As the weather cools, there’s something incredibly comforting about a pot of soup or stew simmering on the stove. This nourishing adzuki bean and pumpkin stew is one of my favourite cooler-weather meals — simple to prepare, naturally sweet, and deeply supportive for digestion and energy.

In Chinese medicine, autumn and winter are the seasons to slow down, warm the body, and replenish our reserves. Foods like pumpkin and adzuki beans are traditionally valued not only for their flavour, but also for the way they support the body during the colder months.

Pumpkin is associated with the Earth element and the digestive system. It is warming, comforting, and nourishing — helping to strengthen digestion and support the body when energy tends to dip. It’s also wonderfully versatile. If you enjoy cooking seasonally, you might also enjoy my nourishing pumpkin soup recipe on the blog. Pumpkin is equally delicious roasted with sesame oil and tamari, and every Halloween my son eagerly waits for my homemade pumpkin pie — a recipe I may need to share in a future post.

Adzuki beans hold a special place in both Japanese cooking and Chinese dietetics. I first fell in love with them while travelling in Japan and tasting red bean desserts and pancakes. In Chinese medicine, adzuki beans (Chi Xiao Dou) are traditionally used to help clear dampness and support fluid metabolism, making them especially helpful when we feel heavy, sluggish, or puffy. Because they also support Kidney energy, they are a beautiful addition to winter meals, when nourishing the Kidney system becomes especially important.

One of the things I love most about food as medicine is how simple ingredients can become deeply therapeutic when we learn to use them seasonally and intentionally.

This philosophy is at the heart of my seasonal Food as Medicine and self-care workshops, where we explore how to align food, lifestyle, and simple healing practices with the changing seasons. Through Chinese medicine wisdom, practical recipes, and seasonal guidance, these workshops offer a grounded and nourishing way to support health naturally throughout the year. If you’d like to deepen your understanding of seasonal eating and healing through food, you can explore my upcoming workshops here.

This version is also more FODMAP-friendly, using garlic-infused oil instead of garlic and onion while still creating plenty of flavour.

Adzuki Bean & Pumpkin Stew
Warm, grounding, and deeply nourishing

Ingredients (serves 4)

  • 1 cup dry adzuki beans – soaked for 24 hours then drained
  • 2 bay leaves
  • 2 tsp garlic-infused oil (FODMAP-friendly)
  • 2 tsp olive oil
  • 2 cm piece fresh ginger, diced
  • 1 leek (white part only), sliced into thin half moons
  • 1 celery stalk, finely sliced
  • 1 medium carrot, sliced into thin half moons
  • 2 tsp ground cumin
  • 1 tsp sweet paprika
  • 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
  • 1/2 tsp Celtic sea salt
  • 4 cups pumpkin, chopped into large chunks (any variety; skin left on if preferred)
  • 1 Tbsp tamari
  • Fresh parsley, chopped, to serve

Method

  1. Drain the soaked beans and place in a pot with fresh filtered water, covering the beans by a few centimetres. Add bay leaves, bring to the boil, then cover and simmer gently for around 40 minutes or until soft. Drain and set aside.
  2. Heat the olive oil and garlic-infused oil in a large pot and add leek and ginger. Cook gently for around 5 minutes until softened and fragrant.
  3. Add celery and carrot and cook for a few more minutes until beginning to soften.
  4. Stir through cumin, paprika, cinnamon, and salt, allowing the spices to become fragrant.
  5. Add pumpkin and 1 cup of filtered water. Bring to the boil, then reduce heat and simmer for around 20 minutes or until the pumpkin is tender.
  6. Add the cooked adzuki beans and tamari and simmer for a further 5 minutes.

Serve with steamed rice or cauliflower rice and sprinkle with fresh parsley.

Enjoy.

Your feedback and questions are always welcome so please leave a comment below.

For further information on Chinese Medicine contact Tania Grasseschi (Acupuncture, Chinese Herbs, Qigong and Wholefood counselling). Tania is an AHPRA registered practitioner of Chinese Medicine located in Katoomba, NSW and has spent 6 years lecturing at the Endeavour College of Natural Health Sydney campus.

The information provided on this site is for educational purposes only, and does not substitute for professional medical advice. Please consult a medical professional or healthcare provider if you are seeking medical advice, diagnoses, or treatment. Remember that you are responsible for your own health and safety at all times.