Before we jump in, I want to highlight the importance of understanding how to distinguish between yin and yang foods. Though 200 foods is certainly a lot, it is a small fraction of all the foods known to mankind. Knowing the framework to determine a food’s nature is much more powerful than rote memorization.
This list is meant to be a starter kit for you to verify that you are discerning yin foods and yang foods with relative accuracy. It’s not meant as the end all be all.
You may conclude a food is yin when the list says it is neutral, and your conclusion is just as valid. Slight differences in the temperature, mineral composition of the soil, and even the ripening stage can completely change a food’s yin yang profile.
Don’t let small deviations bother you but instead keep your eye on the bigger patterns. For instance, you may notice foods with “water” in their name (like watercress and water chestnut) are yin. Without further ado, let’s begin!
1-28: Cold (Strong Yin)
Cold animal foods
1. Clam
2. Crab
3. Mullet
4. Sea urchin
5. Snail
Cold grains, legumes, and nuts
6. Mung bean
7. Wheat germ
Cold vegetables
8. Bamboo shoot
9. Bitter melon
10. Cucumber
11. Dandelion leaf
12. Konjac
13. Lotus root
14. Mung bean sprout
15. Rhubarb
16. Tomato
17. Water chestnut
18. Water spinach
19. Water spinach
20. Watercress
Cold fruits
21. Banana
22. Cantaloupe
23. Cranberry
24. Gooseberry
25. Honeydew
26. Persimmon
27. Sugarcane
28. Watermelon
29-89: Cool (Yin)
Cool animal foods
29. Cheese
30. Cream
31. Duck
32. Duck egg
33. Frog
34. Goose
35. Jellyfish
36. Lamb liver
37. Milk
38. Octopus
39. Rabbit
40. Yogurt
Cool grains, legumes, and nuts
41. Amaranth
42. Barley
43. Buckwheat
44. Chia seed
45. Kamut
46. Lima bean
47. Millet
48. Seitan
49. Tofu
50. Wheat
51. Wheat bran
52. Wild rice
Cool vegetables
53. Alfalfa sprout
54. Asparagus
55. Beet greens
56. Bok choy
57. Broccoli
58. Celery
59. Chinese broccoli
60. Daikon
61. Eggplant
62. Endive
63. Lettuce
64. Luffa
65. Mushroom
66. Napa cabbage
67. Okra
68. Plantain
69. Radish
70. Seaweed
71. Spinach
72. Summer squash
73. Swiss chard
74. Zucchini
Cool fruits
75. Apple
76. Blackcurrant
77. Blueberry
78. Coconut
79. Grapefruit
80. Kiwi
81. Mangosteen
82. Mulberry
83. Orange
84. Pear
85. Pineapple
86. Pomelo
87. Starfruit
88. Strawberry
89. Tamarind
90-172: Neutral
Neutral animal foods
90. Abalone
91. Beef liver
92. Beef tripe
93. Beltfish
94. Carp
95. Chicken egg
96. Cod
97. Crawfish
98. Cuttlefish
99. Loach
100. Mackerel
101. Oyster
102. Perch
103. Pigeon egg
104. Pollock
105. Pork
106. Pork heart
107. Pork kidney
108. Pork trotter
109. Quail egg
110. Salmon
111. Sardine
112. Scallop
113. Sea bass
114. Sea cucumber
115. Sturgeon
116. Tuna
117. Turtle
118. Yellow croaker
Neutral grains, legumes, and nuts
119. White rice
120. Rye
121. Soybean
122. Almond
123. Pumpkin seed
124. Adzuki bean
125. Black bean
126. Black sesame
127. Black-eyed pea
128. Broad bean
129. Brown rice
130. Cashew
131. Chickpea
132. Flaxseed
133. Gingko nut
134. Hazelnut
135. Hemp seed
136. Kidney bean
137. Lentil
138. Sunflower seed
139. White sesame
Neutral vegetables
140. Artichoke
141. Beetroot
142. Brussel sprout
143. Cabbage
144. Cauliflower
145. Chinese yam
146. Corn
147. Daylily
148. Kale
149. Kohlrabi
150. Olive
151. Pea
152. Potato
153. String bean
154. Sunchoke
155. Taro
156. Turnip
157. Winter melon
158. Wood ear
159. Yam
Neutral fruits
160. Apricot
161. Avocado
162. Blackberry
163. Cherry
164. Date
165. Fig
166. Grape
167. Loquat
168. Mango
169. Papaya
170. Plum
171. Pomegranate
172. Raspberry
173-220: Warm (Yang)
Warm animal foods
173. Anchovy
174. Beef
175. Beef kidney
176. Bison
177. Chicken
178. Chicken liver
179. Eel
180. Lamb kidney
181. Lobster
182. Mussel
183. Pheasant
184. Pigeon
185. Pork liver
186. Pork tripe
187. Quail
188. Shrimp
189. Turkey
Warm grains, legumes, and nuts
190. Chestnut
191. Glutinous rice
192. Oat
193. Peanut
194. Pine nut
195. Pistachio
196. Quinoa
197. Sorghum
198. Spelt
199. Tempeh
200. Walnut
Warm vegetables
201. Bell pepper
202. Carrot
203. Chive
204. Fennel bulb
205. Green onion
206. Leek
207. Mustard leaf
208. Onion
209. Parsnip
210. Pumpkin
211. Sweet potato
212. Winter squash
Warm fruits
213. Guava
214. Jackfruit
215. Kumquat
216. Longan
217. Lychee
218. Nectarine
219. Peach
220. Quince
221-231: Hot (Strong Yang)
Hot animal foods
221. Caribou
222. Elk
223. Goat
224. Lamb
225. Moose
226. Reindeer
227. Trout
228. Venison
Hot grains, legumes, and nuts
229. Cocoa beans
Hot vegetables
230. Chili pepper
Hot fruits
231. Durian
Feed Yourself for a Lifetime
“Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day; teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime.” My hope is that by providing you an abundance of examples, you learn how to fish for yourself.
When you feel you can differentiate between yin and yang foods, combine these foods to cook yin yang balanced meals.
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