Pear with fritillaria bulb, steamed Photo: Wei Xi/GT

As the whole world knows by now, a number of big cities across China have experienced extremely bad air quality over the last few weeks. The cold and dry weather, thick smog and a seasonal flu outbreak have combined to make almost everyone's throat feel awful.

While some rely on consuming large amounts of water or taking medicine to relieve symptoms, some Chinese prefer other methods - herbal cuisines that are not only helpful but also tasty. Best of all, many are easy to make at home, even for green hands.

You may wonder how certain foods can cure illness, but Chinese herbal medicine experts say there are a number of items used in daily life that have medicinal effects. For example, ginger can warm your stomach while celery can clear heat in human bodies. And with the help of some herbs, the effects can be stronger.

According to Ma Yuqi, director of the department of traditional Chinese medicine at Beijing Jishuitan Hospital, most people are currently suffering from a dry throat, cough and sometimes a bit of viscous sputum. Common foods that help to relieve these symptoms are white fungus, pear, lily bulbs, lotus root, radish, carrot and Chinese water chestnuts.

For Chinese herbs, people can choose from dwarf lilyturf tuber, honeysuckle, chrysanthemum, dark plum and licorice.

Following Ma's suggestion, while white fungus should be boiled, all the other fruits and vegetables can be eaten raw. And they can all be used in soups as well.

As for the herbs Ma suggested, they can be used individually in teas or combined into soups. One prescription Ma gives is to take two to three grams of each of the above herbs and make them into a soup. "And if you are a little infected by the virus, you can add in some da qing ye [dyer's woad leaf]," Ma added.

For green hands, here are recipes for three herbal soups most commonly made in Chinese kitchens. They are easy to learn and do not take very long to whip up. All of them can be prepared in one afternoon, drawing from several online recipes and making adjustments. Each serves four.

Useful tips for these recipes: 

1. Either fresh lily bulbs or dried ones can be used.

2. Fritillaria bulb and licorice can be bought in shops that sell Chinese medicinal herbs.

3. It's better to buy dark plums in a Chinese medicinal herb shop rather than a snack shop.

4. Honey can be used instead of crystal sugar if desired.

5. The amount of crystal sugar or honey can be reduced or increased according to personal preference. You can even omit it and still enjoy a healthier throat.

6. All three of the soups can be served either hot (in winter) or cold (in summer).

And as Dr Ma reminds us, the above foods and herbs are not omnipotent. On really polluted days, wearing a mask and avoiding prolonged activities in the open air are also necessary for protecting our throat and lungs.

White fungus soup with Chinese water chestnuts and lily bulbs

Ingredients:

-2 grams dry white fungus (yin er or bai mu er)

- 120 grams Chinese water chestnuts (bi qi or ma ti) (about three chestnuts)

- 50 grams lily bulbs (bai he)       

- 20 grams crystal sugar (bing tang)

- 1 liter water

Instructions:

1. Steep dry white fungus in hot water for about 20 minutes until softened.

2. Meanwhile, skin water chestnuts and then dice.

3. Wash the lily bulbs and tear them apart into pieces.

4. Cut off stems of white fungus and discard. Chop caps into small pieces.

5. Combine white fungus, water chestnuts, lily bulbs and crystal sugar into a pot.

6. Add the water and bring to a boil over high heat.

7. Reduce heat and simmer 20 minutes, stirring occasionally. Leave the pot cover open a bit to reduce the chance of soup spilling out. You will find the soup gets a little thicker when it's ready.

8. Turn off flame and allow to cool slightly before serving.

Dark plum soup with licorice and sweet olive blossoms

Ingredients:

- 40 grams dark plums (wu mei)

- 5 grams licorice (gan cao) 

- 1 grams sweet olive blossoms (gui hua)

- 30 grams crystal sugar

- 1 liter water

Instructions:

1. Place dark plums, licorice and crystal sugar together in a pot.

2. Add water, turn flame on high and bring to a boil.

3. Reduce heat and simmer 20 minutes. Leave pot cover open a bit and stir occasionally.

4. Add sweet olive blossoms and cook 10 minutes more. Plums will soften when ready.

5. Turn off flame, cool and serve.

Pear with fritillaria bulb

Ingredients: 

- 450 grams pear (one or two pears)

- 5 grams fritillaria bulb (chuan bei)

- 10 grams crystal sugar

- 1 liter water

Method 1:

1. Cut pear into slices about 1 centimeter thick. There is no need to peel.

2. Put the pear slices into a pot together with fritillaria bulb and sugar.

3. Add water and bring to a boil.

4. Reduce heat and cook 40 minutes. Leave the lid slightly open and stir from time to time.

5. Turn off flame, cool and serve.

Method 2:

1. Cut off the top of the pear and core.

2. Insert fritillaria bulb and crystal sugar into the cavity.

3. Replace the top of the pear and fix to the body with a few toothpicks.

4. Steam for about 40 minutes.