The “hot” and “cold” category that Chinese culture separate their food into

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I am unsure if this categorization of food exist only in Chinese culture or if it exists in other (Asian) cultures. In China, a lot of the food is separated into either "cold" or "hot".

Some examples of "cold" food types are:

  • most fruits (apples, pears, etc)
  • tea
  • some herbal remedies(gingseng, ram horn water, etc)

Some examples of "hot" food types are:

  • some fruits (mangoes, pineapple, etc)
  • deep fried foods
  • pan-seared/ pan fried foods
  • coffee

Generally since I was young, I've been brought up to eat a balance of the "hot" and "cold" food. I was curious if this "hot" and "cold" categorization can be quantified into anything concrete? Can this categorization be backed by any sort of food science that finds a similarity between all the "hot" foods and all the "cold" foods.

Best Answer

Per AsianResearch.org's article The Ancient Theory Behind Chinese Food:

Generally speaking, foods that have a higher water content are considered cool, or yin, in nature. These are often foods that are boiled or steamed. Foods that have a higher energy content, particularly from fat, are considered warm, or yang, in nature. These are often foods that are fried or roasted.

[...]

From [Chinese traditional element theory] comes the idea of the five flavours − bitter, sweet, spicy, salty and sour.

These flavours are subdivided into yin and yang. Sweet and spicy foods are considered to be yin, while bitter, sour and salty foods are considered to be yang. The five elements also correspond with the colours red, yellow, white, blue and green, which are all considered when choosing ingredients.

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