Water Chestnut Soy Milk

Why people make this drink

Bad breath is a small problem with an outsized social impact. While poor dental hygiene and cavities can certainly be the culprit, Chinese food therapy traces another common cause to the digestive system: when someone regularly eats rich, spicy, or fried foods, or has a constitution prone to stomach heat, that accumulated heat can rise upward and create an unpleasant mouth odour. This simple morning drink is Nourilo’s practical answer to that pattern — water chestnuts are cooling, crisp, and traditionally prized for clearing digestive heat and moving accumulated matter through the gut, while fresh soy milk adds gentle nourishment. Together they make a pleasant, easy-to-prepare remedy that is taken daily for one to two weeks.

Method

1. Peel the water chestnuts and slice them thinly.
2. Pour the soy milk and water chestnuts into a small pot.
3. Bring to a gentle simmer over medium-low heat and cook for about 5 minutes.
4. Drink the soy milk and eat the water chestnuts together.

Nourilo’s Tips

This remedy works best when taken on an empty stomach first thing in the morning. For optimal results, take it daily for 7–10 consecutive days. Nourilo recommends making soy milk fresh at home in a soy milk maker if possible — the flavour is fuller and the therapeutic quality better. If using store-bought soy milk, choose an unsweetened variety and add a small amount of rock sugar yourself to control sweetness.

If the bad breath has a deeper digestive cause — such as very frequent loose stools or a tongue coating that is thick and white — this cooling formula may not be the right fit. In that case, Nourilo suggests looking at soups to strengthen the spleen instead, such as a brew with poria (fu ling), white atractylodes (bai zhu), and flat bean (bian dou) with ginger and red dates.