At the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty, disasters were serious everywhere, and many people suffered from diseases. There is a famous doctor named Zhang Ji in Nanyang, whose name is Zhongjing. He studied medical books hard since childhood and learned from others, becoming the founder of traditional Chinese medicine. Zhang Zhongjing is not only good at medical skills, but also noble in medical ethics. He has treated the poor and the rich seriously and saved countless lives.
When Zhang Zhongjing was an official in Changsha, he often cured diseases for the people. After Zhang Zhongjing retired from Changsha to his hometown, he walked to the shore of the Baihe River in his hometown and saw many poor people suffering from hunger and cold, and their ears were frozen. He was very upset and determined to treat them. When Zhang Zhongjing came home, there were many people seeking medical treatment, but he always remembered the poor people with frozen ears. Following the example of Changsha, he told his disciples to set up a medical shed and cauldron in an open space in Dongguan, Nanyang, and open it on the day of the winter solstice to give medicine to the poor to cure their injuries.
Zhang Zhongjing boiled mutton, pepper and some medicinal materials in a pot. After cooking, he fished them out and chopped them up, made them into ear-shaped "jiao 'er" with a flour bag, and cooked them in the pot and distributed them to patients begging for medicine. Each person has two charming ears and a bowl of soup. People get hot all over after eating soup, and their ears get warm. After eating for a while, my rotten ears will be fine. People call this kind of food "dumpling ears", "jiaozi" or partial eclipse, and eat it on the winter solstice and the first day of the new year to commemorate the day when Zhang Zhongjing opened a shed to give medicine and cure patients.
Other customs of the winter solstice
1, eat dog meat
According to legend, Liu Bang, the Emperor Gaozu, ate dog meat cooked by Fan Kuai on the winter solstice, which made him feel particularly delicious, and he was feverish and sweaty, so he praised it as good to eat dog meat on the winter solstice. Since then, the custom of eating dog meat on the winter solstice has been formed among the Han people. After the winter solstice, the weather enters the coldest period, and dog meat and mutton are eaten during the winter solstice to the cold season, so as to be full of energy in the coming year.
2. Eat red bean porridge
The son of * * * Gong, a tribal leader in the south, died on the winter solstice and continued to harm the people after his death. Because this epidemic ghost was most afraid of red beans, people cooked red bean porridge on the winter solstice. Later, this kind of red bean porridge was also called "winter solstice porridge", in which besides red beans, red dates and walnut meat were also added.
Baidu Encyclopedia-Eating jiaozi on the Winter Solstice