I have recently discovered a gem in Seattle, WA. Yasuo Mori is a lifelong student and practitioner of shiatsu. He began his studies with his mother at the age of six. A practitioner with this type of experience is hard to find and I get to have him in my very own city! I am so pleased to have found him!
Yasuo Mori also has over 35 years experience practicing macrobiotics and has a wealth of knowledge about how to use food and yin and yang to balance our bodies and lives. He has recently created Chi Soup. The soup is for sale locally and he teaches a cooking class for people interested in learning how to make it for themselves. Yasuo invited me to attend the cooking class. I enjoyed learning the technique and hearing from people who Yasuo is inspiring both through his hands on work and Chi Soup. The soup itself is delicious! It is chock full of traditional healing foods including lotus root, burdock, sea vegetables, kuzu, hatcho miso, daikon radish, konnyaku and shiitake mushrooms.
I think it is important to add something fresh when reheating the soup. One way to do this is to add some chopped greens such as cabbage, kale, collard greens, watercress, or any other green. However, I would not add spinach or beet greens as these tend to be more acid forming. You can also add raw chopped green onions, parsley or cilantro as a garnish right before serving. For myself, I would add both the greens and the garnish. Enjoy!
Here is a link to an article about Yasuo Mori: Best of Seattle 2005 article.