The raw materials for making "Baicao Soup" vary from place to place and can be adapted to local conditions. Generally, boiled water is made of mugwort, calamus, peach branches, wild chrysanthemums, mulberry leaves, copper money, rushes, plantain, Houttuynia cordata, lobelia, etc.

Mugwort and calamus are regarded as auspicious herbs for the Dragon Boat Festival and are essential in the herbal soup. Every year on the eve of the Dragon Boat Festival, they are sold in major vegetable markets in the city, or can also be purchased in general pharmacies. .

Wild chrysanthemum: flower head, similar in appearance to chrysanthemum. It grows wild in green spaces in residential areas and beside roads and fields. The ones that are yellow in color, stemless, complete, fragrant and have not fully bloomed are the best.

Peach branches: They are the twigs of peach or mountain peach in the Rosaceae family. They can be collected from ordinary peach trees.

Copper money grass: often curled into a ball, its stems are slender. It likes to grow in moist river banks and grasslands.

Rush: underground stems are short, creeping, clustered, upright, cylindrical. It mostly grows by rivers, ponds, ditches, rice fields, and grass.

Mulberry leaf: It is the leaf of the mulberry plant of the Moraceae family, which grows in mountain forests and roadsides.

Plantain: also known as carrot, with flower stems up to 50 cm high and fibrous roots. It grows in mountains, roadsides, flower gardens, vegetable gardens, ponds, rivers and other places.

Houttuynia cordata: It is the dry aquatic part of the perennial herbaceous plant of the family Asteraceae. Commonly found in wet areas such as ditches and streams.

Lobelia: Also known as lobelia, melon grass, etc., it is a small perennial herbaceous plant of the Campanulaceae family, about 10 cm high. Born in wet areas such as paddy fields, ditches, and roadsides.

There is also a saying from Guangxi:

Cows are ruminants. They do not digest the grass immediately after eating it. Instead, they regurgitate the semi-digested plant fiber into their mouths from time to time and chew it continuously. . After feeding with herbs for several days, the cow is slaughtered. The herbs in its stomach have not been completely digested. The herbs in its stomach are taken out and rubbed with hands to extract the juice. After several filtering procedures, the residue is skimmed off, water is boiled, and the offal is added to form a pot of chowder. It is said to have the effects of clearing away heat, reducing internal heat, detoxifying and laxative, hence the name Baicao Decoction. It is a dish used by the Miao and Dong people in Sanjiang, Rongshui and other places in Liuzhou to entertain distinguished guests. It is not easy to try, and its tradition is quite long.

"Lingbiao Luyi" said: "It is not soup, it is the dirt of cow intestines. Liuzhou is not far from Jiaozhi, so the food is similar." Someone in the Tang Dynasty verified that Baicao Decoction It came from Vietnam and was called "Bu Nai Geng" in ancient times. Because Liuzhou is close to Vietnam and has geographical convenience, it became the starting point for the spread of foreign food culture. Yu Jiao, a native of the Qing Dynasty, said in "Xiangquzhici": "Remove the intestines of the cow, remove the dirt, and rub the juice to become white as pulp. Gather it inside, fill it with meat and eat it. People think it is dirty, but it is nothing less than precious." Until During the Qing Dynasty, people in the Central Plains still regarded Baicao Tang as the food of uncivilized barbarians. Even now, many people in Liuzhou find the way of making Baicao Soup very disgusting. Not only do they dare not try it, but they also give it a very vulgar name - Cow Shit Soup.