Medicinal cuisine originates from China’s traditional dietary and TCM dietary therapy culture. It is prepared under the guidance of theories from TCM, culinary arts, and nutrition, strictly following medicinal dish recipes that combine Chinese herbs with certain food items of medicinal value, using unique Chinese cooking techniques and modern scientific methods to create delicious foods with specific colors, aromas, flavors, and shapes. It is a product of the combination of traditional Chinese medical knowledge and culinary experience. It embodies the concept of “medicine in food,” where medicines are treated as food, and food is endowed with medicinal properties, allowing the two to complement and enhance each other; it possesses high nutritional value and can prevent and treat diseases, promote health, and prolong life.
1. Bai Guo Ji Ding (Ginkgo Chicken Cubes)
【Ingredients】Tender chicken meat 350 grams, ginkgo nuts 100 grams, green and red peppers 1 each, egg whites 2, seasoning to taste.
【Preparation】First, cut the chicken into 1 cm cubes, place them in the prepared egg whites, and marinate with soy sauce and starch for at least 30 minutes. Cut the ginkgo nuts in half and dice the peppers. Heat 500 grams of vegetable oil to 70% hot, add the ginkgo cubes, and fry on low heat until golden, stirring constantly for 3 minutes, then remove. When the oil is 80% hot, add the chicken cubes, stir to separate, and remove once cooked, draining the oil. In a clean pan, stir-fry scallions, ginger, and green peppers, then add the chicken and ginkgo cubes, stir-fry quickly, add seasoning, and serve.
【Effect】Has good health benefits for patients with pulmonary heart disease.
2. Ding Xiang Ya (Clove Duck)
【Ingredients】Cloves 5 grams, cinnamon 5 grams, cardamom 5 grams, duck 1, ginger 15 grams, scallions 15 grams, salt 5 grams, rock sugar 3 grams, sesame oil 3 grams, braising sauce to taste.
【Preparation】Boil cloves, cinnamon, and cardamom in water until boiling, then simmer for about 20 minutes to extract the medicinal juice, repeating twice to collect about 200 ml of liquid. Clean the duck, place it in a pot with ginger, scallions, and enough water, bring to a boil, skim off the foam, then reduce to low heat and add the medicinal juice, cover, and simmer for about 15 minutes, then remove the duck. Boil the braising sauce in a pot, then add the duck, braising it on low heat until cooked. In a separate pot, heat some braising sauce with rock sugar until melted, then season with salt and evenly coat the duck with it, finishing with a drizzle of sesame oil.
【Effect】Warms Yang, tonifies deficiency, aids digestion, and is suitable for patients with chronic gastritis, indigestion, and gastrointestinal dysfunction.
3. Sha Ren Du Tiao (Cardamom Pork Stomach)
【Ingredients】Cardamom powder 10 grams, pig stomach 1000 grams, pepper powder, Sichuan pepper, ginger, scallion, lard, salt, cooking wine, MSG, and water bean flour to taste.
【Preparation】Clean the pig stomach, blanch it in boiling water, then scrape off the inner membrane. Pour clear broth into a pot, add the pig stomach, Sichuan pepper, ginger, and scallion, cook until done, skimming off any blood bubbles. Remove the stomach, let it cool, and slice. In the pot, add 500 grams of the original broth, bring to a boil, add the stomach slices, cardamom powder, pepper powder, lard, and MSG, then stir in water bean flour to finish.
【Effect】Promotes Qi, alleviates pain, transforms dampness, and awakens the spleen. Suitable for loss of appetite, gastric and duodenal ulcers.
4. Cui Pi Xiang Jiao (Green Skin Banana)
【Ingredients】Bananas 600 grams, corn silk 50 grams, watermelon rind 500 grams, white sugar 200 grams, hawthorn 20 grams.
【Preparation】Peel the bananas and cut them into thick slices, place in a bowl with 100 grams of white sugar, cover with wet cotton paper, and steam for half an hour. Clean the watermelon rind and cut it into small pieces, then boil with corn silk and hawthorn for 20 minutes, extracting 100 ml of juice, then boil again to collect 200 ml of juice, filtering through gauze. Combine the steamed banana juice with the watermelon rind juice in a pot, add 100 grams of white sugar, and reduce to a syrup, then pour over the bananas to serve.
【Effect】Calms the liver, clears heat. Suitable for headaches, tinnitus, and blurred vision caused by hypertension.
5. Yu Zhu Zhu Xin (Polygonatum Pig Heart)
【Ingredients】Polygonatum 50 grams, pig heart 500 grams, ginger, scallions, Sichuan pepper, salt, sugar, MSG, sesame oil to taste.
【Preparation】Clean the Polygonatum and cut it into sections, simmer in water twice to collect 1000 grams of medicinal liquid. Clean the pig heart, wash out the blood, and place it in a pot with the medicinal liquid, ginger, scallions, and Sichuan pepper, cooking until the heart is 60% done, then remove and cool. Place the heart in the braising sauce pot, simmer on low heat until cooked, skimming off any foam. Add appropriate braising sauce to the pot, along with salt, sugar, MSG, and sesame oil, heating to a thick sauce, then evenly coat the heart inside and out.
【Effect】Calms the mind, nourishes Yin, and generates fluids. Suitable for coronary heart disease, arrhythmia, and dry cough with thirst due to heat injury.
6. Ju Hua Rou Si (Chrysanthemum Shredded Pork)
【Ingredients】Lean pork 300 grams, chrysanthemum 50 grams, ginger, scallions, salt, sugar, cooking wine, pepper powder, wet bean flour, chicken broth to taste, lard 100 grams, eggs 2.
【Preparation】Wash the chrysanthemum petals, cut the pork into 10 cm long shreds, and wash and shred the ginger and scallions. Marinate the pork shreds with egg whites, wet bean flour (half), salt, and cooking wine. Mix chicken broth, wet bean flour, MSG, pepper powder, and sugar to make a sauce. Heat a wok over high heat, add lard, and when hot, quickly stir-fry the pork shreds, then add ginger and scallions, stir-fry briefly, pour in the sauce, and stir-fry until the sauce is absorbed and shiny, then add the chrysanthemum petals and serve.
【Effect】Lowers blood pressure, dilates coronary arteries. Suitable for patients with hypertension and coronary heart disease.
7. Yu Xing Cao Ban Luo Sun (Houttuynia Cordata with Asparagus Lettuce)
【Ingredients】Fresh Houttuynia cordata 100 grams, asparagus lettuce 500 grams, scallions, ginger, garlic, soy sauce, vinegar, MSG to taste.
【Preparation】Remove impurities and old roots from the Houttuynia cordata, wash clean, briefly blanch in boiling water, then mix with 1 gram of salt and set aside. Peel the asparagus lettuce and cut into 3-4 cm sections, then shred and marinate with a little salt to drain. Place the asparagus shreds on a plate, add the Houttuynia cordata, soy sauce, MSG, sesame oil, vinegar, minced ginger, scallions, and garlic, and mix well to serve.
【Effect】Clears heat, detoxifies, promotes dampness, and drains pus. Suitable for urinary tract infections and lung abscess patients.
8. Shou Wu Gan Pian (Fo-Ti Liver Slices)
【Ingredients】Fo-Ti liquid 20 ml, fresh pig liver 250 grams, soaked black fungus 25 grams, a few green vegetable leaves, Shaoxing wine, vinegar, salt, starch, soy sauce, scallions, garlic, ginger, broth, and oil to taste.
【Preparation】Remove the membranes from the pig liver, wash clean, slice, and marinate with Fo-Ti liquid and a little salt, mixing with half of the wet starch. In another bowl, mix Fo-Ti juice, soy sauce, Shaoxing wine, salt, vinegar, remaining wet starch, and broth to make a sauce. Heat a wok, add oil, and when hot, add the liver slices to stir-fry, then drain excess oil. In the remaining oil, sauté garlic and ginger, then add the liver slices and green vegetable leaves, stir-fry briefly, pour in the sauce, and finish with a drizzle of oil before serving.
【Effect】Promotes blood circulation, softens atherosclerosis. Suitable for coronary heart disease, hypertension, and hyperlipidemia.
9. Du Suan Dun Ya (Garlic Stewed Duck)
【Ingredients】Live duck 1 (about 1250 grams), garlic 60 grams, ginger 25 grams, scallions 15 grams, cooking wine, pepper powder, MSG to taste.
【Preparation】Clean the duck, remove the internal organs and feet, blanch in boiling water to remove blood. Crush the ginger, wash the scallions whole, and peel the garlic, then stuff them into the duck’s abdomen. In a pot, add 2500 ml of water, the duck, ginger, scallions, cooking wine, and pepper powder, bring to a boil, skim off the foam, then simmer on low heat until tender, seasoning with MSG to finish.
【Effect】Promotes Qi, reduces accumulation, and aids in water metabolism. Suitable for edema, chronic nephritis, and similar conditions.
10. Chuan Bei Niang Li (Chuan Bei Stuffed Pear)
【Ingredients】Snow pears 2, Chuan Bei Mu (Fritillaria) 3 grams, glutinous rice 15 grams, coix seed 10 grams, candied winter melon strips 10 grams, rock sugar 30 grams, alum 3 grams.
【Preparation】Soak glutinous rice and coix seed in clean water, wash, and drain. Dissolve alum in 500 ml of water and set aside. Peel the pears, cut off the top third, and scoop out the seeds, soaking in alum water. To prevent discoloration, blanch in boiling water before rinsing with cold water and draining. Cut the winter melon into small pieces, mix with glutinous rice, coix seed, and rock sugar, stuff into the pears, place Chuan Bei on top, cover with the pear cap. Place in a steaming bowl, seal with wet cotton paper, and steam over boiling water for 1 hour until the pears are soft. Serve with the original pear juice reduced with a little water and rock sugar poured over the pears.
【Effect】Moistens the lungs, resolves phlegm, and clears heat. Suitable for lung tuberculosis cough, dry cough, and hemoptysis.
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