What is the difference between Zhaoshi and Gourd

The degree of ripeness is different: when the fruit is ripe, the buds are picked and the core is taken; After the fruit is ripe, let it fall into the water naturally, soak it until it is ripe, and then pick it up for use, which is called "underwater ripening". The texture is different:

Zhaoshi is large, the back meat is bright red, there are clear cricket lines, and it cracks into a chrysanthemum shape after cooking, which is extremely loose; The berries are spherical, 3-5 cm in diameter, purplish-red, densely thorny on the outside; The seeds are spherical, more than 10 mm in diameter, and black. <

The degree of ripeness is different: when the fruit is ripe, the buds are picked and the core is taken; After the fruit is ripe, let it fall into the water naturally, soak it until it is ripe, and then pick it up for use, which is called "underwater ripening".

The texture is different: the Zhaoshi room is large, the back meat is bright red, there are clear cricket lines, and it cracks into a chrysanthemum shape after cooking, which is extremely loose; The berries are spherical, 3-5 cm in diameter, purplish-red, densely thorny on the outside; The seeds are spherical, more than 10 mm in diameter, and black. The flowering period is from July to August, and the fruiting period is from August to September.

Zhaoshi is a mature seed kernel of the water lily family, which is an annual aquatic plant that grows in lakes and ponds. Native to East Asia, it is mainly distributed in the south of the Yellow River in China, especially in the lakes and ditches in the Yangtze River basin and the Pearl River basin.

According to the presence or absence of thorns, the fruit of the seed is divided into thorny species and thornless species, the thorny species is commonly known as the northern root or wild root, the common purple flower, white flower 2 species, in the shallow lakes and swamps in southern China, the plant is smaller, the diameter of the adult leaf is generally m, the maximum can reach about 2 m, the aboveground part of the whole body is densely spine, the harvest is more difficult, the seeds and kernels are nearly round, small, not neat, japonica, medium quality, but the outer seed coat is thin, and the adaptability is strong.

Zhaoshi is a specialty of Zhaoqing, Guangdong.

It is a scientific name, and there are two varieties of wild spiny root and artificially cultivated root, and Zhaoshi belongs to the wild spiny root species.

Compared with other Astragalus, the planting time of Zhaoshi is longer, the maturity is higher, and after natural ripening, the shelled Zhaoshi in the bud burst will naturally precipitate to the bottom of the pond and continue to soak, which is called "underwater ripening", which belongs to the bottom of the water in A. chinensis. The longer the soaking time, the more the starch content in it will be transformed, which is why Zhaoshi can be easily soaked, the taste is particularly powdery, and the medicinal properties are stronger. Generally speaking, the soaking time of Zhaoshi is about one or two months, and when it is the twelfth lunar month of each year, the farmers will sail out to fish, and then dry, sift, sort, and break the shell.

And other gourds are mostly picked after the fruit is ripe to take the seeds, which is called the water surface goods of the gourd.

However, because Zhaoshi's harvesting method is particularly labor-saving, many production areas of Beizhi, especially those with large yields, are gradually adopting Zhaoshi's planting method to easily salvage and harvest. But this will also involve a problem, the harvest time is too late, cold air and other factors have arrived, and the best harvest time has been missed, so that many Beiqi will have a silt and muddy smell.

But this harvesting method is used on Zhaoshi, but it does not smell mudy.

Zhaoshi is a kind of name for the production of Zhaoqing area, the output of Zhaoshi is only 1% of the national production of Zhaoshi, but the quality is first-class and good, and it is a sought-after product in the market. Zhaoqing is a red gourd, the taste is light, the taste is soft and glutinous, it can be matched with a variety of ingredients, it is a good product for health and longevity, and it has the effect of tonifying the spleen and stopping diarrhea, dehumidifying and stopping the belt, and is called "ginseng in water" by the folk.

It is rumored that in the middle of the Ming Dynasty, a Taoist priest surnamed Shao on the cactus rock used the herb to treat the children in the nearby villages, and taught the villagers to introduce the seeds widely. Soon the child was cured of his illness and had a good harvest of the seed seeds. The villagers were grateful to Shao Daoshi, but they didn't know what the gourd was, and thought that it was introduced by Shao Daoshi, so they named "Shao Shi" as the fruit.

Later, because "Shao" and "Zhao" have the same sound, and the granules produced in Zhaoqing are large and the medicinal power is strong, it was renamed Zhaoshi, and it has been used to this day.

Zhaoshi has the effect of astringent, nourishing and strengthening.

At present, Zhaoshi is mostly used for stewing meat, making soup, or medicine, which can strengthen the spleen and stop diarrhea, strengthen the kidneys and remove dampness, which is a rare nourishing product.

Seeds, commonly known as chicken head rice and chicken grenade stems, have nothing to do with chickens, and are another name for aquatic crops.

Because the degraded part of the calyx on the fruit resembles a chicken's beak, everyone gave it the affectionate and apt common name of "chicken head rice".

There are two types of seeds: southern and northern. It is widely distributed throughout the country, and the stems, leaves, and fruits are covered with spikes, and the fruits are small. On the other hand, it has been cultivated over thousands of years, and the thorns on the stems and fruits have disappeared, making it easy to cultivate, except for the spikes on the back of the leaves.

The fruit is several times larger than that of the northern root. Its flesh color is jade white, the particles are like beads, sweet and soft glutinous, that is, chicken head meat, which is peeled out of the shell by peasant women by hand. Due to the labor cost, the chicken head rice itself is a tonic comparable to white fungus, so it is relatively expensive.

Zhaoshi is a unique variety of Rhizome in Zhaoqing, Guangdong, which belongs to the wild Rhizome, is a northern Root with higher medicinal value, and is a national geographical indication certification trademark.

It is a scientific name that includes the northern and southern roots. It is a wild thorn and a southern ramp is artificially cultivated.

It has a higher medicinal value, and it has an edible value.

To put it simply, the old Chinese medicine doctor prefers to use Zhaoshi because of its higher medicinal value.