Introduction: Today is the eighth day of the twelfth lunar month, and people in northern China will drink a hot and steaming Laba porridge. This porridge is not only delicious but also healthy, making it a traditional health food suitable for all ages.
To learn more about delicious Laba delicacies, we recommend the Meitian Special: The Food Stories of the Meitian Editorial Department - The Laba Festival in Unnamed Memories
What's so great about Laba porridge? What should different people pay attention to when eating it? I thought it was a simple matter, but unexpectedly, upon closer inspection, there's quite a bit to say about it.
The first great benefit of Laba porridge is that it helps people easily achieve dietary diversity in their staple foods.
Usually, people eat a bowl of white rice or a white steamed bun. Changing the pattern might become buns, dumplings, twisted rolls, pancakes, rice cakes, rice noodles, etc., but no matter how it changes, it all comes down to refined white rice and refined white flour, which are low in nutritional value and extremely monotonous in ingredients.
Laba porridge is different. A single bowl contains seven or eight ingredients, or even twenty to thirty. Various coarse grains, beans, nuts, seeds, dried fruits, etc., can all be added to the porridge. This level of diversity is incomparable to ordinary staple foods, and it's very convenient to make, easily done with one touch in an electric pressure cooker.
The second major benefit is that it shows people that coarse grains and beans can be made into such delicious food so easily. Many people have a deep-seated fear of coarse grains and beans, always feeling they are scratchy on the throat, hard to chew, and difficult to digest. In fact, these are all misconceptions—Is Laba porridge unpalatable? Is it hard to digest? It's rich and flavorful in the mouth, something plain congee can't compare to. It's soft yet chewy, a textural enjoyment. It is said that congee is good for the stomach, and cases of indigestion from eating Laba porridge or Babao porridge are simply unheard of.
The third great benefit is that it is conducive to health preservation. The various coarse grains and beans in the porridge contain several to ten times more vitamins and minerals than refined white rice, and are rich in various dietary fibers and antioxidant components. These ingredients almost all have their own health effects, whether for strengthening the body or for controlling blood sugar and blood lipids, each has its own significance, and one only needs to select and combine them according to their constitution.
The fourth great benefit is that it helps with weight control. Laba porridge has a thick, substantial texture, not as thin as rice congee, nor can it be drunk in one gulp without chewing like rice congee. The need to chewing gives the brain a feeling of fullness; the large volume and thick texture give the stomach a feeling of fullness. However, compared to rice and white steamed buns, its energy is only a fraction of theirs, making it extremely suitable as a staple food for people losing weight.
Finally, let's talk about some advice on Laba porridge for different groups of people:
For those with indigestion, you can consider using less soybeans, black beans, etc., in the Laba porridge, as they can be a bit tough to digest. You can add some warming glutinous rice and more stomach-nourishing brown rice. Starchy beans and health-preserving ingredients should be soaked thoroughly before cooking to make them softer and easier to digest after boiling.
For diabetics, it's the opposite. Do not add glutinous rice or white rice, and certainly no sugar. It's best to use oats and barley to increase the thickness, and at the same time, put in more than half beans to help control the rise in blood sugar.
For those losing weight, the focus of the Laba porridge is on the chewing texture and the feeling of fullness. Also, add less glutinous rice and white rice, which are too easily digested, and no sugar. Add more thick-skinned starchy beans, such as various kidney beans, red beans, etc., to make the porridge soft but not mushy.
As for children's Laba porridge, you might as well add some chopped nuts and dried fruits to enhance the sweet aroma, helping them happily eat this healthy food.
The one thing I want to say most is: Don't only meet Laba porridge on the Laba Festival. Why can't this kind of healthy and nutritious delicacy often appear on our dining tables to contribute more to our health?
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After eating the Laba meal, it's time to prepare for the New Year's goods. The eighth day of the twelfth lunar month is also called the Laba Festival. It is said that this day commemorates Sakyamuni Buddha's attainment of enlightenment. On this day, temples hold memorial ceremonies and offer "Laba porridge" to Buddha and the public, praying for peace and good fortune. Later, this custom gradually spread and became a folk tradition. People also gather with family, relatives, and friends to share Laba porridge on this day, expressing their gratitude to heaven and earth for their blessings and praying for a good harvest next year.
"Laba porridge" is made by cooking coarse grains, fine grains, beans, and fruits together, fully utilizing the complementary effects of various foods. It is more nutritious than eating a single food and has various therapeutic effects. Due to its rich ingredients, it is also called "Babao porridge," "Wuwei porridge," or "Buddha porridge."
In northern China, Laba porridge is made from local specialties such as yellow millet, rice, lentils, peanuts, and mung beans. In southern China, Laba porridge is made from local specialties such as glutinous rice, broad beans, red beans, chestnuts, and lotus seeds. From south to north, the ingredients for Laba porridge are diverse, truly a collection of grains, beans, and fruits.
The ingredients for cooking "Laba porridge," such as glutinous rice and japonica rice, have the effect of strengthening the spleen and nourishing the stomach. Ancient Chinese medicine believed that "japonica rice porridge is a divine elixir for nurturing life, and glutinous rice porridge is a wonderful product for warming and nourishing the qi." Jujubes can boost immunity, chestnuts benefit the kidney qi, red beans can nourish blood, mung beans can reduce internal heat, lentils strengthen the spleen and stop diarrhea, Job's tears promote urination and reduce swelling, and soybeans contain high-quality protein with the functions of nourishing the body and improving immunity.