Buy some bayberries after work, rinse them slightly at home, and pop them straight into your mouth. Sweet in the mouth, happy in the heart! There's simply nothing more blissful. But is this way of eating really clean? Are there no worms inside? But if not this way, how else can you wash them? As a complete foodie, it's really necessary to understand this, otherwise, you won't even know if you "eat yourself to death."
What nutrients are contained in bayberries?
1. Bayberries contain various organic acids and are also rich in vitamin C. They can not only directly participate in the body's sugar metabolism and oxidation-reduction processes, enhance the permeability of capillaries, but also have the effects of lowering blood lipids and preventing cancer cells from forming in the body;
2. The fruit acids contained in bayberries can whet the appetite, promote saliva secretion, aid digestion, relieve summer heat, and also have the function of preventing the conversion of sugar into fat in the body, which helps with weight loss;
3. Bayberries have an inhibitory effect on bacteria such as Escherichia coli and dysentery bacilli, can treat dysentery and abdominal pain, and have a good effect on those with persistent diarrhea;
4. Bayberries contain vitamins C and B, which have a positive effect on cancer prevention and treatment; cyanamide compounds, fatty oils, etc. contained in bayberry kernels also have the effect of inhibiting cancer cells.
Are the worms in bayberries parasites?
The fact that bayberries are prone to worms is related to the characteristics of their fruit. In the bayberry fruit, the part we eat is a derivative of its exocarp—the soft, juicy tissue formed by the columnar protrusions of the outer exocarp cells. In other words, the edible part of the bayberry is already the outermost layer of the fruit, with no protective skin on the outside. Therefore, worms can easily invade the fruit to lay eggs.
Fruits like bayberries are not common in the fruit world. Other fruits, because they have a protective skin, can also grow worms, but not as severely as bayberries. Another tragic fruit is the fig, which has a hole on its surface that leads directly to the inside, so its defensive ability is also weak, just like the bayberry. There is a kind of fig wasp that often drills inside to live.
The small worms in bayberries are mainly the larvae of fruit flies. Fruit flies come to lay eggs after the bayberries have ripened and softened. Raw bayberries cannot be food for fruit flies. The larvae of fruit flies are not particularly toxic, and if accidentally eaten, they will not cause much harm.
Do all bayberries have worms?
Bayberries without worms indicate that they have been soaked in chemical water. Bayberries picked on the spot all have worms. I have tried one berry from which more than a dozen worms can be soaked out. It's actually not a big deal to eat them. So many people eat them every year and no one has had any problems from it. When I was a kid, I used to take the worms out of hornet's nests and eat them directly, and they tasted pretty good.
Why can't some worms be soaked out of bayberries with salt water?
1. The most suitable growth environment for bayberry worms is around 25°C. If merchants or consumers store bayberries in the refrigerator, the worms will be frozen to death, and thus cannot be soaked out with salt water.
2. To get a good price for their bayberries, merchants use various pest control methods on the bayberry trees during growth, such as "wearing" them with insect-trapping paper, insect-repelling film, insect-killing lamps, insect-proof nets, and fruit bagging.
How should bayberries be eaten
1. Common method: This is the most common way to eat them. Just wash the bayberries with light salt water and eat them directly. Of course, you can also dip them in honey, yogurt, salad, condensed milk, etc.
Canned Bayberries
2. Iced Bayberry Liquor: Bayberries can be soaked with baijiu (white liquor). However, after a long time, the taste will become somewhat spicy. Alternatively, you can use Shaoxing wine or "Daughter's Red" for soaking, then add a large bottle of honey and let it sit in the refrigerator for a week. The taste is very good, but it also has a lingering alcoholic effect.
3. Iced Bayberries: You can first put the washed bayberries in a container, sprinkle some sugar on them, and then freeze them in the refrigerator. When you want to eat them, just take them out. It is a great summer food to relieve heat and also a way to preserve bayberries for a longer time.
4. Sugar Water Bayberries: Add a small amount of salt to the bayberries, steam them in a rice cooker, then add some rock sugar and let it simmer for a while. It tastes just like canned bayberries.
Yang Mei can