Archive for Recipes

Healthy Yummy Cucumber Salad For Sore Throats, Body Heatiness…

April 19, 2012 · Filed under Nutritious Soups & Meals, Health Drinks · Tagged , , ,

A yummy, healthy salad dish that helps relieves sore throats and body heatiness

 

Good evening, dear friends :D

I remember when I was a kid, it was very common for everyone I know to just eat a chunk of unpeeled cucumber with a little salt every time we have a sore throat. Sometimes, we even eat that as a snack in between meals. Cucumbers were very cheap and was used as a simple remedy to counter body heatiness. I hardly developed any sore throat when I was a kid, even though my family seldom had cooling herbal drinks. :wink:

Two days ago, I did a little “testing” on my 2 daughters who were down with sore throats :omg2: – I told them that :thinking when I was young, it was a very common practice to eat raw cucumbers with a little salt often to prevent heatiness and sore throat. So, I came up with a cucumber salad that I prepared for them for dinner. They liked the salad very much and each had a large portion of it.

By the next morning, one daughter’s sore throat was completely gone and the other daughter’s throat was less painful – confirmation that my cucumber salad”experiment” worked.  :vh:

Here is the easy and delicious recipe, it’s sweet and tangy and most importantly, healthy, too  ===>

Yummy Salad to counter sore throats and for good health

Ingredients :-

3 large or 4 medium cucumbers (skin on, deseeded)
6 large tomatoes
1 large red or yellow onion
1 bell pepper

1 canned whole kernel corn (optional), water drained
1 small bunch coriander leaves – chopped
1 small bunch spring onion – chopped

3 tablespoons honey
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil (more is better as this is healthy oil)
salt and black pepper to taste
juice of 2 lemons (can use lime, too)
zest of a lemon

Optional – a handful of Daun Pegaga/Centella Asiatica, which is also known as a “One Herb Pharmacy”

Method -

Just cut or dice and then mix everything above together and let stand for 1 hour in the fridge. Then eat like a salad. It is very appetising and it’s good for health. The honey soothes the throat, while the fresh vegetables have lots of vitamins and the lemon juice/zest has Vitamin C. The olive oil is good for health, too.

All ingredients above can be adjusted to your preference, but do make sure that the cucumbers are the “main star.” :idea:

I made a big bowl of the salad and we had it the following day also. :vh:

Sometimes, I make this as a salad accompaniment for any Western food that I cook as it’s so easy to prepare and delicious to eat. Hope you like this  salad, too!

With best wishes,

choesf :D

 

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My Home Remedies For Ailments Arising From Stomach Wind – Headaches, Bloatedness, Nausea, Pains

July 17, 2011 · Filed under For Good Health, Nutritious Soups & Meals, Health Drinks · Tagged , , , ,

A hearty, yummy bowl of Chinese Herbal Lamb Soup to warm the stomach

Hello there, dear friends :D

This year, my stomach is acting up quite often and I have to really watch my food intake and diet.   Some foods that seemed alright  previously somehow do not agree with my stomach this year…hmmm,  must be a sign of getting old for me! :lol:

As usual, I would ask my lady healer friend for advice when I go to her for a healing massage. She said my stomach is prone to developing wind and the reason is due to the weather this year! Yes, she said the weather is the cause of my problem. :lol:

I was very surprised that the weather can affect our health in such a manner, i.e. stomach ailments.  :shock:

My stomach is developing wind more frequently and I end up having nausea, indigestion, headaches and even migraines, bloatedness….all resulting from wind.

Even  my husband and my eldest daughter had wind-related problems. My husband had very bad neck, shoulder and upper left arm pains. He thought he had sprained those areas somehow or perhaps, it could be due to work stress. Seeing a doctor for treatments over a week didn’t relieve his pains at all. Finally, a visit to my lady healer friend revealed that my husband’s stomach was producing wind and it was a bad case of wind that resulted in his neck/shoulder/arm pains.

As for my eldest daughter, she  experienced mild nausea every day, especially towards the evening. Her doctor checked her health and couldn’t find anything wrong with her. She was prescribed some antibiotics, but that didn’t help with her nausea at all. Although her nausea was mild, it was a discomfort and a distraction. So, I brought her to my healer friend who said my daughter was suffering from stomach wind.

In both my husband and daughter’s cases, my healer friend recommended them to take the “5 Pagoda” brand (called “Ng Tarp San” in the Cantonese dialect)  of Chinese medicine that was a product of Thailand (see picture below). She said this is the most effective solution for stomach related problems like wind, nausea, indigestion, etc. I asked her about the “Po Chai” brand of pills and she said this Thai one is even better.

Top – Bak Foong Yuen for removing wind from body. Bottom – 5 Pagoda Powder for Removing Wind from stomach

Both my husband and daughter took just one dose of the 5-Pagoda Powder in the morning, before breakfast and on an empty stomach, and they did this for one week. Wow, they recovered from their pains and nausea respectively by the end of the week! :D

For me, I have been taking this powder when I feel I am burping a lot or my stomach starts to feel like a balloon. Although the 5-Pagoda Powder doesn’t taste good as in any Chinese herbal powder, I really love the strong minty and cool taste it has. My stomach feels immediately soothed after I take the powder.

After taking the 5-Pagoda Powder for a week, my healer friend told me to make a hearty Chinese Herbal Lamb Soup (picture at the top) to warm back our stomach.  Below are the ingredients for that soup :-

Chinese Herbs For Lamb Soup - carrots, 2 honey dates, red dates, Wai San, Yook, dried longans, Kei Jee, Pak Kei and Tong Sum

500 gms of Lamb Shanks and Ribs

Instructions

1) Bring 2 litres water to a boil in a pot on the stove top.

2 Put in the Chinese herbs and lamb. Bring water to a boil. Skim off any scum that come to the surface.

3) Lower heat to small and simmer for 2 hours.

4) Season with some salt to taste and serve immediately.

In addition to warming up the stomach, this soup is also good to improve one’s energy, stamina and overall good health. :idea:

I also bought a bottle of “Tiger Stork” brand ( “Fu Hock Yau” in the Cantonese dialect) of medicated oil which was recommended by my healer friend for applying on the stomach for relieving gastric or winds stomach pains. I had complained to her that my “Minyak Angin” and “Yu Yee Yau” didn’t help at all in removing wind. She said to just apply the “Tiger Stork” oil on the our middle back and then on our stomach areas. Then our stomach would be soothed. :idea:

Tiger Stork Brand of Medicated Oil for treating  stomach ailments and wind

So, these are my home remedies for stomach ailments. Hope you can find them in your area as they brought a lot of relief to my family. The medicated oil and 5-Pagoda powder cost about RM5-00 or so and I bought them from some Chinese Medicing shops. in Kepong.

In my next post, I will share with you a wonderful Chinese medicated oil which is really good in treating cuts and burns and can stop bleeding almost instantaneously. :idea:

With best wishes for good health,

choesf :D

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Daun Pegaga / Gotu Kola / Asiatica Pennywort – A Miracle Herb You’ve Got To Try – An Elixir Of Youth, For Menopause, A Memory Enhancer, For Good Complexion, Anti-Cancer?, Anti-Candida, A One-Herb Pharmacy, Anti-Viral, etc…

December 19, 2010 · Filed under Nutritious Soups & Meals, Health Drinks, Uncategorized · Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

 

A cup of Daun Pegaga drink made with steeping some leaves with boiling water for 10 minutes and then adding honey

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Good evening, dear friends :D

I stumbled onto the amazing goodness of the Daun Pegaga herb about 2 months ago and I have been trying this herbal drink out on my family. I am really amazed by what this herb can do and I am so excited to tell you about it until I don’t know where to begin! So, do get your cup of coffee and tea and prepare to be here for a while reading my lengthy post. :lol:

Daun pegaga is the local Malay name  for this herb, which is also known as Indian Pennywort or “Pang Dai Woon” in Cantonese (literally meaning “Chipped Big Bowl”). I learned from blog visitor Cina that its scientific name is Centella Asiatica, which is the most potent which is called Gotu Kola in India and Brahmi in Australia. Also known as ‘the Elixir of Life’ or the ‘spiritual herb’. Gotu Kola is one of the most important herbs in Aryuveda’s botanical  medicine chest.

Do visit the Complementary and Alternative Healing University website HERE for more information. :idea:

I was first introduced to Daun Pegaga by Master atan (my Feng Shui Master and a healer) whom I had asked for advice earlier this year when my youngest son kept getting sick and had trouble getting well despite being prescribed 3 rounds of antibiotics. It turned out that my son was extremely heaty and about the only herb that could help him was Daun Pegaga, which is known for its very cooling and healing properties.  At that time, I didn’t know where to buy Daun Pegaga. :oops:

Daun Pegaga is best described as having kidney-shaped leaves, growing on a single long stalk ranging from a few inches to 10 inches and grows as a runner plant in the soil. So far, I know there are 2 types of Daun Pegaga :-

  • the commercial variety, whereby the leaves are more jagged on the outside (the middle leaf in the photo below). This does look like a “Chipped Big Bowl! :lol:
  • the wild variety, where the outer part of the leaves is more rounded and even. In the photo below, the left leaf is a commercially grown wild Daun Pegaga, i.e. lots of fertilisers applied. The one on the right grew in the wild and not on the farm.

**T

Two months ago, I stumbled again onto the Daun Pegaga when I read that a lady in Singapore took this herb for only 2 weeks when her husband commented on her facial complexion which was practically glowing and much improved! Again, my interest on the Daun Pegaga was stirred and I began to do some research in the Internet on it….wow! :shock:

The more I read, the more impressed I became with the Daun Pegaga and I knew then I had to go hunt for it to try. I began by visiting my local plant nursery and I almost bought an ornamental plant that looked like the Daun Pegaga, but it wasn’t. This ornamental plant has leaves that were not kidney shaped but were whole circles/rounds instead…but they sure were similar to Daun Pegaga;s. Luckily, the lady boss of the nursery prevented me from buying it when I told her I was looking for the Daun Pegaga and she directed me to the local wet market to buy some from the Malay stalls.

Was I happy to have found Daun Pegaga at the market and I quickly bought 10 large bunches for RM1 (about US 32 cents) each.  :D

My first Daun Pegaga was of the wild variety. The Malay lady boss at the stall told me the wild type is better as a medicinal herb and it is slightly more bitter. Later on, I found some commercial Daun Pegaga, too – its taste is more similar to English flat leaf parsley.

I tried growing some wild variety Daun Pegaga and now have some peeping out below my Bird’s Nest Ferns in my garden :D

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If you type in the words “health benefits of Gotu Kola or Daun Pegaga”, you will find a wealth of information on the Internet. Elephants in India eat a lot of Gotu Kola daily – do you remember the saying “An elephant never forgets?” There you go, even elephants know this herb is good for health – in this case : as a memory enhancer.

I read a report somewhere where research of the Daun Pegaga was conducted on some lab rats. After just feeding some rats with Daun Pegaga for 2 days, some tests were done on these rats and compared to the results of those rats that didn’t take the Daun Pegaga. Wow, they found that the rats which was fed the Daun Pegaga did 2 to 60 times better in their memory tests! How’s that as a miracle herb :?:

The main reasons why I am now using  this herb for my family are :-

1) Memory Enhancer

I swear, as I am getting older, my mind is getting more foggy and forgetful. I’m hoping this herb will improve my memory. Also, I have 3 schoolgoing children – this herb will surely come in handy and help them do well in their studies, perhaps? :lol:

Some people take Daun Pegaga to aid in their meditation practice. :idea:

2) Excellent Facial and Skin Complexion

When I was making the Tateshi Kazu Miracle Vegetable Soup for my family, everybody’s complexion got better and more rosy, except for my eldest son’s! :roll:

After drinking Daun Pegaga over a few weeks, his acne actually cleared up 80 % and his old acne scars actually became less inflamed and even healed! I later read that the daun pegaga is good for healing scars and wounds. And of course, my own facial complexion just kept getting better. :D

3) Anti-Viral Properties

Who is not afraid of a recurrence of the H1N1 Flu or the Dengue Fever outbreaks? I am.

Master atan told me first about the Daun Pegaga as an “anti-mosquito herb”. At that time, I was wondering how this herb can be that. Another healer later told me this plant has “anti-viral” properties and when I put two and two together….voila! I now understand that as the H1N1 and Dengue Fever are viral in nature – taking this herb regularly will give us a good immunity against those illnesses. Good, eh :?:

4. “Elixir of Youth” & Anti Aging

Honestly, who doesn’t want to have the “Elixir of Youth”. I read in another research (I forgot the details…need to take more Daun Pegaga first :lol: ) about this herb having the capability to enhance our cells and get them to produce collagen or something like that…hence, resulting in us having a more youthful look and complexion, lesser wrinkles, perhaps?

Actually, the herb contains chemical substances called “triterpenes” that appears to enhance the formation of collagen in bones, cartilages and tissues.

5. Menopause

If you are perimenopausal like me, almost approaching middle age – you will understand the problems faced in many aspects of our life. The daun pegaga helps to alleviate anxiety and depression, relieve fatique by improving energy levels (indeed, after a cup of this, I feel energised shortly), and of course, improving memory and intelligence.

6. A One-Herb Pharmacy

Other than its anti-viral property, the Daun Pegaga has anti-septic and anti-fungal values, too. I noticed that while I was taking the Daun Pegaga drink, I had lesser instances of yeast and fungal infections…a real relief for me.

Other important benefits of the Daun Pegaga are :-

  • good for cognitive functioning (brain/intelligence)
  • good for aiding skin conditions, e.g. rashes, eczema
  • improved blood flow and circulation, hence aiding varicose veins
  • has anti-inflammatory properties – good for aiding conditions like arthritis
  • has cooling effect on the body, good for fever, too

How to take Daun Pegaga or Gotu Kola

A research on the Internet will reveal many methods of taking this herb. I shall only mention those that I had learned over these few months…different people have their own ways. :idea:

Master atan’s method :idea:

Put 3 leaves of Daun Pegaga into a cup and pour boiling water over. Steep for a few minutes and then drink. Take on a daily basis. Another way is to boil 20 leaves for a few minutes with 7 cups of water. Store in the fridge and drink one cup every day.

Added 20 Dec, 2010 – Master atan said we can eat the leaves raw, too, a few pieces daily for good health maintenance.

My lady healer friend’s method :idea:

Boil 10 bunches (1 kilo) of cleaned Daun Pegaga (roots and all) with 15 honey dates with enough water just to cover the herb for 2 hours. Drink 1 cup per person per day. This is enough to last my family of 6 over 2 to 3 days. I usually make my youngest son drink more as he gets heaty so easily.

This is for once every 2 weeks, or twice a month.

A Malay lady boss from the vegetable stall :idea:

Blend a few bunches of Daun Pegaga (cleaned roots and all) with some water, add some rock sugar syrup and keep in bottles in the fridge…drink  as a vegetable juice. No boiling is required. This is more potent and faster acting. Taste is not too bad if using the commercial Daun Pegaga…the wild variety will definitely be bitter.

Blended fresh Daun Pegaga with a little rock sugar syrup added. One bunch of leaves and about 400 ml syrup were used.

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A bunch of Daun Pegaga, washed really clean with a little Homemade Pineapple Enzyme before blending

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Another Malay stall lady boss’s method :idea:

Remove the roots, just use the leafy part and eat fresg as a salad. Recipe ===> mix a bunch of Daun Pegaga (chopped or not), with 1 or 2 chopped tomato and 1 chopped onions. Add salt, sugar and pepper to taste and squeeze some lime juAnoice in. Stir and serve as a salsa. Delicious!

My large pot of Daun Pegaga and Honey Dates ready for boiling

Warning!

As with all herbs and alternative medicines, be careful and exercise caution if you are :-

  • pregnant
  • breastfeeding
  • taking Western medication for chronic conditions like diabetes, hypertension, etc
  • some sites suggest stopping this herb for 2 weeks after taking it for 6 weeks

There you have it – a really miraculous herb. Hope you can try it out for yourself and your family. This herb has been around for many centuries but I only heard about it this year. It is good that we have such a beneficial herb around and for those of us in the tropic countries that can get this herb  easily, you should test it out. Remember….”Health is Wealth”.

Good Night!

With best wishes,

choesf :D

P.S. Disclaimer – Take this herb at your own risk. I will not be held responsible nor liable if you develop any adverse side effects from taking this herb. Thank you.


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Yummy Chinese Herbal Lamb Soup To Warm Up The Stomach & For Nourishment

October 28, 2010 · Filed under Chinese Food, Nutritious Soups & Meals, Health Drinks · Tagged , , , ,

A  bowl of hearty, delicious Chinese herbal lamb soup

 

Hi there, dear friends :D

A few weeks ago, some of my family members were suffering from different stomach ailments ranging from the occasional bouts of mild nausea to bloatedness and wind in the stomach.

I told my lady healer friend about the stomach ailments and she taught me some home remedies to counter those problems using soups and Chinese medicines.  She said the stomach is producing wind and once the wind  problem is addressed by taking the Chinese medicines (the easier method) or soups, then  the stomach is to be warmed up by consuming a bowl of Chinese herbal lamb soup. :idea:

The Chinese herbs used here are those that we commonly use to make soups and can be found easily at Chinese Medial Halls (shops) here in Malaysia and Singapore. However, I am not sure if those living overseas will be able to get them from their local Chinatown stores, but I think it will be helpful if you can show them a picture of the herbs required. These herbs are not very expensive. Just say that you are making soup for how many persons and they will prepare the right amount of herbs for you. :idea:


Ingredients (terms are in the Cantonese Chinese dialect) shown clockwise as per picture above (soup is for 6 persons) :-

Carrots

2 Honey Dates, halved

Chinese Red Dates, seeds removed

Wai San & Fook Sun

Yook Jook

Dried Longan

Goji or Wolfberries

Pak Kei

Tong Sum

1 Kati or 600 gms of of lamb shank (can use lamb ribs or chops)

2 litres water or 10 rice bowls of water


Method :-

1) Bring water to a boil in a claypot or soup pot.

2) Put all ingredients into the pot.

3) Bring water back to a boil. Skim off any scum that comes to the surface. Do this for about 5 minutes.

4) Lower fire down to small and simmer for 1 1/2 hours.

5) Season to taste with a little salt. Serve hot on its own or with dinner. Yummy! :D

Note – this soup can be prepared with a slow cooker/crockpot  and simmered for a longer period.


A bowl of hearty, delicious Chinese herbal lamb soup

Other than the purpose of warming up our stomachs, the ingredients in this soup aids in nourishing our health, improving vitality and stamina, is good for eyesight and promoting good sleep. :idea:

By putting in 2 Honey Dates, this soup is rendered not too heaty for consumption.  On other occasions, we usually use chicken in place of lamb and it is good to have this yummy soup at least twice a month for health maintenance.

Other soups that I had posted previously in removing wind from the body and stomach :-

Mint Leaves & Egg Soup

Shallots & Old Chicken Soup

Bon Appetit! :D

With best wishes for good health,

choesf :D

P.S. I will post next on some Chinese medicine to be taken to address serious stomach problems


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Easy Yummy Shallots & Old Chicken Soup To Relieve Wind/Flatulence

October 21, 2010 · Filed under Nutritious Soups & Meals, Health Drinks · Tagged , , , ,

A hearty bowl of delicious small onions/shallots and old chicken soup :D

Hello there, dear friends :D

Here is a super easy but really yummy soup to help remove wind from our body.

All you need is just :-

1 kilo of peeled shallots (small onions)

1 old chicken, skin and fat removed, chopped

3 litres water (2 litres water if your family is smaller or you want the soup more concentrated)

Method –

1) Bring water to a boil in a soup pot.

2) Put in all ingredients above and bring to a boil again. Skim off any scum that comes to the surface of the soup.

3) Simmer for 4 hours over a low fire.

4) Season with salt to taste.

I made this soup last week as a series of home remedies to tackle the wind problems that some of my family members have been experiencing, my self included. Before this, I had made Mint Leaves and Egg Soup, which unfortunately my husband and sons are not fans of. :roll:

Anyway, shallots are known to have effects than big onions in removing wind and this soup recipe has been passed down from many generations. Some people add in lemon grass and old ginger to give the soup more kick. I love ginger a lot but unfortunately, my healer lady friend said women around middle age and perimenopausal should not take ginger in any form for fear of triggering health problems arising from heatiness.

Shallots are used a lot in  Asian cooking and a look in the Internet will yield many nutritional and health benefits of shallots. Some studies and researches have found shallots to contain in large quantities calcium, iron and protein and they are an excellent source of Vitamin C, folic acid, potassium and dietary fibre. They are believed to be good anti-bacterial and anti-fungal agents, too. :idea:

Old chicken is a requirement of this soup because it is believed to have properties to remove wind also. Old chickens are those hens that have stopped their eggs laying period.

Try to make this soup regularly for your family – even young children will enjoy it as the soup is so sweet. As old chickens have more fat content, be sure to skim off all the oil from the surface of the soup before serving it hot. Any leftover soup is ideal to make noodles or porridge. :idea:

My next post will be on home remedies to remove wind in the stomach, with a recipe of a special herbal lamb soup to warm up the stomach. :wink:

With best wishes for good health,

choesf :D

P.S. Any leftover soup can  be kept in the refrigerator and consumed the next day. I checked with my healer lady friend about the belief that leftover soups can cause wind in our body – she said if a soup has been boiled for 4 hours, then that soup is safe for consumption the next day without causing wind to our body. :D


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Easy, Yummy Mint Leaves & Egg Soup To Relieve Wind In Body & Incontinence From Bad Coughs

October 10, 2010 · Filed under Chinese Food, Nutritious Soups & Meals, Health Drinks · Tagged , , , ,


A bowl of yummy Mint Leaves & Egg Soup for health benefits :idea:

Good evening, dear friends :D

Here is a really simple but effective Chinese soup that my healer lady taught me as a traditional method remove “wind” from our body. It is easy to prepare and yet so tasty as well. I now have a pot of mint growing in my garden and sometimes I make a bowl of this soup to go with some hot cooked rice as a simple lunch meal. :idea:

Sometimes, our stomach is not working effectively in digesting food, or we eat too much food that causes bloatedness like beans, cabbage and as a result there is a tight feeling or “wind” buildup in the stomach, all the way down our digestive tract. Even stress can lead to this problem when our  digestion gets affected.

Symptoms of this wind in our body are some funny sounds (not rumbling from hunger :roll: ) coming from our digestive system, mild cramping in stomach, or when you knock lightly on your abdomen, there is a hollow sound like playing a drum. In children, the sign of them having a lot of wind in their body is when the whites of their eyes are bluish in colour.

According to Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), if left untreated, the “wind” can even spread to other parts of our body and cause other illnesses, like joint pains, headaches/migraines that won’t go away despite taking the right medication and even lethargy. Once this “wind” problem is removed, then a person would feel more energised and alert.

In my case, last year I kept having tension headaches and I thought I was feeling “heaty”, and despite taking a lot of “cooling” drinks/soups to balance my health, my headaches persisted. After having gone to consult this healer lady, she said that my headaches were due to “wind” in my body and she recommended that I make this easy Mint & Egg Soup to get rid of the wind. Wow, my headaches were gone the next day, when I made this soup to drink! This soup is good for maintaining the health of our body as well. :wink:

Mint Leaves & Egg Soup (for 1 person)



Ingredients -

2 cups of fresh mint leaves

2 eggs, beaten lightly

2 cups water (you can add in chicken or ikan bilis stock if you like)

1 tbsp chopped garlic, or sliced ginger (your preference)

salt and pepper to taste


Method -

1) Heat up 1 tbsp of oil in a wok or non-stick pan. Fry garlic or ginger until golden and fragrant.

2) Put in the mint leaves, stirfry for 1 minute and then put in the beaten eggs. Stir lightly until it becomes an omellete.

3) Add in the water or stock and break up the omellete.

4) Bring to boil for 2 minutes or so, then season to taste.

5) Serve immediately. You can have have this soup on its own for lunch (that’s what I did), or have a bowl of hot, white rice to go with that. :wink:

I will post next on other home remedies for stomach problems like indigestion, nausea, bloatedness, hunger despite just having a meal, etc.

With best wishes for good health,

choesf :D

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Chinese Prescription Formula & Recipe For Homemade Tonic, Herbal Wine For Good Health

September 8, 2010 · Filed under Nutritious Soups & Meals, Health Drinks, Uncategorized · Tagged , , , , , ,

A Chinese formula prescribing the type and amount of herbs required to prepare the Chinese Tonic/Herbal Wine


Hi there, dear friends :D

This Chinese prescription for making our own tonic wine was given to me by the same friend that taught me the Miracle Vegetable Soup.

My friend said that while the vegetable soup is consumed to remove toxins and balance back our body’s health, this Chinese tonic or herbal wine is taken to nourish our health. This is a “poh chau” (a nourishing or tonic wine in the Cantonese Chinese dialect) and is more popularly known as the “Mao Zedong Tonic Wine.” :lol:

He mentioned this tonic wine was taken regularly by Mao Zedong to maintain his good health until he passed away at 84 years old in 1976. Mao Zedong was the former communist party leader of China.

So, I decided to try this tonic wine on my family and I have prepared some in my big glass jar – it should be ready on 22 October.  I was told this wine is very good for strengthening one’s backbone (“poh yew guat” in Cantonese”) and good health.

I brought the Chinese prescription (Chinese medicinal formula or “yeok fong” in Cantonese) to one of my regular Chinese medical halls (shops) to get the herbs ready for making the tonic wine.  I showed the elderly gentleman boss my print out of this tonic wine formula and told him that a friend has recommended that I make this tonic wine for my family.

Wow, I found out that this prescription has been circulating around for many years already. The boss took one look at my printout (prescription formula) and he went to refer to his dusty, old book that was filled with all types of prescription formulas for various ailments and tonics. He has the same formula as the one I showed him, all neatly handwritten onto one of the yellowed pages in his old book. :D

Here is the “recipe” for homemade Mao Zedong Tonic Wine :-

Various types and amounts of herbs as specified in the Chinese prescription.

Please note that I decided to make a double batch of wine and the herbs shown here are double the portions. I thought since it takes some time to prepare this good stuff and my family is big, I may as well make more. :lol:


Following the amount of herbs as per the prescription given above, you will need 2 katis of distilled white wine or 2 bottles of 640 ml Chinese white wine.

In my case of double recipe, I used 4 bottles of wine instead. Don’t throw away the empty wine bottles but keep them to contain the tonic wine when it is ready for harvesting/consumtion. :idea:


One kati or 500 gms sugar

 

Method of preparation :-

1) Place the “inner shavings of cinnamon sticks” at the bottom of a clean glass jar

2) Pour in the rest of the herbs

Oh, I had added a large handful of woflberries (gei ji) as I thought it is very good for nourishing our eyes. However, in hindsight, I thought it was a mistake to do so as the berries had soaked up more of the wine. :oops:

3) Pour in the Chinese wine, cover the jar and leave overnight

4) After the herbs have been immersed in the wine for 1 day and 1 night (heheh, this is following exactly the instructions in Chinese speak :lol: ) i.e. 24 hours later, add in the sugar.

5) Seal the jar tightly and leave it in a cool dark place. In my case, I just wrapped the jar with some newspapers and leave it at one cool corner of my kitchen.

6) Wine is ready for consumption after 60 days.

I confirmed with the boss of the medical hall – this wine is not heaty and is safe for consumption from teenagers to elderly people.

To take the tonic wine, just mix 1 small Chinese teacup or 1  ”peck” (or peg? not sure if this is a Chinese or Western term) with 1/4 to 1/2 cup of room temperature boiled water and drink.

Can take it anytime during the day or night, just before sleeping. My friend takes daily the vegetable soup in the morning and  the tonic wine at night. He has extremely good health and has not been sick for many years already. :D

When I go back to this medical shop later, I will ask the boss again in details the health benefits of this Mao Zedong Tonic Wine and will list them here for your info. Also, I will take a photo of the wine in the jar when it is ready and show you.  :wink:

Meanwhile, I wish you Good Health! :D

With best wishes,

choesf :D

 

Added on 26 December, 2010 -

Harvesting, Tasting & Review/Feedback

This was how I wrapped up the glass container – with newspapers and taped at the top – easy disposal later.

The Reveal – Wine is darker upon maturity – this wine is about 4 months old

To drain every drop of goodness – I tilted the bottle over a large strainer onto a pot. Do this when you have scooped as much of the tonic wine into bottles

About 3 1/2 bottles of tonic wine was yielded

Recommended dosage of Mao Zedong Tonic Wine – take a small Chinese tea cup or a Chinese soup spoon full, add a little hot water to mix and drink

My review of the tonic wine

  • Very aromatic in the herbal sense
  • Very strong alcohol content (well, for someone like me who hardly drinks :oops: )
  • Very sweet (I wonder if I could reduce the sugar amount)
  • Due to the overly alcoholic and sweet nature of this wine,  you may want to add more hot water
  • After drinking the wine, I can feel it go through my system very fast – felt a little tipsy and sleepy and it was in the afternoon!
  • I recommend that this wine is taken at night just before bed, because I slept a good 4 hours in the afternoon after drinking this tonic wine and I am not used to afternoon naps! :lol:

Cheers! :D


Comments (39) »

Homemade Raisin Wine – Very Good For Tenderising Meat & For Cooking; Has Health Benefits

July 26, 2010 · Filed under Nutritious Soups & Meals, Health Drinks · Tagged , , ,

Homemade Raisin Wine

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Good afternoon, dear friends :D

I first came across homemade raisin wine when my healer friend made a batch of it and she gave me a bottle to try.  She told me that it is very good for marinating and tenderising meats, especially when used in cooking Kung Pao Chicken.

Juicy, Tender Lamb Chops Marinated With Raisin Wine

That day, I was going to cook some lamb chops for dinner and I thought I would try out what my friend said about raisin wine. My usual method of tenderising chops was to use a kitchen mallet on them before marinating them with some oyster sauce, garlic and ginger paste,  salt & pepper, Chinese Rice Wine and cornstarch. I was taught that the combination of wine and cornstarch would help to tenderise meats.


Homemade Raisin Wine (5)


When I tried out the raisin wine, I decided to forego using the kitchen mallet to see how well the wine would work as a tenderiser. I was using lamb shoulder chops which can be a bit tough to eat if not tenderised properly.

Wow, the lamb chops turned out to be so tender, juicy and really delicious when raisin wine was used as part of the marinade. Everyone in my family was happily tucking into the lamb chops. :lol:

Ever since, raisin wine has been in integral part of my cooking – I would add that liberally into stews, stirfry, soups, etc.  I even used it in my Spaghetti Bolognese sauce and Cottage Pie beef fillings. How yummy! Quickly, my free bottle of raisin wine ran out!

To meet my high usage of raisin wine for cooking,  I decided to try making my very own wine (my first attempt at making wine :roll: )  … and now I have a few bottles of raisin wine on hand! :D

I was even more motivated to make the wine when I read about the goodness of raisins and the many health benefits of raisins.

The photos below were taken way back last year – in early October, 2009. It is very easy to prepare and well worth the wait.

Initially, I had wanted to follow Amy Beh’s recipe (at bottom of page) for making raisin wine. Armed with a list of ingredients required for the wine, I went to a Chinese medical hall to get what I wanted. Heheh, it turned out that the lady boss has her own recipe and she packed all the ingredients according to hers.

Homemade Raisin Wine

*Boiled Sugar Solution

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Homemade Raisin Wine (1)

Yeast For Making Wine

Homemade Raisin Wine (3)

*Powdered Yeast Sprinkled Over Raisins

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Homemade Raisin Wine (4)

Sugar syrup poured over yeast and raisins. Cover tightly and let stand overnight

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Homemade Raisin Wine (5)

A small bottle of distilled rice wine to be added on Day 2

My healer friend said she usually adds a bottle of Kaoliang Wine (Go Leong Jao in Cantonese) to her wine at the beginning. I would try her method the next time I make more of this wine.

Her raisin wine is very popular and whenever her friends or relatives have someone about to have a baby, they would pay her to make a batch of raisin wine for the new mother’s consumption during confinement month. I have seen this wine being sold at RM15 for a 750 ml bottle. My cost in making my own raisin wine was about RM20 only.

One thing to note, when the raisin wine is ready, it doesn’t taste very alcoholic – just very smooth and a little sweet. The medical hall lady boss said she would add more distilled wine when bottling the matured raisin wine to give it the more alcoholic taste. As with other wines, the longer this wine is kept, the better it tastes. :wink:

With best wishes for good health,

choesf :D

Homemade Raisin Wine by Any Beh

Ingredients
Syrup

  • 5 bottles water (approximately 3.75litres)
  • 1.2kg rock sugar
  • 600g golden raisins
  • 5 pieces sweet wine biscuits (tim chow paeng), crushed finely
  • 5 pieces spicy wine biscuits (lat chow paeng)

    • Method
    Place water and sugar in a large pot and bring to a boil; stir until rock sugar is dissolved. Leave to cool completely. It is important to cool the syrup thoroughly.

    Prepare a big glass jar (you can buy one from any provision shop) by washing it well and then drying it thoroughly.

    Scatter raisins evenly on the base of the jar. Sprinkle both types of wine biscuits over the raisins. Pour in the cooled syrup slowly. Seal the jar lid tightly and allow the liquid to ferment and mature in a cool, dry and dark place for 100 days. Do not move the container during the fermenting and maturing period. If you do not follow this piece of grandmother’s lore, the whole process will not turn out well.

    Comments (43) »

    Yummy, Soothing Soup To Remedy Insomnia, Restless or Lack of Sleep, Nightmares…& Body Heatiness

    June 15, 2010 · Filed under Nutritious Soups & Meals, Health Drinks · Tagged ,

    Tai Bak Choy Soup simmering in my Tanyu Claypot

    My Large Bowl of Yummy, Hearty Tai Bak Choy Soup - Dried Oysters, White Tofu, Pork & Melt-in-the-mouth Bak Choy

    Hi there, dear friends :D

    Wow, the weather in this part of the world is really hot and humid this year. Most people have their air-conditions on most of the time to deal with the heat.

    This weather can cause our body to be heaty and we find it difficult to sleep well at night. Sometime, nightmares or really vivid dreams are experienced, resulting in us feeling more tired the morning after,  although we had slept sufficiently for many hours. My healer/massage lady friend said this is due to our “body’s internal heat” (she calls it internal fire) increasing too much and it is affecting our sleep. She taught me a cooling soup recipe which I have found to be very effective for this restless sleep and it is very delicious as well. Wink

    Here is the recipe. I call it Tai Bak Choy soup (in Cantonese for literally “Big White Vegetable” – it is similar to Bok Choy). As I am typing this, I have a clay pot of it simmering on my stove for tonight’s dinner. I will take a picture of the soup and post it here shortly.

    Tai Bak Choy soup for restless sleep with many dreams Laughing

    Ingredients :-

    1 kg Tai Bak Choy, washed and cut

    100 gm Salted Fish Bones, washed and pan fried in oil (if not available, substitute with dried oysters)
    0.5 kg Pork Ribs, washed
    1 5-inch X 3-inch block of soft tofu, cut into large cubes
    3 litres water

    Method:-

    Put all ingredients into a soup pot and simmer for 4 hours. Or simmer longer in a slow cooker. Season to taste. Remember the salted fish is salty, so you may want to taste the soup first before adding salt to taste.

    The salted fish bones are actually from large, whole salted ikan kurau and the meat has been fillet out to be sold, and the bones are left. If you can’t find the salted fish bones, you can use some salted fish meat or dried oysters instead.

    Serve this soup with your normal meals like dinner. At one time, I even made this soup into a porridge for lunch – I boiled the soup without the rice for 3 1/2 hours and then only I add in the rice to make it into a porridge. Just as tasty! Very Happy

    Hope this works for you as well in case you decide to try making this soup. My family usually sleep very well on those days when we have it. Right now, the soup’s mouth watering smells are wafting through my house…mmm, I can’t wait to have a large bowl of soup with lots of vegetables and tofu in an hour when it will be ready! Wink

    Sweet Dreams! Laughing


    With best wishes,

    choesf :D

    Comments (4) »

    Tateshi Kazu’s Miracle Vegetable Soup – Feedback & Comments Continued Here …

    May 1, 2010 · Filed under Nutritious Soups & Meals, Health Drinks, Uncategorized · Tagged , , ,

    Ingredients for Miracle Vegetable Soup

    Hello there, dear friends :D

    For some strange reason, the comments section were closed for my earlier post on Tateshi Kazu’s Miracle Vegetable Soup – maybe there were too many comments.

    So, I have started a new thread here to continue our feedback on the effects of taking this soup. :idea:

    Here’s to good health to all of us!

    With best wishes,

    choesf :D

    Comments (130) »

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