Nourilo

Tonic Drinks & Waters

Fresh Lotus Pod, Winter Melon and Legume Dampness-Clearing Brew

traditionally used to clear summer heat, support urination, reduce dampness, and ease swelling

In short: Fresh Lotus Pod, Winter Melon and Legume Dampness-Clearing Brew is a tonic drinks & water that traditionally used to clear summer heat, support urination, reduce dampness, and ease swelling. It is most often made for cooling & summer heat, children's wellness, blood sugar balance. Total time about 75 min. Key ingredients: winter melon.

By · Published under our editorial policy · Research library

Prep
15 min
Cook
60 min
Total
75 min
Makes
1.2–1.5 L
Cooling & Summer HeatChildren's WellnessBlood Sugar BalanceEveryday Balance
Fresh Lotus Pod, Winter Melon and Legume Dampness-Clearing Brew

Why people make this brew

Fresh lotus pods come into season from late spring through summer, and they are a wonderfully gentle summer ingredient in Cantonese food therapy. The lotus pod is the round, porous green seedcase of the lotus plant, distinct from the lotus root below the water and the lotus flowers above. It has a mild, gently astringent quality and is considered cooling in traditional Chinese food practice. Paired with skin-on winter melon (always keep the skin — it adds to the diuretic effect), azuki beans, and flat white beans, this brew is Nourilo’s simple go-to when you feel heavy, sluggish, and overheated on a summer day.

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.

  • Adzuki beans · Randomized crossover trial, 10 participants · 2019
    Adzuki bean meals had a low glycemic index (21–51 range reported with lotus seed), whereas other starchy foods did not differ significantly from rice. Adzuki bean hydrolysis index was lower than other test foods.Limitation: Only ten healthy participants and acute single-meal responses, so effects in people with diabetes or with regular intake are unknown.PubMed 30875961 · 1 more adzuki beans study

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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