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Green sepaled plum blossom
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Simplified Chinese: 绿萼梅
Lu e mei
Mei hua or plum blossom is a flower of tough and pure spirit in Chinese culture since it blossoms in winter when most plants don’t.
In TCM, the flowers are more than a symbol for a tough mind, but also a medical herb that helps refresh mind, benefit the lung and dissolve phlegm.
Though there is quite a variety of plums, featuring flowers that are red, pink, white, green, single-layer petals and multiple-layer petals, only lu e mei — the green sepaled plum blossoms with single-layer petals, work well as herbal medicine, according to “Ben Cao Gang Mu” (Compendium of Materia Medica). And those with buds work even better.
The green sepaled plum blossom is a “neutral” herb that travels through the lung and liver meridians. It can help regulate energy, adjust the digestive system, dissolve phlegm and soothe the liver. It is often prescribed for problems like depression, bad appetite and stomachache due to emotional depression.
And it can also work in boosting energy circulation and dissolving phlegm when working together with ban xia (Pinellia ternata), hou pu (Magnolia officinalis) and fu ling (tuckahoe).
Plum flower congee
• Cook light congee with 30-60g rice. Add 3g green sepaled plum flowers and keep simmering for 2-3 minutes. Eat the congee for 3-5 days.
Benefits: Helps regulate energy, benefit the digestive system and relieve poor appetite and poor digestion.
Plum chicken soup
• Prepare 1,000g chicken soup. Add 500g chicken pieces, 50g peas and 50g mushrooms in the soup. Boil the soup with ingredients. Season it with salt and pepper powder. Add 10g green sepaled plum flowers and boil the soup again with gentle heat.
Benefits: Helps benefit lungs, refresh mind and boost appetite.
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