pumpkin

Although pumpkin is a very common ingredient and inconspicuous, I didn’t expect that it has a very high edible value as a “blood-replenishing vegetable”.

pumpkin

Also known as squash and pumpkin, it is native to South America and was introduced to my country very early. It is widely planted and eaten, so it is called "Chinese pumpkin". In recent years, people have found that pumpkin can not only satisfy hunger, but also has certain therapeutic value, so the earthy pumpkin has become popular.

Pumpkin contains starch, protein, carotene, vitamin B, vitamin C, calcium, phosphorus and other ingredients. It not only has high edible value, but also has a therapeutic effect that cannot be ignored. In a Miao village in Shaoyang, Hunan, my country, villagers have eaten pumpkin for generations. During the investigation, the health department found that the villagers in this village rarely suffer from anemia. It turns out that pumpkin is not only rich in sugar, starch, fat and protein, but more importantly, it contains trace elements iron and zinc that are necessary for human hematopoiesis. Therefore, there is a saying among the people that "pumpkin replenishes blood".

In addition to its practical value, pumpkins are also endowed with folk cultural value. In the Jiangnan region of my country, every family eats pumpkins at the beginning of spring to welcome the spring. In many Western countries, on Halloween on October 31 every year, people use pumpkins to make exquisite pumpkin lanterns to ward off evil spirits and celebrate the festival.

effect

1. Pumpkin contains vitamins and pectin. Pectin has good adsorption properties and can bind and eliminate bacterial toxins and other harmful substances in the body, playing a detoxifying role.

2. The pectin contained in pumpkin can also protect the gastrointestinal mucosa from the stimulation of rough food, promote the healing of ulcer surface, and is suitable for patients with stomach problems. The ingredients contained in pumpkin can promote bile secretion, strengthen gastrointestinal motility, and help digestion of food.

3. The mannitol contained in pumpkin has a laxative effect, which can reduce the harm of toxins in feces to the human body and prevent the occurrence of colon cancer.

4. Pumpkin is rich in cobalt, which can participate in the synthesis of vitamin B12 in the human body. It is an essential trace element for human pancreatic cells and has special therapeutic effects on preventing and treating diabetes and lowering blood sugar.

5. Pumpkin is rich in zinc, which participates in the synthesis of nucleic acids and proteins in the human body. It is an inherent component of adrenal cortex hormone, which is an important substance for human growth and development.

Storage instructions

Uncut pumpkins can be placed in a cool and ventilated place. If they have been cut, first dig out the pulp and seeds, then wrap them in plastic wrap and refrigerate.

Cooking knowledge

1. Pumpkin can be steamed, boiled, or decocted into soup; it can also be mashed and applied externally.

2. Diabetic patients can make pumpkin into pumpkin powder so that they can eat it in small amounts over a long period of time.

Dietary precautions

1. Especially suitable for obese people and middle-aged and elderly people.

2. It is best not to eat pumpkin with mutton.

Delicious food

Pumpkin Cup

Ingredients: 100 grams of bamboo shoots, 1 pumpkin, 100 grams of golden needles, 6 shiitake mushrooms, and 150 grams of vegetarian ham.

Seasoning: salt and MSG in appropriate amounts.

Method: 1. Cut the melon from the top and remove the seeds. Soak the golden needles and mushrooms in water until soft. Peel the ham and bamboo shoots and cut them into pieces.

2. Put bamboo shoots, golden needles, ham and mushrooms into the pumpkin pot in order, and add salt and MSG.

3. Put the whole pumpkin pot into the steamer and steam for 10 minutes.

Cooking tips: No need to add water to the pumpkin pot. The original juice of the steamed pumpkin will be sweeter.

Pumpkin Pie

Ingredients: 250 grams pumpkin, 250 grams glutinous rice flour, 25 grams milk powder, 40 grams white sugar, 50 grams red bean paste filling.

Method: 1. Peel the pumpkin, wash and slice it, steam it in a steamer until crispy, add glutinous rice flour, milk powder, white sugar and lard while it is still hot, mix well and knead it into pumpkin pie crust.

2. Roll the red bean paste into a round filling. Take the pumpkin pie dough, roll it into a round cake, wrap the filling, and press it into a round cake.

3. Pour clear oil into the pot, wait until the oil temperature rises to 120℃, put the pumpkin cake in the colander and fry it in the oil over low heat until the pumpkin cake expands, then take it out. When the oil temperature rises to 160℃, fry the cake until it is crispy.

Home remedies for curing diseases

1. To treat asthma: Steam pumpkin and mix it with honey and eat it once in the morning and evening for a long time.

2. To treat chronic cough: boil and remove the heads of pumpkin vines, put them in a bottle and allow the juice to flow in. After 24 hours, take the juice and drink it with boiled water.

3. To treat urinary problems: burn the pumpkin stem into powder, take with warm water, 3 times a day, 2 grams each time.

4. Treatment of habitual abortion: 3 pumpkin stems, 120 grams of coix seeds, add water and decoct, take for several days.

5. Treatment of bronchial asthma and chronic bronchitis in the elderly: 500 grams of fresh pumpkin, 20 red dates, appropriate amount of brown sugar, add water to boil and drink, twice a day.

6. To treat dysentery: boil pumpkin leaves into soup and drink it.

7. Pain relief: Cook the melon flesh and apply it to the affected area to reduce inflammation and relieve pain.