Chinese toon is not poisonous, but it contains nitrates and nitrites, and the content is much higher than that of ordinary vegetables. Later test results found that when the toon heads are boiled in boiling water, the toxins will be reduced even further and will not have any impact on the body.

Precautions for eating toon in spring

1. Eat toon as early as possible in spring

Every spring before and after the Grain Rain solar term, the buds of toon can be made into various dishes . However, you should eat toon as early as possible in spring. After mid-April, the nitrate content in toon buds in most areas exceeds the standards of the World Health Organization and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. In other words, the more tender the toon buds are, the less nitrite they contain, and the less nitrite will be produced during future storage. If the leaves have reached the point where they fall off as soon as they are touched, a large amount of nitrite will inevitably be produced.

2. Toon must be blanched before eating

Fresh toon buds picked directly from the tree can be eaten directly. But if you buy toon from the market, you must blanch it before eating. Blanching in boiling water for about 1 minute can remove more than two-thirds of the nitrite and nitrate, and can also better preserve the green color of the toon. The aroma of toon mainly comes from essential oil, which is insoluble in water, so blanching will not significantly affect the flavor of the dish.

3. Blanching is required for quick-frozen storage

When storing toon, blanch it before quick-freezing and blanch it for 50 seconds before freezing it. Not only is the safety greatly improved, but it also contains vitamin C. It is also better preserved. When frozen for 2 months, the vitamin C content of blanched toona was equivalent to 71% of that of fresh toon, while that of unblanched toona was only 35%. At the same time, whether it is color or flavor, it is more ideal to scald and then freeze.