Does red amaranth soup replenish blood?

I don’t know who planted a piece of red amaranth in the open space of the community downstairs. The red and green leaves are neatly arranged and very beautiful. Summer is a good time to eat amaranth. There is a folk saying that "Amaranth is used as eggs in June, but amaranth is not exchanged for gold in July."

Amaranth is incredibly ancient. The word "苋" is found in oracle bone inscriptions. In the ancient book "Erya" of the Han Dynasty, there is also an explanation of "蒉(kuài), red amaranth". It can be seen that red amaranth was known to people at that time.

There are many types of amaranth. The ancients divided it into six categories, including purslane, a wild vegetable that has not yet been "righted", and five-color amaranth, which is used for ornamental purposes. Today, what we call amaranth generally refers to white amaranth and red amaranth.

White amaranth is also called green amaranth, with small, round and wide leaves. I went to Shanghai last month and ordered "Cao Tou Quan" at the Benbang Cuisine Restaurant. The waitress curled her lips and said: Now is not the season for eating grass. You are too old. You can replace it with Missy. "What is Missy?" The waiter explained for a long time and I was still confused. When it's served, taste it: the dish has a strong flavor and is a bit slippery. Isn't this just amaranth? "Mi Amaranth" is another name for amaranth. Probably because the pronunciation of "Mi Amaranth" in Shanghainese is similar to "Mixi", it is simply called this on the menu.

As an ancient species, amaranth has many names. Rice amaranth, hàn (hàn) vegetables, Tianxian rice, Yanlaihong, etc. are all red and green amaranth. Yunnan's "millet" is also a type of amaranth, but it is different from the red amaranth I have seen before. The leaves and rhizomes seem to be more purple. After blanching, you can dip it in water and eat it directly. I don’t feel any difference in the taste.

Amaranth is eaten more often in the south than in the north, and the most common name is "leek". Hubei, Anhui, and Jiangxi are all called this, and it is said to be based on the pronunciation of the dialect. "Compendium of Materia Medica" records: Brassica lettuce grows in southern China and is also stir-fried in rural areas.

Perhaps because of its pleasing color, red amaranth is much more popular than green amaranth. Even the poems of the ancients praised red amaranth more. Lu You wrote "Miscellaneous Odes of Autumn": "Red amaranth illuminates the eyes like red pills, and dianthus spread out in disorder"; Wang Anshi's "Bamboo Window" includes: "There are two or three red amaranths in the bamboo window, and the mountains are far away from the water." Door". Amaranth has always been regarded as a symbol of poverty and integrity. Probably because amaranth is a wild vegetable and is not very picky about the growing environment. As long as it is given a "wild path", it can grow regardless of it.

Even gourmets like Zhang Ailing can’t resist the charm of red amaranth. In the book, she recalled that when she lived with her mother in Shanghai, she often went to her uncle’s house for dinner, and her mother would always bring a side of stir-fried amaranth:

“When amaranth is in season, I always Holding a bowl of oily purple-red amaranth with dark green threads, the fat white garlic cloves inside are dyed light pink, walking across the street in the sky, like holding a pot of common unknown Western potted plants with small pink flowers and spots of dark red. The moss-green, serrated-edged, large pointed leaves are draped with vermilion, but the flowers are not fragrant, and do not have the aroma of hot amaranth."

Even adults can eat it with rice in purple-red amaranth soup. I really like the drama. The rice grains are dyed light pink, making an ordinary home-cooked meal a little more interesting.

Most wild vegetables are cold in nature, and amaranth is no exception. In the Qing Dynasty, there was a famous dietary book called "Suixiju Diet Manual", which said that amaranth "can replenish qi, clear away heat, improve eyesight, promote pregnancy, and benefit the large and small intestines." Therefore, pregnant women should not eat it, but people with strong anger can eat more amaranth in summer. Whether red amaranth has the effect of replenishing blood is often questioned. It is not because the soup of amaranth is red, but because it contains higher iron and calcium than spinach, and because it does not contain oxalic acid, the nutrients are better absorbed.

The book also mentions how to cook amaranth, which can be mixed, steamed, souped, stir-fried or braised. Stir-fried amaranth is the most common method. Zhang Ailing explained the method succinctly in one sentence: "Sauteed amaranth without garlic is simply not worth frying." For my personal taste, I also like to add a little vinegar, especially when eating it in summer.

Yuan Mei's "Suiyuan Food List" is recognized as a foodie's note. There is a record about the cooking method of amaranth, which puzzled me: "The amaranth must be carefully picked and tender, stir-fried, add dried shrimps or Shrimp, even better.” There is nothing wrong with this in itself, but there are four words at the end: invisible soup.

Why can’t you see the soup? Amaranth must have soup and water to taste delicious. Most Hunan restaurants serve amaranth in soup, using the "braised" method. If preserved eggs are added, the taste will naturally be more delicious. There is an old saying in Changsha: Amaranth is used as chicken in June. "Line chicken" is a castrated gelding chicken. The tender amaranth in summer can also be simmered in some soup to rival the deliciousness of chicken. Moreover, the smooth texture of amaranth should be soft rather than hard. If you simmer it for a while, the sweetness of the dish can be fully extracted, making it more delicious when served as a meal.

I don’t know whether it was because Yuan Mei didn’t like amaranth in soup, or because his knowledge of amaranth was limited at the time. More than a century later, Xue Baochen, a Hanlin scholar in the Qing Dynasty, vindicated Amaranth. In his later years, he became a Buddhist and became a vegetarian, and he had great experience in various vegetarian foods. There is a clear record in "A Brief Introduction to Vegetarian Food": "There are two kinds of amaranth, red and green. They are fried with sesame oil and simmered with stock."

This is probably an earlier version of "Amaranth in Soup".

Amaranth "must be picked carefully and tender." But if you get older, you won't be able to speak at all.

But this kind of vegetable grows very fast. If you don't pay attention, the leaves will grow into the size of a palm. Like the one downstairs in my community, it can basically only be used for appreciation.

The "mildew amaranth stem" in Ning and Shao areas is a new approach. If it is allowed to jump into autumn, it can grow as tall as a person and is as strong as a branch in the hand. Remove the leaves and leave the stems, chop into inch-long pieces and put them into a jar for marinating. Amaranth ferments well and its juice is full of flavor. Everyone at home has this experience. Leftover amaranth cannot be left overnight. If it ferments a little, the whole refrigerator will be in danger.

When eating amaranth stems, hold one end and suck it with your mouth, and the jelly-like amaranth core will slide into your mouth. It's completely polarizing whether you like it or not. Some people say that it has a long-lasting flavor and steamed tofu can make three more bowls of rice. If you don't like it, avoid it. You know, the jar of "stinky brine" left over from the pickled amaranth stems is a good ingredient for making Shaoxing stinky tofu.

When I went to Shaoxing two years ago, I had a chance encounter with moldy amaranth stems. Personally, I feel that this thing doesn't smell like stinky tofu, and the emerald green coat is a bit fresh. Then he lowered his guard and inhaled hard, and the salty smell went straight to his forehead along his nose. He was immediately confused for two seconds, and he no longer dared to underestimate the power of amaranth.

This pickling method really has a trace. Su Song of the Northern Song Dynasty said: "The rhizome of red amaranth can also be preserved, and it is very delicious and pungent in taste." Not everyone has such a good taste.