what we consider the rich man’s beverage. We may had them two or three times a week. I have never felt good after drinking milk. It was not until I learned about nutrition that lactose intolerance affects almost 90% of Asians. It makes so much sense to me as milk is never something our ancestors consumed. Now that being said, soy milk, however, has been the dominant healthy beverage we drink in China for centuries.

My mom especially loves making fresh soy milk. Our home-made soy milk is usually more than just soy beans. I somehow picked up her daily ritual of soaking different kinds of beans and grains overnight, throw everything into our soy milk maker the first thing next morning, and let the machine do all the magic! Sorting out the beans and grains to make sure there is no small sand or stone, observing how plump they all get the next morning, and seeing the soy milk steam float in the air can be so comforting. Traditionally, my dad would go buy some deep-fried bread sticks (油條，燒餅 and 煎餅 from the morning farmer’s market, and we would drink my mom’s home-made soy milk. This is what we call a breakfast! I love the aroma from the soy milk, and like the way they warm up my tummy and my whole body.

Hope you will give this recipe a try especially during these winter months! This soy milk can be made with just soybeans and dates that you have in your pantry. However, it will be a fun cultural experience to shop all other herbs at your local market for sure!