The story of black sesame: "How much spring does a meal take?"

The ancients once said that "food is the most important thing for the people". In China, eating and taking medicine are completely the same thing in people's eyes. This is precisely because China, as one of the four ancient civilizations, has established a mysterious and self-contained oriental philosophy system in this long development process, and the homology of medicine and food is the ancient wisdom of the East.

After the Silk Road, accompanied by dust and hardships, little black sesame came to the ancient civilization in the East and was included in various pharmacopoeias. Although China people listed it in various pharmacopoeias, they also widely used it in their daily diet. With the understanding of diet health culture, industrious and intelligent people in China are constantly seeking inspiration for transformation.

In this documentary, black sesame, a tiny plant, is vividly displayed. Perhaps only in China can a food stand out so much. From sesame oil in Zhumadian, Henan Province to black sesame sugar onion cake in Shantou, Guangdong Province; From the black sesame pancake fruit in Tianjin to the honey sesame sauce in Nanning, Guangxi, it can be said that black sesame is affecting our daily life and diet from south to north and from east to west.

Among the many black sesame foods made in China, black sesame is mostly used as stuffing, and it is basically combined with sugar, mainly because sweetness is the simplest and initial food experience of human beings, and its refreshing fragrance and extreme sweetness have written the most fragrant and sweet chapter in the history of taste memory of China people. From black sesame candy to peony silver silk crisp, whether it is black sesame dumplings or hot sesame paste, the sweetness of the moment when you eat it is the happiest moment.

Black sesame is not only used in traditional food production, but now, people who pay attention to health are also using the current tools to create ever-changing black sesame foods with their own thinking, such as black sesame ice-covered moon cakes and black sesame coconut milk Melaleuca cakes in Cantonese refreshments.

From oil to sauce, from stuffing to skin, from middle point to west point, China people from different regions skillfully use black sesame seeds to create different forms and tastes of food with their industrious and intelligent hands. This is not only because black sesame is sweet and delicious, but also because of the health mystery behind black sesame.

Chinese people pay attention to the homology of medicine and food, and the records of black sesame in ancient books can be traced back to the ancient medical book Shennong Herbal Classic. According to Taoist health culture, steaming and drying black sesame seeds for nine times is the ultimate application of black sesame seeds. However, with the change of history, it gradually faded out of daily use, but this health wisdom has been continued among the people.

Taoism believes that nine is the extreme number, and the extreme number means change. If you want to know the way of keeping in good health, you must first understand the existence of yin and yang and the unity of man and nature. Black sesame seeds steamed for nine days and dried for nine days embody this idea. In the nine alternation of yin and yang, the physical structure and composition structure of black sesame seeds were broken, and the deeper health-preserving effect was stimulated.

Taoist health preservation is the core component of health preservation culture in China, which has a far-reaching impact on TCM health preservation. TCM health preservation follows the law of Yin-Yang and Five Elements, advocates the preventive concept of preventing diseases before they occur, and regards the human body as a whole with the same attributes as nature. Traditional Chinese medicine believes that the five colors enter the five internal organs, and black sesame is widely used in various health care prescriptions because of its excellent tonic effect on the kidney.

More than 1000 years after the publication of Shennong Herbal Classic, western countries put forward the concept of plant nutrient composition analysis. In the experiment of black sesame, it was found that black sesame is rich in many antioxidant substances, among which selenium is rich in anticancer element. It can be seen that most Chinese medical codes mention that black sesame has the effect of prolonging life, which is not groundless.

China people, who advocate the homology of medicine and food, like to use food in their daily lives in the simplest way to realize the concept of disease prevention. China's health culture seems mysterious, but in fact it is the same as scientific research. The real wisdom of China people lies in their understanding of black sesame and the application of diet in health care system.

In China's traditional folk customs, food is not only a function of eating, but also carries China people's respect for heaven and earth and wishes for their loved ones, which embodies the high hopes of the whole clan for prosperity. Black sesame was selected from many ingredients by the ancients because of its excellent health care value and unique fragrance. This dish is well-cooked, exquisite and sacred. With life and death, solar terms have changed, and it has been passed down from generation to generation among clan groups.

From sacrifice to marriage custom, from thought to implication, black sesame has entrusted people with respect for their parents and awe of heaven and earth. Etiquette, custom and food are the most special memories in a person's life. Ancient food continues the ancestors' expectations for future generations, and also embodies the blessings of relatives, engraving the happiest moment of life. China people implicitly express their feelings through a series of foods, from bayberry and hunchback to tea, ginger, salt, beans and sesame tea.

Black sesame, as a blessing food in festival folk customs, is used by people to worship heaven, worship their parents, get married and reunite. This is an implicit way for China people to express their feelings, and it is a lingering affection for China people. It is always accompanied by loud gongs and drums and reunion laughter, and has become the memory of the happiest time in China people's life.

The development of black sesame in China is slow, and it is still in the mode of small workshop. However, if the original flavor is preserved to the greatest extent in manual workshops, then industrialized production will make it possible for traditional foods to spread more widely. From ancient oriental wisdom to sophisticated modern science, people's exploration of black sesame has never stopped, and people have high hopes for it. The story behind black sesame is the crystallization of thousands of years of human wisdom, the watch of life and the sustenance of feelings.

Black sesame is the result of the encounter between Chinese and western cultures spanning thousands of years. No matter how time passes, it is still in our life.