Chinese Food, TCM & Superstition
3 Elements From a Very Old Culture. And What is Older Than Soup?
Different cultures, different beliefs, produce a variety of recipes for good health. Whether natural or Chinese food, sometimes it's important to know what's in the soup.
Speaking of Chinese cuisine, you can spend 20 years in China and still not have tasted every type of dish, especially soup. The styles of cooking and variety of food either grown a rescued, just goes on and on. Not to mention the health factor from the country that probably invented natural food. And, it is not uncommon to find meals that incorporate a trio of Chinese know-how. That being, food, Traditional Chinese Medicine and superstition.
Curing a stomach ache
Take the case of a young lady in southern China who woke up one morning with a pain in her abdomen. She summoned her mother to her bedside and compained about the ailment. Immediately, the mother went to the kitchen and prepared some chicken soup, a la traditional style. The girl emptied the bowl while still under the bed sheets, but, unfortunately, a chicken bone lodged in her throat - a common occurrence in China.
In this particular village, in this particular family, there is a remedy in practice that is centuries old. They went to the home of an old lady, a fortune teller, for lack of a better description of this elder. In the living room was held the ceremony. Incense was lit. Some incantations were chanted and a special bowl of rice was prepared. The young lady finished the bowl of rice which was then placed on the top of her head. Chopsticks were then tapped on the bottom of the bowl. Ash was taken from the incense and mixed with water for the young lady to drink, this went on for 3 days.
Finally, enough was enough and she decided to go to a hospital. Along the way to the hospital, they passed a pharmacy. Sitting in the doorway was a Traditional Chinese Medicine doctor, commonly found in many pharmacies. In a hurried manner, they told the doctor about the bone in her throat and where they were headed. The doctor beckoned her to sit down in the chair next to him. Usually, a TCM doctor will first take your pulse. But in this case, he immediately placed an wooden stick on her tongue and looked down her throat. "Aha!" exclaimed the doctor. Manupilating a little tweezer, he plucked the chicken bone from her throat. Needless to say, everyone was jubulant and a celebration was in order.
For non red meat-eaters
You know, you can spend 20 years in China and still not have tasted every dish of fish...
