"The beauty of April in the world is gone, and the scent of locust flowers is lingering." In April, peach blossoms, apricot blossoms, and cherry blossoms are in full bloom, the grass and trees are green, there are endless spring scenery, and there are endless fresh wild vegetables. Even in late spring, there are also sweet and sweet locust flowers to accompany them, but locust flowers are not just there. We commonly see white, purple and yellow Sophora japonica flowers, so can these Sophora japonica flowers be eaten? Many people don't know yet.
National Sophora japonica - Yellow Sophora japonica flower
In fact, the taste of Sophora japonica flower in ancient times was not as sweet and tender as the current Sophora japonica flower, but a slightly bitter Chinese medicine. Li Shizhen In "Compendium of Materia Medica", it was recorded that "Sophora japonica is bitter, flat and non-toxic". Its status in the food world is not as high as it is now. It is also recorded in "Compendium of Materia Medica" that at that time Sophora japonica was just It can be said that the ingredients that must be eaten in times of famine have nothing to do with food. This kind of Sophora japonica is usually called "National Sophora japonica". Its flower color is usually yellow or beige, and it has basically no fragrance. It is generally used as medicine. It is not eaten as a delicacy.
Purple Sophora japonica
There is also a fragrant Sophora japonica with purple or pink flowers, also known as the Wealthy Tree. It is used as an ornamental tree and is a common greening tree species on both sides of urban roads. The purple locust flower itself is non-toxic and has a strong fragrance. According to common sense, it is edible. However, this kind of locust tree has not been cultivated for a long time and has not been verified on a large scale. And experiments, plus its main value is for ornamental purposes, so it is best not to eat it
Acacia - White Sophora japonica
Acacia is also called black locust, and it traveled to the ocean in the late Qing Dynasty. When it came to my country across the sea, its sweet and rich taste, soft texture and high nutritional value transformed it into a mouth-watering taste in spring. Therefore, the word "foreign" was added as a prefix to the name. It means that it is an imported product. In fact, strictly speaking, Sophora japonica and Sophora japonica are not plants of the same genus. If they have to be related, they can only be regarded as "distant relatives" at best. What we eat now is basically the same. They are all white locust flowers.
After understanding, among the yellow locust flowers, purple locust flowers and white locust flowers, only the white locust flowers are safe to eat. When you see purple or yellow locust flowers on the street, don’t think about picking some for consumption.
Although locust trees were only introduced to our country in the late Qing Dynasty, it does not stop people from cooking with them. Research, steaming, stuffing, cold dressing, stir-frying, etc. are all delicacies worthy of being savored. Let’s share a recipe for Sophora japonica Wotou, which is delicious and nutritious but not fattening.
Sophora japonica Wotou
Ingredients required: Sophora japonica flowers, fine cornmeal, wheat flour, milk, baking powder
1. After picking the Sophora japonica flowers home, pick out impurities and excess branches and leaves, and wash them with clean water. Wash several times and clean.
2. Add 200 grams of corn flour, 50 grams of wheat flour, and 4 grams of yeast powder in a large basin, and stir evenly to make a mixed flour.
3. Add the washed sophora japonica flowers and stir evenly to combine the sophora japonica flowers with the flour. Pour in the milk in small amounts and stir while pouring the milk.
Tips: Corn. There is no fixed ratio of flour and wheat flour. You can decide according to your own preferences. It is recommended to have less flour and more sophora flowers. In this way, the steamed sophora flower wotou will have a more prominent and fragrant sophora flower flavor.
4. After mixing the two kinds of flour, sophora flower and milk until it can be kneaded into a ball, roll it into the shape of small nests and let it rest for about 20 minutes.
5. Put it in a steamer, turn on the steam in the steamer over high heat, then turn to medium-low heat and steam for about 20 minutes. The size of each steamed bun here is about 100 grams. If the group of steamed buns is larger, you can Extend the steaming time to avoid undercooking.
——Lao Jing said——
The smell of Sophora japonica is very fragrant. There is no need to add any seasoning when steaming Sophora japonica Wowotou, focusing on the fragrance of Sophora japonica. Especially some strong-flavored five-spice powder, thirteen spices, etc. should not be added, so as not to overwhelm the guest and cover up the sweetness of the sophora flower.