Nutrition and Chinese Meals as medication

Hen's Nests and Shark's Fin - Moreover sharing an exorbitant price tag (not stunning considering that the first is made from the hardened saliva of the swiftlet bird, while the second requires days of preparation earlier than arriving at the pharmacy) both of these unique foodstuffs are reputed to be good for the complexion. Thankfully, so is the inexpensive Fish Maw. Created from the air bladder of certain sorts of fish, it really works well in soups and stews, absorbing the flavors of the meals it is cooked with.

Chinese Black Mushrooms - No want to go to the Chinese language pharmacist for these - you may discover bins of Chinese black mushrooms packed to overflowing in any Chinese language grocery store. Used in soups stir-fries and braised dishes, they are thought to be helpful in lowering blood pressure.

Cordyceps - A worm in winter and a plant in summer time? - surely I had misunderstood the pharmacist. In fact, the Chinese language identify for Cordyceps Robertii means "winter worm summer time grass." As The Oxford Companion to Meals explains, during the winter the Cordyceps fungus grows solely inside its host. Nevertheless, in summer it produces an outer progress, and it's these brown stalks which can be eaten. Grown primarily in Szechuan and Tibet, Cordyceps is quite costly - $125 an oz. Canadian on the pharmacy I visited. Thought to extend stamina, it's used in soups, usually in combination with chicken or duck. In addition, preparations containing Cordyceps are sometimes used by long distance runners wanting to increase their aerobic capacity.

Dried Gecko - The sight of a gecko skeleton - bearing a marked resemblance to a translucent bat - generally is a little unnerving. Reduce up and heated in rice wine, the hardy lizard is used to deal with everything from coughs and kidney infections to asthma.

Ginger - Apart from being appreciated for its distinct flavor and skill to diffuse other strong odors, ginger has long been used as a digestive aid. Thought to eliminate air within the body, it is used to treat both stomach acidity and movement sickness. In China, women typically drink a mix of ginger cooked in wine and sesame oil shortly after giving birth.

Hair Moss - The following time you notice a black rectangle of something that appears like human hair, however feels more scratchy (like the hair on a doll), likelihood is you have stumbled across hair moss. Also known as hair seaweed, black moss, and hair vegetable, this ingredient is served in a vegetarian dish throughout Chinese New Year. It grows in the Gobi dessert, nourished by mountain springs after heavy rainfalls. Its healing properties are thought to include cleansing the colon. Hair moss must be soaked before use.

Sea Cucumber - A gelatinous aquatic creature that gets its identify from its shape, sea cucumber is assumed to contain minerals that help construct wholesome joints, as well as bettering blood circulation disorders and lowering blood pressure. Many Chinese language pharmacies carry dried sea cucumber, which have to be soaked before use. Sea cucumber works nicely in soups, and is usually discovered together with bamboo shoots, mushrooms, hen broth, and varied seasonings.

Tangerine Peel (Dried) - If the price tag of a number of the more exotic gadgets on this record has dampened your interest in Chinese language medicines, you'll be blissful to know that this explicit therapy will be made at dwelling - simply depart the peel of a tangerine to dry and then store in an hermetic container. Tangerine peel is utilized in lots of Chinese dishes. It's thought to enhance digestion.