Wax gourd is panicum miliaceum of Cucurbitaceae. Originated in South China and India, it is cultivated all over China, and the main supply season is summer and autumn.
Wax gourd, the fruit is round, oblate or rectangular, depending on the size of the species, the small one weighs several kilograms, and the big one weighs several kilograms; The skin is green, and most varieties have white powder on the surface of mature fruits; The flesh is thick and white, the vegetables are loose and juicy and the taste is light. Melons can be eaten by all ages. The quality of wax gourd, except the tender melon picked early, generally requires the old wax gourd picked late: fully developed, mature, firm meat, thick meat and small ventricle; The skin is blue-green, with hoarfrost, in good shape, without spots and trauma on the epidermis, and the skin is neither soft nor rotten.
Nutritional value of wax gourd
Wax gourd is high in water content, high in protein, sugar, carotene, vitamins, crude fiber, calcium, phosphorus and iron, high in potassium salt and low in sodium salt.
Edible efficacy of wax gourd
1. Lose weight and reduce blood fat
Step 2 protect the kidneys
Regulate immune function, improve clinical symptoms and protect renal function. Folk uses the skin of winter melon, broad bean and water to decoct and take water, which can treat kidney disease and edema of heart disease. Boiled soup of wax gourd and carp can treat chronic nephritis.
3. Clearing away heat and resolving phlegm
Has the effects of clearing away heat, resolving phlegm, reducing swelling and promoting diuresis.
Step 4 fight cancer
Wax gourd is rich in vitamin B 1 for preventing and treating cancer and selenium with anticancer effect. In addition, the crude fiber in wax gourd can also stimulate gastrointestinal peristalsis, so that carcinogens accumulated in the intestine can be excreted as soon as possible.
Step 5 Moisturize and beautify
Wax gourd seeds can inhibit the deposition of melanin in the body and have a good moisturizing and beauty effect.
6.7% has the effects of improving blood sugar level, lowering cholesterol, lowering blood lipid and preventing arteriosclerosis. Wax gourd contains propanedioic acid, which has a good effect on controlling the conversion of sugar into fat, preventing fat accumulation, preventing hypertension and losing weight.
Tips for purchasing wax gourd
Look at the shape: the whole wax gourd is well-proportioned without spots; If it is a cut melon, choose a melon with thick meat, less pulp and white flesh;
Look at the pulp: the cut melon is fresh, tight and closely connected with the pulp, collapsed and separated from the pulp for a long time.
Big picture of wax gourd. Jpg comparison of wax gourd. The file extension of encoded image stored in jpeg file exchange format.
If you press it by hand, it will collapse, and the melon will be lighter and asymmetrical in shape. There are two kinds of wax gourd on the market: with frost and without frost. Frost-free meat is thick, it is not easy to make soup when frying, and it is suitable for cooking; Scrubs are easy to taste and suitable for soup.
Storage skills of wax gourd
Wax gourd likes temperature and heat resistance, and can be stored in a ventilated place.
Cooking skills of wax gourd
1. Melons are cold and should not be eaten raw.
2. Wax gourd is an ideal daily food for relieving fever and diuresis, and the effect of boiling soup with skin is more obvious.
3. When the wax gourd meat is cooked in soup, the wax gourd must be put in the back, and then simmered slowly with a small fire to prevent the wax gourd from being overcooked.
Edible taboo of wax gourd
Winter melon is cold and cold, and it is not suitable for people with spleen and stomach weakness, kidney deficiency, cold, diarrhea after a long illness and cold limbs due to yang deficiency.
Women with menstrual cramps and cold dysmenorrhea are not suitable for eating.
Edible suggestion of wax gourd
Peel the melon (if it is used for soup, it is not necessary to peel it, and the skin can clear away heat and damp), and rinse it with clear water.
When it is used for cold salad or stir-frying, it can be cut into thin slices of wax gourd, and when it is used for stewing soup, steaming or juicing, it can be cut into pieces or blocks with a thickness of 1cm.
Peeling. Jpg clipping method. Jpg When cold salad is served, you should first blanch the wax gourd with boiling water until it is transparent, and then add fruit juice or seasoning to taste. It can be fried or mixed with various vegetables and meat. Don't throw away the peeled winter melon skin, but wash it and dry it to make tea, which has a good effect of clearing away heat and reducing swelling. Winter melon is easy to boil when cooked for a long time, so make soup with winter melon and cook until it is transparent. Prickly heat: The wax gourd slices are directly applied with prickly heat.
Repair after sun exposure: Apply the wax gourd juice evenly on the skin, which has the functions of cooling, detoxifying and whitening the skin.