Entering autumn, it is the golden season for all kinds of melons to go on the market, except pumpkins that cannot bear their temper and go on the market first.
There is a special kind of melon also began to increase, that is, the small wax gourd-like pulp (pronunciation is the same as [Hu]).
The appearance and taste of pulp are between wax gourd and zucchini, and have a special flavor. Whether it is stir-fried or boiled soup, it is a fresh dish that adjusts the taste.
However, the problem has arisen. Recently, there have been many reports of poisoning due to eating bitter pulp. Why can this bitter pulp make people poisoned? Is it necessary to throw it away once you taste bitter?
Today, let Dr. Clove tell you about the pulp.
Little Brother of Hulu Family
Although the pulp seems to be a mixture of wax gourd and zucchini, it is really a gourd. However, the cylindrical figure of the pulp does not conform to our traditional understanding of gourd.
According to the morphological differences, gourd is divided into four types: gourd (cylindrical), long neck gourd (slender at the fruit handle), large gourd (oblate) and thin waist gourd (fruit is divided into two sections, traditional gourd).
Generally speaking, gourds appear in our life as ornamental plants or living containers, but the young and tender fruits of these gourds are edible, while the pulp is specially made for eating.
In China, the consumption of pulp has a very long history, even dating back to the Neolithic Age. In the Book of Songs, there is such a record, [eating melons in July and short pots in August], and the [short pots] here describe pulp.
Compared with friends in the north, the south is familiar with eating gourds. Every early summer, tender gourds are sold in the markets in Jiangsu and Zhejiang provinces, not for water, but for food.
As for the nutrition of pulp, it is still mainly water. 95.3% of them are water, and the contents of fat, protein and carbohydrate are relatively low. It is good to eat as a healthy and hydrating food.
There are many delicious amino acids in the pulp, which is the source of the delicious flavor we eat.
Of course, if you eat bitter pulp, you should be careful, which has hidden risks.
Bitter-tasting dangerous elements
Bitter pulp is not other species mixed into the pulp pile, but [problematic] pulp.
In fact, in the natural state, Bitter pulp is the normal existence. For the pulp itself, the sweet pulp appearing on the human dining table is the deformed individual. People have cultivated the sweet pulp for eating, making the pulp remove the bitter taste given by our ancestors. However, in the process of planting, if the pulp brings bitter taste again due to variation, it becomes bitter pulp.
The bitter taste of pulp comes from cucurbitacin. Cucurbitacin is widely distributed in plants. There are 14 kinds of cucurbitacin isolated now. The bitter cucumber and bitter melon we usually encounter come from cucurbitacin.
For these bitter fruits containing cucurbitacin, if you only taste them with the tip of your tongue, it will not bring us what problems, but a slight excess will bring gastrointestinal reactions such as nausea, vomiting and dizziness. When eaten in large quantities, it will also cause respiratory and circulatory system failure, leading to death.
Therefore, it is better not to [set an example for bitter pulp].
Suffering is not a supplement.
Some friends believe that hardship is beneficial and even can be called “mending the body”.
However, for our tongue, bitter taste has always been not a friendly taste. Because, it usually means toxic or strongly irritating substances that are harmful to the body.
In the long-term evolution process, our ability to distinguish this taste is also much stronger than that of sour, sweet and salty taste. The average person’s resolution for sweet taste is 0.5%, while the resolution for bitter taste is 0.0016%. Some super taste people can even identify bitter substances counted by molecules in a glass of water.
Although we often say that [good medicine tastes bitter], it is better to stay away from unusually bitter food.
Household flavor of pulp
Having said the bitter pulp, let’s return to the delicious sweet pulp.
The method of pulp can be very simple. After peeling and slicing, the fresh flavor can be brought out by stir-frying chopped green onion, or the soup can be cooked with pickled vegetables. Needless to say, everyone will know after trying.
Pay more attention to, you can slice the pulp, clip Jinhua ham in the middle, sprinkle a little ginger shreds on the plate, steam it in a pan, and mix rice with wine.