MAKING WAVES WITH FENG SHUI
Healthy Holiday Entertaining
by Dennis Fairchild

If you care enough for the result, you will almost always attain it. William James

Deck the halls with boughs of holly and – uh-huh – food and more food. Plus, of course, Feng Shui (pronounced “fung schway,” the ancient philosophy that says that everything around us has an impact and which incorporates, folklore, astrology, ecology and good ole un-common sense)!

Holiday food and Feng Shui are yummy bedpartners. Everyone can achieve improved energy by optimizing the Feng Shui of one's food. That's right: Martha Stewart-like macrobiotics. Elemental balance, Yin/Yang harmony and even aromatherapy are all important parts of Feng Shui.

Next time you're planning a festive feast, remember that the five-Asian elements in food can be achieved through the simple but profound use of food colors. A plate full of same-hued monochromatic items looks pretty bland and probably wouldn’t get a seal of approval from a dietitian. So, a stir-fry made with yellow bell peppers, green bell peppers, orange bell peppers, red tomatoes, purple eggplant and some pink shrimp is a much better Feng Shui choice. Fruits and vegetables come in an array of colors; use them to your Feng Shui advantage. You don’t have to eat every color in the rainbow at every meal, but more colors in your diet will go a much longer way towards optimizing your Feng Shui inner health.

Simply put, water element foods are black or purple; arame sea vegetables, burdock root; wood foods include green colors like broccoli, kale, brussell sprouts; fire foods are color red or pink, like radish, red pepper; earth foods are yellow or orange-like, including pumpkin, corn; and metal foods are color white, like scallion root, daikon.

The concept of Yin and Yang (up/down, hot/cold; universal opposites that compliment) also applies to your food. Cuisine-wise, Yin would be the milder flavors while Yang would be the bolder flavors. Chinese recipes take advantage of this type of Feng Shui balance. Sweet and sour, hot and sour and strong-flavored dishes paired with plain rice are all examples of Yin/Yang balanced foods. When preparing these dishes, the cook must be careful to balance opposing flavors. For instance, Sweet and Sour entrees that are all sweet or overly sour wouldn’t be very pleasing to the palate nor be good Feng Shui. And pairing a spicy dish with other spicy dishes would overtax those gentle, seductive taste buds.

Yin and Yang is also used to explain the appeal of dishes featuring a mixture of soft or delicate foods with crunchy or crisp foods. Tofu or tempeh dishes with chopped nuts or diced water chestnuts always balance these textural differences. A plate full of crunchy food may tire the mouth, while a plate full of soft food might not seem very fulfilling. Balance is very important in food and Feng Shui.

Aromatherapy is equally important in Feng Shui because all senses need to be excited and accommodated. Nothing is more pleasing to the nose than delicious smelling foods. Think about aromas and scents when cooking Chinese food. Everyone in the house knows you’re cooking when the house is filled with the scent of toasting Szechuan peppercorns, lemongrass, orange and ginger. And what a joy it is to smell a grinder filled with ground Szechuan peppercorns (toasted or un-toasted)!

Aromatic seasonings like garlic, scallions and chilies often go into the wok or cast iron skillet near the beginning of the cooking process so they can lend their scents and lightly stir-fried flavors to the main ingredients. Plus, they are a treat for the cook's nose and home's ambiance. These wonderful scents rid the dwelling of negative energy and fill them and you, with positive energy.

Prosperity and abundance are extremely common Feng Shui goals. There are many ways to increase these and many other powerful enhancing “wanta” through food and food-related items. One common Feng Shui recommendation is to use your stove (not the oven or microwave, merely your stove or cook-top) often. This is because your stove and its burners, represents wealth. More burners would be better than less (so having a stove with five burners would represent extra wealth luck while one with only two burners would symbolize diminished wealth luck.)

You need to have any broken burners repaired as soon as possible, because they would represent economic troubles. Using all of your burners evenly is much better than using one or two “favorite” burners every day while ignoring the rest. Stimulating your wealth energy by using your stove often (hopefully by cooking meals using most or all of your burners throughout the day) can even be done by just turning on your burners every day for a few minutes. Gas stoves are better Feng Shui than electric stoves, though I would never recommend changing stoves or cook-tops for that reason alone. (Spending money unnecessarily is not good Feng Shui!)

The dishes in which you serve your food can also increase your prosperity and abundance. Ornate or expensive looking dishes are said to generate wealth luck to diners. Chinese or Asian dishes with fish designs or other wealth related designs also improve your wealth energy... including rich-toned Fiesta wear bowls and plates! Crystal glasses also increase the energy of your dining room table’s guests.

The best way to serve up a meal that symbolizes prosperity and abundance is to fill your table with an abundance of wonderful food (more food = more money) and double the food choices (thereby doubling one’s wealth) by hanging a mirror that reflects your dining table and seated guests. Tea candles versus tall chandelier-types are also said to act like money magnets to diners.

So now you’re ready to use all of your burners every day, cook elementally and Yin/Yang balanced Chinese meals, fill your home with amazing aromas and sit down to a spectacularly brilliant and healthy holiday meal at your prosperity-promoting dining room table.

Tell me, I’ll forget. Show me, I may remember. But involve me and I’ll understand. Chinese proverb

Dennis Fairchild is a Royal Oak-based author of several books on divination. For information about his personal Feng Shui, intuitive and astrological consults, e-mail DenFairchild@aol.com or phone (248) 546-6912.