Chinese Barley Herbal Drink (中国薏苡仁水)

Chinese barley (aka Job’s Tears) is the most effective herbal drink in removing dampness from the body. Thus, it makes a very suitable drink to consume on days when the weather is warm and rainy.

chinese barley water

Chinese barley has the following properties:

健脾渗湿 – This means that Chinese barley can help to strengthen the spleen and remove dampness from the body. Dampness can affect the efficiency of the spleen from absorbing the nutrients we eat from the food. Thus, Chinese barley herbal drink is a must drink for people living in tropical countries.

清热排浓 – The second property means that it can reduce body heatiness and expel pus in the body. This is also the reason why Chinese barley is used commonly as one of the herbal drinks to cool down body heatiness.

Most suitable for:

Chinese barley is suitable for people with water retention issues, especially in the lower part of the body. It is also an ideal drink for people who want to lose weight.

Avoid if:

Do not drink Chinese barley drink if you are pregnant. 

If you experience stomach discomfort after drinking Chinese barley drink, then it could mean that your spleen could not take the cooling effect. In this case, you can stir-fry (without oil) the Chinese barley for 5 minutes before cooking them (if you are preparing the Chinese barley drink yourself). 

By stir-frying the Chinese barley, it is more suitable for the spleen and improves its spleen-boosting effect.

How To prepare the drink:

You can refer to this post on how to prepare a simple and effective Chinese barley drink. 

Where to buy the drink:

If you are living in Singapore, you can find Chinese barley drink commonly available in local TCM retail stores like Hock Hua Tonic, ZTp and many others.

If you are living overseas, especially in the western countries, you might find it difficult to find Chinese barley drink. Instead, you might need to cook your own after purchasing the Chinese barley from your local Asian TCM retail shops.