Take you to taste the beautiful and delicious spring flowers
In fact, spring flowers are not only pleasing to the eye, they are also beautiful and can be eaten. The folk custom of “eating flowers in spring and fruits in summer” has a long history. Flower viewing is elegant and eating flowers is fun and healthy. Today, Chinese medicine doctors from Peking Union Medical College Hospital share several spring flower feasts to help you feel refreshed and healthy during the long holiday.
Peach blossom invigorates blood and nourishes the skin
effect
“The peach blossoms on the human face complement each other red.” Peach blossoms are bitter in taste and neutral in nature. They have the effects of promoting blood circulation, beautifying the face, laxative, diuretic and reducing swelling.
usage
Peach blossom tea is made from 3 to 4 g of dried peach blossoms and 5 g of green tea, brewed in boiling water, add an appropriate amount of honey according to taste, and drink multiple times. It is suitable for dark spots on the face, age spots, and those with darker skin after exposure to the sun; for peach blossom eggs, peach blossoms (dry product) can be used 2 to 3g, soak 20g of lotus seeds and boil them in water. Add eggs and brown sugar and eat. It is good for calming the nerves and improving dull complexion and dark menstruation with blood clots. Postpartum wet nurses can use 1g of dried peach blossoms, 1 pig’s trotter, and an appropriate amount of rice to cook peach blossom trotters porridge, which can activate blood circulation, moisturize skin, replenish qi and promote lactation.
Apricot blossoms nourish the body and replenish qi
effect
Apricot blossoms are bitter in taste and warm in nature, and have high medicinal and dietary value. They can replenish qi, dispel wind and dredge collaterals, and are used to treat gynecological diseases, limb numbness and pain, etc.
usage
Apricot flowers can be made into scented tea, essential oils and health foods. Prepare scented tea by mixing dried apricot flowers and green tea at a ratio of 1:1. It has a rich aroma, can reduce cellulite, improve eyesight, and refresh the brain. Prepare apricot flower and shrimp soup at home (10 to 15 fresh apricot flowers, 200g of shrimp, bean curds, peas, chicken broth, salt Oil, etc.), can replenish deficiency and clear breasts, warm the kidneys and help yang, and is suitable for postpartum lactation, soreness and weakness of waist and knees, and male impotence due to kidney deficiency; in addition, the ancients often mashed fresh apricot flowers and applied them directly on the face to dilute spots and reduce wrinkles. To nourish the skin, apricot blossom is also included in today’s beauty and skin care products.
Sakura relieves cough and asthma
effect
Cherry blossoms are pungent in taste and neutral in nature, and the flowers and leaves can be used as medicine. They have the effects of relieving coughs, relieving asthma, and moisturizing the intestines.
usage
Cherry blossoms can be processed into cherry blossom tea, cherry blossom wine, cherry blossom cakes, etc. For example, using fresh or dried cherry blossoms to make cherry blossom tea has a refreshing and elegant taste, which can help eliminate fatigue and improve anxiety. There are also popular creative foods on the market, such as cherry blossom ice cream, cherry blossom cake, cherry blossom sushi, cherry blossom jam, etc., which are mouth-watering. Breathing Fragrance” is quite popular.
Pear blossom moistens the lungs and promotes body fluids
effect
Pear blossoms are rich in vitamins, amino acids, minerals and other nutrients, which have the effect of moistening the lungs and promoting body fluids.
usage
Pear blossoms are as white as snow, have an elegant and delicate fragrance, and can be used both as food and medicine. Pear flower tea is made of 10g of pear blossoms and 30g of pear peel, which can help relieve cough and phlegm. Pear flower lotus seed soup has the effects of clearing away heat and promoting fluid production, moistening the lungs and strengthening the spleen. The arbutin in the pear flower extract can resist oxidation, protect and whiten the skin. Take equal parts of pear blossoms, peach blossoms, and cherry blossoms, and use the water decoction to wash your face and hands to help make your skin smooth and white.
Magnolia dispels wind and cold
effect
The magnolia flowers are fresh and refined, blooming during the Qingming Festival. It is pungent and warm in nature, contains volatile oil, and has a fragrant floral fragrance. It has the effects of dispelling wind, dispersing cold, clearing the orifices, clearing the lungs and clearing the nose. It is used as an auxiliary treatment for headaches, nasal congestion, chronic sinusitis, and allergic rhinitis.
usage
There are many ways to eat magnolia flowers. The petals can be paired with fried meat, the petals can be wrapped and fried into magnolia cakes or stuffed into meatballs. Magnolia cakes (cakes), magnolia custards, etc. can also be made.
Rose anti-inflammatory and detoxifying
effect
The rose flower has a sweet and warm nature. According to the “Compendium of Materia Medica”, it can activate blood circulation, reduce swelling, reduce inflammation and detoxify. It is a good gynecological medicine and is often used to treat irregular menstruation, dysmenorrhea and other diseases.
usage
Fry 10g each of rose flower and jujube together, add an appropriate amount of honey and drink it to help relieve abdominal pain and hot flashes during menstruation. Rose flowers and roses soaked in water instead of tea can promote blood circulation and qi and relieve depression.
Begonia strengthens the spleen and relieves diarrhea
effect
The crabapple fruit is well known to the common people and is crispy and sweet. The crabapple flower has the effects of promoting body fluids and quenching thirst, strengthening the spleen and stopping diarrhea. It can help improve indigestion, food accumulation, bloating, diarrhea and hemorrhoids.
usage
You can boil 3 to 5 crabapple flowers in water and drink it with red dates and honey. It is delicious and helps digestion. Medicinal foods include stewed native chicken with crabapples and chestnuts, stewed pork ribs with crabapples, etc., which can strengthen the spleen, stomach, kidneys and muscles.
Spring antibacterial and anti-inflammatory
effect
Water extract of winter jasmine has antibacterial and anti-inflammatory activities. It can soothe the liver and relieve stagnation, promote blood circulation and stimulate menstruation, clear away heat and detoxify. It is suitable for treating menstrual disorders, dysmenorrhea, breast tenderness, etc. caused by liver stagnation and qi stagnation, and can also relieve skin carbuncles. Boils, swelling, skin itching, etc.
usage
Drink 3-5 grams of tea each time.
Forsythia qiao heat-clearing and detoxifying
effect
Forsythia suspensa opens small yellow flowers in early spring and then spits out young buds. It is processed and brewed into forsythia suspensa tea, which can produce fluid and detoxify, clear away heat and purge fire, and is suitable for infectious diseases of the skin and respiratory tract.
usage
Drink 3-5 grams of tea each time.
Honeysuckle detumescence and antibacterial
effect
Honeysuckle has a sweet and cold taste, and has the effects of clearing away heat, detoxifying, and reducing swelling.
usage
External application of fresh twisted juice can treat the onset of skin acne and boils. It can clear away heat, reduce swelling, detoxify and remove carbuncles; purify fresh flowers to make toners and facial masks, which can beautify and antibacterial; prepare honeysuckle rock sugar drink and honeysuckle snow pear drink for oral administration to assist in the treatment of sore throat and sore throat. Prevent upper respiratory tract infections. In addition, daily tea consumption is 3 to 5g each time.
Knock on the blackboard
People with flower allergies should use with caution
Spring flowers are beautiful, eye-catching and beneficial to health, but those who are allergic to flowers need to eat with caution and avoid picking them randomly on the roadside. It is recommended to eat medicinal meals or drink tea after formal processing to achieve the purpose of refreshing the mind and health.
Text/Xuan Lei (Peking Union Medical College Hospital)
