2, the lunar month of May, Hangzhou-Jiaxing-Huzhou region called the five yellow month, Jiangnan folk in the Dragon Boat Festival to eat "five yellow" food custom has a long history. "Five yellow" generally refers to yellow fish, eel, cucumber, salted egg yolk and yellow wine.
(1) yellowtail
Yellowfish usually like to inhabit the deeper waters, April to June in the offshore migratory spawning, and then return to the deep sea area in the fall and winter, so it is used as a seasonal dish before and after the Dragon Boat Festival. However, because of overfishing and environmental pollution, the so-called yellowtail we eat now is basically farmed.
During the Dragon Boat Festival, the yellowtail rides the ocean tide and becomes a staple seasonal dish of the season. This is when the rhubarb fish grows fat and has the most flavorful meat.
Rhubarb fish is high in protein, trace elements and vitamins, including the trace element selenium, which slows down aging and is effective against cancer.
(2) Yellow eels
Artificially bred, they are now available year-round, while in the past, they were eaten at the Dragon Boat Festival. After a winter of storage and a spring recovery, coupled with the warm weather, rich food sources, the Dragon Boat Festival wild eel extraordinarily strong and fat, and at this time the eel meat is tender, is the best time to choose to eat. This time the eel is also very complementary, ancient medical books have also been recorded, the function of the eel is to make up for the deficiency, in addition to rheumatism, strong bones. Therefore, the folk have "Dragon Boat Festival eel race ginseng" said.
The folk "summer eel race ginseng" said that this time of the year the eel is the most fat, tender and delicious meat, rich in nutrients.
The Dragon Boat Festival in the small summer before, although it is not the best time to eat eel, but the eel meat contains nutrition, protein, fat, phosphorus, calcium, iron and other content is very rich, eat eel can be properly supplemented with vitamins, but also to go to the rheumatism.
(3) cucumber
Children often ask a question, cucumber why not yellow? Many adults could not answer. In fact, the so-called cucumber in Yuhang is actually called vegetable gourd. There is a difference between a cucumber and a cucumber. Simply from the appearance, vegetable gourd is longer, more thin, more thorns on the body, the appearance of green, white or light green flesh; while the cucumber is shorter, more bulging, less thorns on the body, the maturity of the young fruit color from milky white to dark green. Because the two kinds of melon look like, I do not know when, vegetable melon is mixed called cucumber.
In folklore, cucumber has "the first melon fruit". Seasonal changes, in many fruits, cucumbers than other fruits listed early, mid-May to eat the new listing, time just with the Dragon Boat Festival on, it is natural to become a Dragon Boat Festival must eat things. In addition, the cucumber also has the function of clearing heat and detoxification.
(4) salted egg yolk
For the excellent taste and easy to store by people. Perhaps, the good feeling of salted egg yolks may also stem from family love! I remember when I was young, my father saw me like to eat egg yolks, always pick out the yolks and clip them to my bowl and say: "My daughter likes to eat egg yolks, Dad likes to eat egg whites, just right!" Then later found out that when my father dined alone, he also liked to eat egg yolks.
Salted egg yolk is not as seasonal as eel, yellow fish and cucumber, because there is a "yellow" word, so it also entered the ranks of the "five yellow". Duanwu eat salted egg yolk, symbolizing health and peace.
(5) Xionghuang wine
Medical history of the origin of the "Qingjiazhu" records: "research Xionghuang end, crumbs of bushy roots, and wine to drink, so-called Xionghuang wine." That is to say, andrographis is made of white wine, andrographis blended. Why is such a simple drink so famous? This is probably related to the story of the White Maiden and Xu Xian, the White Maiden is in the Dragon Boat Festival on this day to drink Xionghuang wine, now the original shape of the snake. Therefore, the folk probably believe that snakes, scorpions, centipedes and other venomous insects can be cracked by the Xionghuang wine, the Dragon Boat Festival drink Xionghuang wine can drive away the evil spirits and detoxification.
Many people have heard the legend of Xu Xian and the White Maiden from Xionghuang wine.
The main ingredient of Xionghuang is arsenic sulfide, arsenic is the main raw material for refining arsenic, and Xionghuang has a certain degree of toxicity, so naturally it can drive away the poisonous insects, only that people will be poisoned as well. Thus, the tradition of drinking Xionghuang wine is no longer continued, but the tradition of applying Xionghuang to children as well as wearing scented bags has remained.