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The historical legend of the mint
The most popular story about the origin of mint is a foreign legend. It is said that Hades fell in love with the beautiful fairy Mansi, which caused the jealousy of Persephone, the wife of Pluto.
In order to make the guardian forget Muncie, Persephone turned her into an ordinary grass, which grew on the roadside and was trampled by others. However, after being strong and kind inside, Mansi has become a grass with a cool and charming fragrance, which is loved by more and more people. Later, people called this grass mint.
In the earliest record of coinage in China, there is a saying that coinage began with Ganquan Fu edited by Yang Xiong, a famous writer in the Han Dynasty. The book records that Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty planted mint in Ganquan Palace. There is also a saying that mint was first seen in Tang Materia Medica. At that time, the ancients knew that mint was collected for food and medicine. Later, with the increase of demand, a large number of varieties were cultivated.
The medical classic Compendium of Materia Medica written in Ming Dynasty recorded the characteristics, cultivation, distribution and use of mint in detail: "There are many kinds of mint, perennial roots grow in February, branches around Qingming, and the square stems are red. Its leaves are raw, its shape is long at first, but its head is round, long and sharp. "
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mint
Mint is one of the three major spices in the world, and it is also a common herb with the same origin of medicine and food. So when is medicine and food homologous? In fact, there is no very clear division between these two uses.
When mint is used as medicine, it is dry whole grass. After collection, the old stems and impurities should be removed, slightly sprayed with water, slightly wetted, cut into short sections and dried at low temperature in time. Generally, you can buy it in Chinese medicine shops, or you can sell it with tea at present. When mint and other Chinese herbal medicines are used together, there is a clear usage and dosage. When using, try to follow the doctor's advice.
The medicinal properties of mint are also recorded in detail in Compendium of Materia Medica: "Mint, pungent and divergent, cool and clear, can dispel wind and heat. Therefore, headache, head wind, eye, throat, mouth and tooth diseases, fever in children, scrofula and scabies are the main drugs. "
When eating in daily diet, it is generally only necessary to select the tender and pointed stems of fresh mint and wash them. Just like the familiar cocktail mojito, it is decorated with mint, which is very attractive from face value to taste; Cake mint cake is very distinctive in Shanghai cuisine and is made of mint as the main raw material. The cake is elegant, cool and delicious, and it is a good summer product.
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Interesting knowledge of mint
Due to the huge demand and strong adaptability to environmental conditions, mint is currently planted all over the world, even in the wild or at home. So it is common to know this knowledge about mint.
? Why does mint feel cool?
This is because the stems and leaves of mint contain a lot of volatile oil-peppermint oil, and its main components are menthol and menthone. Peppermint oil is fragrant and cool, which is also the source of mint's cool fragrance. When we eat mint, we will feel cool, not because the skin gets cold, but because the peppermint oil contained in mint stimulates the nerve endings on the human skin, so it will produce a cool and exciting feeling.
? The difference between mint and spearmint
Spearmint and mint belong to the genus Mentha in Labiatae, but their appearance and smell are different. Mint leaves are lighter in color, shallower in veins and thinner in shape. However, spearmint leaves are darker in color, more obvious in veins and thicker in shape. In terms of composition, the main component of mint is menthol (menthol), which has a pungent chill; The main components of spearmint are carvone and limonene, and the aroma is sweet, soft and slightly cool.
? Some mint is inedible.
There are dozens of varieties of mint, but not all of them are edible. For example, Japanese mint contains a lot of camphor, which has a pungent taste and can play an insect-proof role, but it is generally not recommended to eat; Corsican mint is usually used for greening and ground cover plants. Walking or stepping on plants will produce a strong mint flavor, which is generally not recommended.
Do you have a different understanding of mint after reading it? Take food as medicine, take medicine as food, learn more about herbal stories with the same origin of medicine and food, and maintain physical and mental health.