What to eat at the vernal equinox
What traditional food do you eat at the vernal equinox?
1, spring vegetables:
In the past, there was a custom in the four cities (now Heshan is the five cities) called "eating spring vegetables at the vernal equinox". "Spring vegetable" is a kind of wild amaranth, which villagers call "Artemisia chun". On the vernal equinox, the whole village went to pick spring vegetables. When searching in the wild, it is often green and thin, about the length of a palm. Picked spring vegetables are usually boiled with fish fillets at home, which is called "spring soup". There is a jingle that says, "Spring soup is dirty, and it washes the liver and intestines. The whole family is safe and healthy. " Since the spring of the year, people still pray for peace and health at home.
The custom of eating spring vegetables has continued until now. Spring vegetables vary from place to place. As the name implies, spring vegetables are spring vegetables. Eating more vegetables at this time can not only supplement nutrition, but also play a role in health care. Spring seasonal dishes include leeks that nourish yin and strengthen yang; Bean sprouts, lettuce, onion, bean sprouts, garlic sprouts, etc.
2. Radish:
Yangzhou people also have the custom of eating spring rolls stuffed with buns or shredded radish at the vernal equinox. At this time, eating radish can not only ventilate up and down, but also play a role in getting rid of diseases and solving difficulties. Among various vegetables for health care in spring, radish has the best effect. White radish has the functions of clearing away heat and promoting fluid production, regulating qi and promoting digestion, and resolving phlegm. Raw radish tends to clear away heat and promote fluid production, while cooked radish tends to promote qi and digestion. Can be used for preventing symptoms such as cough due to excessive phlegm, sore throat, anorexia, abdominal distension, constipation, etc. Modern medicine believes that radish has a good diuretic effect, and the cellulose it contains can also promote defecation and help to lose weight. If you want to detoxify with radish, you can choose raw food, juice, cold salad or pickling.
Folks believe that "radish is hot in the head, dry in the tail and just right in the waist", and experts also remind that radish is eaten in sections and has different nutrition: the top of radish contains the most vitamin C, and it is appropriate to stir-fry and cook soup; The middle part has high sugar content and can be shredded and cold; The tail is spicy, containing amylase and mustard oil, which is suitable for pickling and mixing ... Usually, when there are few people at home, a big radish can't be eaten at one time, so you can cut it vertically and eat half, so that the head, waist and tail of the radish are all in the dish, and the nutrition is balanced.
space
3. snowball:
According to the custom of old Beijing, in order to ward off evil spirits and pray for blessings, the spring equinox will eat snowballing usury. The origin of snowballing usury is unusual, and its processing materials include rhubarb rice noodles, soybeans, red bean paste, sugar, sesame oil, osmanthus fragrans, green shredded pork and melon seeds, which are enough to meet the requirements of diversification of food materials in the Nutritional Dietary Guide. Its production is divided into three processes: blank making, filling and molding. "Snowball Donkey" is wrapped in bean flour, golden in color, sweet with bean flavor, soft and unique, and it is a delicious food suitable for all ages.
Bowling is also called bean powder cake. There is no doubt that bean flour cakes are mainly made of soybeans. Plus typical protein complementary foods such as bean stuffing. Every 100 grams of snowball contains 194 calories of heat; Protein 8.2 grams; 0.2g of fat and 4 1.8g of carbohydrate. In addition, it also contains micronutrients such as vitamins and calcium.
4. Sun cakes:
Sun cakes, step by step. According to the custom of old Beijing, on the vernal equinox, you should worship the sun god and "please" eat sun cakes. Sun cake is not only a tribute of the vernal equinox, but also a seasonal food, which means "the sun is high". Not only does "sun cake" mean beauty, but the setting of glutinous rice and stuffing also conforms to the health care concept of "preserving acid and sweetening" in spring.
Generally, sun cakes are made of glutinous rice and sugar, with a red rice watermark supporting a hairy statue of a three-legged chicken (golden rooster), or a "golden bird round light" pressed by a mold to represent the sun god. Sun cakes are served in a bowl of five yuan each, and there are noodles one inch high on them to rub chicken. I am very happy. This "sun cake" is made of glutinous rice and stuffed with jujube paste. Add white melon seeds and secret osmanthus in the stuffing to pray for a bumper harvest in the new year. The spring equinox solar terms are mild and sunny, so we should eat some glutinous rice and red dates properly to adjust the balance of body functions and adapt to the changes of solar terms.
space
What do southerners eat at the vernal equinox and solar terms?
1, Sun Cake: According to the custom in Beijing, on the vernal equinox, you should worship the sun god and "please" eat Sun Cake. On it, the head of a three-legged chicken (golden rooster) is supported by a red yeast watermark, or a "golden bird round lamp" is pressed out by a mold to represent the sun god. Sun cake is not only a tribute of the vernal equinox, but also a seasonal food, which means a step-by-step promotion. In addition, sun cakes are generally made of glutinous rice and sugar, which is also in line with the health care concept of "preserving acid and sweetening" in spring.
2. Tangyuan: In the solar terms of the vernal equinox, there is also a folk custom called "sticking a bird's mouth". That is to say, on the vernal equinox, every household should cook more than ten solid jiaozi and put it on a plate to dry. Bamboo with leaves is cut down from the bamboo forest. Children of each family poke dumplings at the top of the bamboo pole, carry them to the ground, and then insert them into their own ridges one by one. I hope the dumplings can stick to the mouth of the sparrow who steals food, so that the sparrow will not destroy the crops. We also cook dumplings for health, because glutinous rice is the main raw material and other ingredients are added. Glutinous rice is warm and sweet, and the added ingredients are often high in sugar and calories. Eating a small amount in spring and cold season is helpful to supplement the body's heat energy, tonify deficiency, regulate blood and strengthen the spleen.
3. Radish: In Yangzhou, there is also the custom of eating buns and spring rolls stuffed with radish or shredded radish at the vernal equinox. In spring, the best effect is radish. White radish has the functions of clearing away heat and promoting fluid production, regulating qi and promoting digestion, and resolving phlegm. Raw radish tends to clear away heat and promote fluid production, while cooked radish tends to promote qi and digestion. Therefore, eating radish in the spring equinox season can not only ventilate up and down, but also play a role in getting rid of diseases and relieving spring sleepiness.
4. Spring vegetables: There is an unbroken custom in Chaoshan area, which is called "eating spring vegetables at the vernal equinox". "Spring vegetable" is a kind of wild amaranth, which is between Chinese cabbage and mustard. It has both the sweetness of Chinese cabbage and the bitterness of mustard, so the villagers call it "Artemisia chun". On the vernal equinox, spring vegetables and fish are made into soup, which is called "spring soup". There is also a jingle saying: "Spring soup is dirty, washing the liver and intestines. The whole family is safe and healthy. "
5. Spring cakes: Eating spring cakes is one of the folk food customs in beginning of spring, China, but in some places, it is also the custom to eat spring cakes on the vernal equinox and solar terms. Beginning of spring is one of the most important days in a year, and the vernal equinox is the first day of spring, so eating spring cakes during the vernal equinox and solar terms is also a way to celebrate the arrival of spring. Spring cakes in Northeast China and Beijing are the best, usually eaten with side dishes, such as potatoes, leeks and bean sprouts, which can not only increase the taste, but also complement each other, provide dietary fiber needed by the human body, benefit qi and stomach.
What are the suitable foods to eat at the vernal equinox?
Eat more seasonal dishes:
More than 2,000 years ago, Confucius warned us that "we should not eat at times", that is, we should not eat fruits and vegetables unless it is this season. Seasonal dishes are also "luck dishes". Food should pay attention to "qi" and "taste". Because food and medicine are made up of smells, and the smells of drugs and food can only be refined when they are in season, that is, when they grow up and conform to the solar terms. Spring seasonal dishes include leeks that nourish yin and strengthen yang; Bean sprouts, lettuce, onions, bean sprouts, garlic sprouts; Late spring fruits that nourish the liver and moisten the lungs, such as strawberries, plums, apricots, plums, mulberries and cherries.
Give the stomach a vacation:
People's intestines and stomach also need rest. Rice is eaten in the stomach. Except for the stomach, many organs of the human body have to be busy with it, and even the brain has to give in three points. First, we must ensure that qi and blood meet the needs of the stomach. This is why the brain will fall asleep after eating. If we can give our intestines and stomach a rest day every week, it can effectively help us expel toxins accumulated in our bodies. Eat only two meals in the morning and evening on weekends, or replace one meal with porridge, fruit and honey water to reduce the gastrointestinal load.
Nourishing liver and expelling toxin:
Spring should be in the liver, summer should be in the heart, long summer should be in the spleen, autumn should be in the lungs, winter should be in the kidney, so spring should be based on nourishing the liver. The purpose of nourishing the liver in spring is to coordinate the balance of yin and yang in the liver. In Chinese medicine, sweets can nourish the spleen and stomach, and jujube and yam are good choices. Alcohol hurts the liver and intestines, so it is not advisable to drink alcohol in spring. Chrysanthemum tea, honeysuckle and even boiled water are the best drinks in spring.