Soups
Old Cucumber, Mung Bean and Pork Rib Soup
traditionally associated with clearing heat, supporting the body's natural processes, and supporting skin comfort
In short: Old Cucumber, Mung Bean and Pork Rib Soup is a soup that traditionally associated with clearing heat, supporting the body's natural processes, and supporting skin comfort. It is most often made for skin & natural beauty. Total time about 105 min. Key ingredients: mung beans, tangerine peel, pork ribs.
Why people make this soup
In hot, humid weather — especially for people who have to wear a face mask all day — the skin around the jaw and cheeks is under constant stress: sweat, friction, and trapped heat. Breakouts and eczema flares become more common. This soup uses a ripe, yellow-skinned cucumber (not the young green one you eat in salads, but the same plant left to fully mature until its skin turns yellow and its seeds are large) which is considerably richer in antioxidants than its young counterpart. Nourilo also has a personal tip: when scooping out the seeds and pulp to prepare the soup, he saves the cucumber liquid in a bowl and uses it as a facial compress or hand soak after cooking — naturally cooling, anti-inflammatory, and mildly brightening. Mung beans are one of the most trusted heat-clearing, skin-supporting ingredients in Cantonese cooking. Together they make a soup that is also helpful for people managing weight, blood sugar, and blood pressure.
What studies say about the key ingredients
Traditional use is not the same as clinical proof. Here is the strongest human research we found for each ingredient, limitations included.
- Mung beans
Breath hydrogen and methane were higher after wheat than after rice or mung bean noodles. Bloating scores after mung bean did not differ significantly from wheat, and mung bean produced gas levels similar to rice.Limitation: Small sample of 20 patients, with single meals tested rather than habitual intake, so longer-term effects of mung bean on symptoms are unknown.PubMed 31484315 · 1 more mung beans study - Tangerine peel
The tangerine peel drink group showed significant reductions in body weight and triglycerides after the intervention compared with the control group (p < 0.05). Safety markers showed no adverse effects. Gut microbiota and serum metabolite profiles also differed.Limitation: Small pilot trial with only 55 of 72 participants completing. The fermented product is not the same as plain tangerine peel, and the control group is not described.PubMed 40225325
From the Nourilo Research Library. Findings come from specific doses, extracts and populations and may not apply to a home-cooked recipe.
Safety first — read before you cook
This is a traditional food, not a treatment. Please check with your doctor or pharmacist before making it a regular part of your diet if you:
- are pregnant or breastfeeding, or are cooking for a young child;
- take regular medicines — especially blood thinners, blood-pressure, diabetes or immune-suppressing drugs;
- have a kidney, liver or heart condition, or a known food allergy.
Stop eating it and seek advice if you notice an allergic reaction or feel unwell. Safety notes reviewed 8 October 2026 · How we write safety notes
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