China's diet and the origin of literature and art

Speaking of China's food culture, I believe everyone in China will feel a sense of pride from the bottom of my heart! People often say, "China's food culture has a long history." So, how far and how long is this origin? Some scholars believe that China people began to have their own food culture when Beijingers barbecued food with fire more than 500,000 years ago. According to the records in Huangdi Neijing, there were exquisite brewing techniques in remote ancient times, and these wines were applied to medical practice.

In Su Wen's discussion on fermented soup, the processing technology and efficacy of fermented soup are recorded. Soup and mash are both wines brewed from grain. Relatively speaking, the soup is thin and the mash is thicker and more alcohol. In the process of making these liquors, it is required to use mature and full rice as raw material and hard rice as fuel. Because only this kind of grain can fully absorb the sunshine and rain of nature, and it is rich in various nutritional essences and energy. When a grain grows full and fully mature, that is, when it is full of fragrance, it should be harvested at any time, so that the essence of heaven and earth (that is, the nutritional essence of plants) can be better condensed and contained, and the nutrition contained in the seeds or fruits of plants can be more complete.

The processing methods of liquor such as soup and fermented grains have existed since ancient times. At that time, people were simple-minded, attached importance to moral cultivation, and knew how to keep in good health. Most of them can stay healthy and are basically not sick. So soup and mash were made just to prevent diseases.

With the development of human society, people's living standards are improving day by day, and people's desires and requirements are getting higher and higher. In the Middle Ages, people's simple morality gradually declined, their health level declined, and the external natural environment also changed. Abnormal weather occurs from time to time, causing exogenous diseases such as colds and chills. At this time, as long as you drink soup or mash in time, you can cure these ailments.

Huangdi Neijing tells us that the ancestors of the Chinese nation used their wisdom a long time ago and made a series of cultural progress in food and health care, such as fine processing of whole grains, careful preparation of food and drink, and in-depth exploration of food and health care.

Dating back to the Zhou Dynasty in BC12nd century, there is a record of "eating doctors" in the book, and the officials in charge of medical care are set as doctors, who undertake four different duties respectively, namely, eating doctors, treating patients (physicians), selecting doctors (surgeons) and veterinarians.

The duty of a food doctor is to "combine six foods, six drinks, six meals, hundreds of vegetables, hundred sauces and eight treasures" (Zhou Li Tianguan Food Doctor), with two "sergeants" as the main duties, to adjust the cold temperature, taste and nutrition of the royal diet, and to manage the diet nutrition and hygiene of members of the royal family. It can be seen that the dietician at that time should be a senior physician who integrated medical knowledge and dietary nutrition knowledge.

Although the preparation and cooking of food are all done by chefs, the preparation of food to eat, drinks to drink and delicious meals should be coordinated and matched according to the different climates and dietary tastes of the four seasons under the specific guidance of a dietician, such as the staple food should be warm, the soup should be hot, the sauce should be cold, and the drinks and wine should be cold; The five flavors of diet should correspond to the seasons, and the combination of meat and vegetables should be appropriate. All these fully show that as early as thousands of years ago, the ancients in China had a certain theoretical understanding of diet health.

As long as you walk into the kitchens of China people, you can feel the rich and colorful food culture in China: all kinds of catering utensils, food processing tools and cookers, from pots and pans to cups and pans, from knives and forks to chopping boards, panels, rolling pins, garlic jars and peelers. There are also condiments made from Chinese traditional medicines such as pepper, aniseed, cinnamon, dried tangerine peel, ginger, dried ginger, jujube, fennel and nutmeg. It is with these condiments that China classic dishes and local snacks with unique flavors can be prepared. Every food has its own unique seasoning formula, which is the "secret" of China's cooking for thousands of years. Tracing back to China's delicious and nourishing diet, we have to mention the scientific research and correct guidance of ancient food doctors on diet nutrition.

Let's just say that this garlic can was invented in China. When people eat garlic in China, they should peel off the garlic skin first, and then mash the garlic cloves until the juice is squeezed out, which is called mashed garlic and then used as seasoning. This process requires a garlic can. There is a medicine jar in front, so it should be easy to get a jar suitable for mashing garlic. It is not difficult to invent the garlic jar itself. The key point is that our ancestors invented the scientific eating method of mashing garlic before eating.

Now it is found that garlic has bactericidal effect, and the main effective component is a substance called allicin in its volatile oil, and this kind of garlic capsaicin is produced by the hydrolysis of alliin contained in garlic by alliinase. The study also shows that after garlic is crushed, it is best to leave it for 10 ~ 15 minutes to produce allicin better, and then eat it to give full play to its bactericidal effect. China's garlic mashing technology can achieve the above-mentioned required results.

We can't prove how long the history of mashing garlic jars is, but from this process, we can know the depth and grasp ability of ancient people in China on diet research. Chinese medicine believes that garlic is pungent, sweet and warm. It can warm the middle warmer, strengthen the stomach, promote digestion, regulate qi, detoxify and kill insects. It is a good product for both medicine and food, which can not only cure diseases, but also supplement food. Doctors in past dynasties used garlic to treat diseases and regulate their bodies, and there are related records in medical books.

Nowadays, it is often seen that someone picks up garlic cloves and puts them directly into his mouth to chew, thinking that this can play a role in sterilization. In fact, this way of eating does not produce allicin and cannot play its due best role. On the contrary, it will stimulate the oral mucosa and gastrointestinal tract to feel uncomfortable or cause ulcer disease because it is too spicy. Whenever I pound garlic, I will feel grateful to my ancestors from the bottom of my heart.

It can be asserted that the reason why Chinese cuisine can maintain its vigorous vitality and endure for a long time is because it has injected the soul of the road of Chinese medicine!

Wisdom-culture-diet-health is the main theme of China's diet culture, and it is also the general principle of TCM diet.

As long as you study carefully and taste carefully, it is not difficult to find those health preserving ideas contained in China's diet culture. While enjoying the delicious food in China, we should know how to understand and feel the wisdom and kindness of ancient sages, and never forget to eat for health preservation!