Hawthorn: Enhancing Blood Circulation, Beautifying, and More
Hawthorn: Enhancing Blood Circulation, Beautifying, and More
Hawthorn, also known as Shanlihong, Red Fruit, and Yanzhi Guo, is the dried and mature fruit of the Rosaceae plant hawthorn. It is firm, with thin flesh, and has a unique sweet and sour taste. Hawthorn holds significant nutritional and medicinal value. Elderly individuals who regularly consume hawthorn products can enhance their appetite, improve sleep quality, maintain stable calcium levels in bones and blood, and prevent atherosclerosis. Therefore, hawthorn is considered a "longevity food."
Hawthorn belongs to the Rosaceae family and is a deciduous small tree. Its bark is dark gray with light yellow pores, and its small branches are purplish-brown. The leaves are ovate, arranged alternately, and the flowers form umbrella-like clusters, initially white and turning pink later. The fruit is spherical, deep red when ripe, and has faint light spots on the surface.
According to the ancient Chinese dictionary "Er Ya," it describes hawthorn as "a tree resembling a plum tree with fruits as large as fingertips, red like small millet, and edible." Hawthorn fruit has a slightly sweet and sour taste, making it suitable for fresh consumption. Due to the presence of red pigments and pectin in the fruit, it is also suitable for processing into hawthorn slices, hawthorn cakes, candies, candied hawthorns, sugar-coated hawthorn sticks, hawthorn sauce, canned hawthorns, preserved hawthorns, hawthorn juice, hawthorn beverages, and hawthorn wine.
As autumn colors deepen, many tempting fruits ripen one after another, and hawthorn is one of them. The season for fresh hawthorn is only one or two months during this time. If you miss it now, you'll have to wait another year. These little red fruits are incredibly appealing. Even if you don't eat a lot of hawthorns regularly, you still want to enjoy the freshness every year. Buy some, put them in a plate, and just having them there adds to the autumn atmosphere. Some hawthorns may be a bit hard when you first buy them, but after a couple of days, they become soft and perfect for eating.
Two Delicious Ways to Enjoy Hawthorn: Hawthorn Rock Sugar Water and Sweet and Sour Hawthorn
These recipes are incredibly simple to make and taste delightful, especially for those who enjoy sweet and sour flavors.
Hawthorn Rock Sugar Water:
Ingredients:
Hawthorn
Rock sugar (or brown sugar)
Granulated sugar
Instructions:
Wash the hawthorns thoroughly and remove the pits using a fruit knife. Remove the stems as well and soak the pitted hawthorns in cold water to prevent oxidation and darkening.
In a pot, add a small amount of water and bring it to a boil. Add a suitable amount of rock sugar and dissolve it. Pour in the prepared hawthorns and cook for 1 minute. Turn off the heat and strain the water. This is your delicious rock sugar hawthorn water.
Don't rush to remove the remaining hawthorns from the pot. While they're still hot, add some granulated sugar and mix well. Then, turn on the heat, and simmer until the remaining liquid thickens. This is a tasty hawthorn syrup. You can sprinkle some extra sugar on top when serving for better taste. Be careful not to overcook the hawthorns, as they may crack. Adjust the amount of rock sugar and granulated sugar to your taste.
Hawthorn can aid in digestion, especially in breaking down meat. It has been recorded in ancient Chinese medical texts that hawthorn is beneficial for those with a weak spleen, indigestion, and a feeling of fullness and discomfort in the chest and abdomen after meals. Hawthorn can help dissolve the accumulation of meat and fat in the stomach. Adding a few hawthorns to meat dishes can improve taste, reduce greasiness, and promote digestion. Additionally, hawthorn can tenderize meat quickly, resulting in a more tender and delicious dish.
For women suffering from blood stasis type dysmenorrhea (painful menstruation), hawthorn can be a natural remedy. This type of dysmenorrhea is characterized by lower abdominal pain on the first 1-2 days of menstruation or 1-2 days before menstruation, which gradually improves or disappears once menstrual blood flows smoothly. The menstrual blood often appears dark, and blood clots may be present. Consuming hawthorn can help disperse blood stasis and alleviate the pain. It is recommended to use a blood-activating diet during the 3-5 days before menstruation. An ancient remedy known as "Red Sugar Cooked Hawthorn" involves simmering hawthorns with red sugar. According to legend, the empress of the Southern Song Dynasty used this remedy to recover from illness. To prepare, take fresh hawthorns with pits, add red sugar, and cook them together. The liquid can be consumed along with the hawthorns. This remedy can help activate blood circulation and nourish fresh blood. Start taking it 3-5 days before your period, have 5-10 hawthorns in the morning and evening, and continue until 3 days after your period ends. This is one course of treatment, and usually, one course is effective.
Modern medical research has confirmed that hawthorn can significantly reduce serum cholesterol and triglycerides, effectively preventing atherosclerosis. It can also enhance myocardial contractility, dilate coronary arteries, increase coronary blood flow, and reduce myocardial oxygen consumption, thus acting as a cardiac tonic and preventing angina pectoris. Moreover, the flavonoids in hawthorn have the effect of dilating blood vessels and maintaining prolonged blood pressure reduction. In Chinese medicine, these effects are succinctly summarized: "Hawthorn can dissolve blood clots, qi stagnation, and promote blood circulation." Hawthorn's ability to promote blood circulation and dissolve stasis is not limited to the uterus but also benefits the blood vessels throughout the body.
Dietary therapy for high blood fat, high blood pressure, and coronary heart disease: Prepare hawthorn water by taking 15-30 grams of fresh hawthorn daily and steeping it in water or boiling it. This is a well-known remedy for many hypertensive patients. To avoid excessive consumption of hawthorn, you can add some red dates or a small amount of brown sugar to balance its effects. Finally, while hawthorn is beneficial, it is also Qi-consuming. Those who are weak, have an empty stomach, or suffer from weakness after illness should avoid excessive consumption. Pregnant women should also avoid it as it may induce uterine contractions and increase the risk of miscarriage.
Hawthorn, also known as Shanlihong, Red Fruit, and Yanzhi Guo, is the dried and mature fruit of the Rosaceae plant hawthorn. It is firm, with thin flesh, and has a unique sweet and sour taste. Hawthorn holds significant nutritional and medicinal value. Elderly individuals who regularly consume hawthorn products can enhance their appetite, improve sleep quality, maintain stable calcium levels in bones and blood, and prevent atherosclerosis. Therefore, hawthorn is considered a "longevity food."
Hawthorn belongs to the Rosaceae family and is a deciduous small tree. Its bark is dark gray with light yellow pores, and its small branches are purplish-brown. The leaves are ovate, arranged alternately, and the flowers form umbrella-like clusters, initially white and turning pink later. The fruit is spherical, deep red when ripe, and has faint light spots on the surface.
According to the ancient Chinese dictionary "Er Ya," it describes hawthorn as "a tree resembling a plum tree with fruits as large as fingertips, red like small millet, and edible." Hawthorn fruit has a slightly sweet and sour taste, making it suitable for fresh consumption. Due to the presence of red pigments and pectin in the fruit, it is also suitable for processing into hawthorn slices, hawthorn cakes, candies, candied hawthorns, sugar-coated hawthorn sticks, hawthorn sauce, canned hawthorns, preserved hawthorns, hawthorn juice, hawthorn beverages, and hawthorn wine.
As autumn colors deepen, many tempting fruits ripen one after another, and hawthorn is one of them. The season for fresh hawthorn is only one or two months during this time. If you miss it now, you'll have to wait another year. These little red fruits are incredibly appealing. Even if you don't eat a lot of hawthorns regularly, you still want to enjoy the freshness every year. Buy some, put them in a plate, and just having them there adds to the autumn atmosphere. Some hawthorns may be a bit hard when you first buy them, but after a couple of days, they become soft and perfect for eating.
Two Delicious Ways to Enjoy Hawthorn: Hawthorn Rock Sugar Water and Sweet and Sour Hawthorn
These recipes are incredibly simple to make and taste delightful, especially for those who enjoy sweet and sour flavors.
Hawthorn Rock Sugar Water:
Ingredients:
Hawthorn
Rock sugar (or brown sugar)
Granulated sugar
Instructions:
Wash the hawthorns thoroughly and remove the pits using a fruit knife. Remove the stems as well and soak the pitted hawthorns in cold water to prevent oxidation and darkening.
In a pot, add a small amount of water and bring it to a boil. Add a suitable amount of rock sugar and dissolve it. Pour in the prepared hawthorns and cook for 1 minute. Turn off the heat and strain the water. This is your delicious rock sugar hawthorn water.
Don't rush to remove the remaining hawthorns from the pot. While they're still hot, add some granulated sugar and mix well. Then, turn on the heat, and simmer until the remaining liquid thickens. This is a tasty hawthorn syrup. You can sprinkle some extra sugar on top when serving for better taste. Be careful not to overcook the hawthorns, as they may crack. Adjust the amount of rock sugar and granulated sugar to your taste.
Hawthorn can aid in digestion, especially in breaking down meat. It has been recorded in ancient Chinese medical texts that hawthorn is beneficial for those with a weak spleen, indigestion, and a feeling of fullness and discomfort in the chest and abdomen after meals. Hawthorn can help dissolve the accumulation of meat and fat in the stomach. Adding a few hawthorns to meat dishes can improve taste, reduce greasiness, and promote digestion. Additionally, hawthorn can tenderize meat quickly, resulting in a more tender and delicious dish.
For women suffering from blood stasis type dysmenorrhea (painful menstruation), hawthorn can be a natural remedy. This type of dysmenorrhea is characterized by lower abdominal pain on the first 1-2 days of menstruation or 1-2 days before menstruation, which gradually improves or disappears once menstrual blood flows smoothly. The menstrual blood often appears dark, and blood clots may be present. Consuming hawthorn can help disperse blood stasis and alleviate the pain. It is recommended to use a blood-activating diet during the 3-5 days before menstruation. An ancient remedy known as "Red Sugar Cooked Hawthorn" involves simmering hawthorns with red sugar. According to legend, the empress of the Southern Song Dynasty used this remedy to recover from illness. To prepare, take fresh hawthorns with pits, add red sugar, and cook them together. The liquid can be consumed along with the hawthorns. This remedy can help activate blood circulation and nourish fresh blood. Start taking it 3-5 days before your period, have 5-10 hawthorns in the morning and evening, and continue until 3 days after your period ends. This is one course of treatment, and usually, one course is effective.
Modern medical research has confirmed that hawthorn can significantly reduce serum cholesterol and triglycerides, effectively preventing atherosclerosis. It can also enhance myocardial contractility, dilate coronary arteries, increase coronary blood flow, and reduce myocardial oxygen consumption, thus acting as a cardiac tonic and preventing angina pectoris. Moreover, the flavonoids in hawthorn have the effect of dilating blood vessels and maintaining prolonged blood pressure reduction. In Chinese medicine, these effects are succinctly summarized: "Hawthorn can dissolve blood clots, qi stagnation, and promote blood circulation." Hawthorn's ability to promote blood circulation and dissolve stasis is not limited to the uterus but also benefits the blood vessels throughout the body.
Dietary therapy for high blood fat, high blood pressure, and coronary heart disease: Prepare hawthorn water by taking 15-30 grams of fresh hawthorn daily and steeping it in water or boiling it. This is a well-known remedy for many hypertensive patients. To avoid excessive consumption of hawthorn, you can add some red dates or a small amount of brown sugar to balance its effects. Finally, while hawthorn is beneficial, it is also Qi-consuming. Those who are weak, have an empty stomach, or suffer from weakness after illness should avoid excessive consumption. Pregnant women should also avoid it as it may induce uterine contractions and increase the risk of miscarriage.
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