Eichhornia crassipes, also known as Ipomoea, is the seed of Ipomoea, a plant of the genus Ipomoea in the Indus family. Because it is mature, it looks like a long and narrow eye, with bright eyes and black beads, so it is named "Eichhornia crassipes". It is mainly produced in Guangdong, southwestern Guangxi, southeastern Fujian, southern Yunnan and Taiwan Province, and is cultivated in the Pearl River Delta.

Eichhornia crassipes is sweet and warm, and has the effects of warming stomach, killing insects, nourishing liver and gallbladder and improving eyesight. "Food Materia Medica" says: "Treat worms in viscera and children eating dirt, abdominal pain, addiction and hard accumulation. Nourish the liver and gallbladder, improve eyesight, relieve cough and fever, relieve pathogenic wind, relieve annoyance and reduce fire. " Apple leaves are also related to Lingnan customs, because their wrapped food can give off a light fragrance, and farmers in Huizhou, Guangdong Province often use them to wrap rice cakes.

Original plant identification characteristics

Pingpo is an evergreen tree of Sterculiaceae, with trunk10 ~15m, brown-black bark, alternate simple leaves, oblong or oval, 8 ~ 25cm long, 5 ~15cm wide and 2.5 ~ 5cm long petiole. Panicle droops, floret is crown-shaped, without corolla, perianth is bell-shaped, petals are milky white, milky yellow, calyx is pink, 5-lobed to the middle, lobes are triangular, and pubescent; Calyx pink staminal column is weak and curved; Female flowers are few, ovary hairy, stipitate, 5-lobed, style curved. The flowers are heterozygous, and the male flowers are more than the bisexual flowers. The fruit is long, round or ovoid, 4 ~ 8 cm long and leathery. The fruit is dark red or big red when it is ripe, and it is short fluff. Seeds1~ 5, oval to spherical. There are multiple seed coats, and the outer seed coat is chestnut brown and sticky; Endophytic leather, dark black. When ripe, the fruit seam cracks and the seeds do not fall off. The flowering and fruiting period is from May to July.

Eichhornia

Chemical constituents and pharmacological effects: the carbohydrate content of Eichhornia crassipes14.1%~18.6%, protein15.4% ~15.9%, fat 4.9% ~ 5.3%, and various vitamins.

Modern medical research has found that Eichhornia crassipes is rich in vitamin A, a variety of trace elements beneficial to human body and cellulose, which has the functions of lowering cholesterol, improving memory, cleaning intestines and protecting stomach.

Eichhornia crassipes peeled off the black seed coat, then peeled off the light brown translucent seed coat and ate yellowish or milky white seeds. Its seed kernel is soft, shaped like a peeled quail egg, delicate and beautiful, slightly sweet in taste, with a light fragrance, and the flavor is like chestnut, but it is not boring, so it is a high-quality food source.

Eichhornia crassipes dietotherapy medicated diet

1. Braised chicken with water hyacinth

Ingredients: a chicken, 250g water hyacinth, a little ginger and onion, and a proper amount of seasoning.

Practice: Wash Eichhornia crassipes, peel and take yellow seeds for later use. Wash the chicken, chop it into pieces, add soy sauce, oyster sauce, white wine, white sugar and cornmeal, mix well and marinate for 15 minutes. When the pot is hot, add appropriate amount of oil, add garlic, shredded ginger and shredded onion, stir-fry until golden brown, pour in chicken pieces, stir-fry until golden brown, pour in Eichhornia crassipes, add 2 bowls of water, boil over high fire, and adjust to medium fire for 20 minutes.

Efficacy: regulating stomach and promoting digestion

2. Eichhornia crassipes lotus seed tremella syrup

Ingredients: Eichhornia crassipes 200g, lotus seed 100g, tremella 50g, two eggs, five red dates, and proper amount of sugar.

Practice: peel the water hyacinth, shell the fresh lotus seeds to remove the plumule, remove the core from the red dates, soak the tremella, wash and tear it into small pieces, put the above materials together in a pot, add a proper amount of water, cook for one hour and then add the rock sugar until the sugar is completely melted.

Efficacy: Warming stomach and strengthening spleen, invigorating qi and nourishing yin.

3. Chicken soup with Eichhornia crassipes

Ingredients: half a chicken, 200g Eichhornia crassipes, 20g scallop, 2g dried tangerine peel, ginger, salt and peanut oil.

Practice: Wash the water hyacinth and peel it for later use. Wash and cut the chicken into pieces, and splash water for later use. Soak scallops in water until soft. Soak scallops in water for one hour. Put a proper amount of water into the pot, and put dried tangerine peel, scallop, ginger, chicken and water hyacinth into the pot together. After boiling, simmer for two hours and add a proper amount of seasoning.

Efficacy: nourishing yin and tonifying kidney, warming middle warmer and benefiting qi, and harmonizing stomach.

Note: People with spleen and stomach deficiency and cold or loose stool should use it with caution, please use it under the guidance of Chinese medicine practitioners.