Wild vegetables, often "weeds" that grow along roadsides or field ridges, are frequently overlooked and even forgotten by people. In fact, many of these nameless "weeds" in the wild are excellent remedies for illnesses, and they can also be stir-fried or steamed for consumption. So, which wild vegetables have nutritional values that we have overlooked? How can wild vegetables be made delicious? What are the ways to prepare wild vegetables?
It is common for wild vegetables to be forgotten by people, after all, people don't know what effects they have, thinking they are just "weeds".
The following several are common "weeds" in rural areas, and their effects are great.
Daylily
Daylily, also known as Hemerocallis citrina or the "herb that forgets sorrows", its flower buds have been a delicacy since ancient times. It is fresh, tender, and nutritious, rich in pollen, sugar, protein, vitamin C, calcium, fat, carotene, amino acids, and other essential nutrients for the human body. The carotene content in it is even several times higher than that of tomatoes. Traditional Chinese medicine believes that daylily is neutral in nature, sweet and slightly bitter in taste, and has multiple effects such as clearing heat and promoting urination, detoxifying and reducing swelling, stopping bleeding and eliminating vexation, promoting urination and lactation, clearing heat and dampness, and stimulating milk production. Fresh daylily contains colchicine, which can cause gastrointestinal poisoning symptoms, so it cannot be eaten raw. It must be processed and dried, and can be served cold (after being blanched), stir-fried, blanched in soup, or used as an ingredient.
Cold-dressed Daylily
Scarlet Sage
It is "Scarlet Sage", not "Ten-foot Red", recognizing it wrong can make a big difference. Scarlet Sage is a common red flower variety with dense and brightly colored flowers, often used as the main planting in landscape flower beds, but it is also a very important Chinese medicinal herb. Its medicinal part is the whole herb, used fresh or dried备用, and has the effects of cooling blood to stop bleeding, clearing heat and promoting diuresis, and dispelling stasis to relieve pain.
Shepherd's Purse
Shepherd's Purse is the most common wild vegetable, which can be stir-fried, served cold, or used as dumpling filling. It belongs to the cruciferous vegetable family and contains dithiophene thione, which has anti-cancer effects with long-term consumption. Shepherd's Purse is also rich in carotene, making it a good medicine for treating xerophthalmia and night blindness. It also has anti-inflammatory, hemostatic, lipid-lowering, blood pressure-lowering, and cholesterol-lowering effects, making it very suitable for the elderly.
Shepherd's Purse and Shrimp Balls
Lesser Cirsium
One of the wild vegetables. Because its pistils are full of thorns, it is commonly known as "Cirsium setosum" in folk. The fresh, mashed root and juice of Lesser Cirsium, when taken, have the effects of cooling blood to stop bleeding and clearing heat to reduce swelling; a decoction of 15g each of Lesser Cirsium and Prunella vulgaris can be taken as tea to lower blood pressure; it can treat various types of hemoptysis, hematemesis, dysentery with blood, carbuncles and swelling, and traumatic bleeding, but note: those with a weak spleen and stomach without stasis should avoid taking Lesser Cirsium.
Malan
Malan is also a common composite family wild vegetable. It has extremely high medicinal and dietary value, with effects of clearing heat and detoxifying, eliminating food stagnation, promoting urination, and dispelling stasis to stop bleeding. In Fujian and Guangdong, it is called "field-side chrysanthemum", while in Hubei and Sichuan, it is called "loach vegetable". The young leaves can be eaten as vegetables, commonly known as "Malan head". It is said to have the effect of clearing heat and detoxifying. Blanching it in boiling water and serving it cold or stir-frying it both taste very good.
Malan and Spring Bamboo Shoots Salad