Congee & Porridge

Walnut, Longan Flesh, Black Bean & Brown Rice Congee

Traditionally used to nourish heart-blood, calm the mind, and support women through perimenopause

In short: Walnut, Longan Flesh, Black Bean & Brown Rice Congee is a congee & porridge that Traditionally used to nourish heart-blood, calm the mind, and support women through perimenopause. It is most often made for women's wellness, heart & circulation, sleep & calm. Total time about 75 min. Key ingredients: walnuts, longan flesh.

Prep
15 min
Cook
60 min
Total
75 min
Makes
About 1.2 L
Walnut, Longan Flesh, Black Bean & Brown Rice Congee

Why people make this congee

The years around menopause can bring a wave of uncomfortable changes — hot flashes, night sweats, heart palpitations, disrupted sleep, mood swings, and a general feeling that the body is shifting in ways that are hard to predict. Chinese food therapy approaches this period not as a medical crisis but as a natural transition that can be supported through nourishing foods. Nourilo designed this congee to be warming, gentle, and genuinely delicious — the kind of thing you could cook on a weekend morning and eat throughout the day. Walnuts are a classic brain and kidney tonic; longan flesh is used in almost every Chinese sleep-support and blood-nourishing formula; black soybeans are considered deeply kidney-tonifying; and the combination of red and black brown rice provides fibre and slow-release energy. The whole family can enjoy it, not just those going through menopause.

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.

  • Walnuts · Randomized controlled trial, 305 participants · 2019
    Office systolic BP changed by -4.61 mm Hg with walnuts versus -0.59 mm Hg in controls (P=0.051); 24-hour ambulatory systolic BP difference was not significant (P=0.111). No diastolic BP changes were observed.Limitation: Only 236 of 305 participants (75%) completed the study, and the main between-group differences did not reach conventional significance.PubMed 30879358 · 2 more walnuts studies
  • Black soybeans · Randomized controlled trial, 100 participants · 2013
    Systolic blood pressure fell more in the black soy peptide group (-9.69 mm Hg) than in the placebo group (-2.91 mm Hg) after baseline adjustment. Plasma malondialdehyde decreased and superoxide dismutase activity increased compared with placebo.Limitation: Used an isolated peptide supplement rather than whole black soybeans, and followed participants for only 8 weeks, so the results may not apply to food intake.PubMed 23924691

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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