Men's Health: Three Nourishing Dishes - Preparation and Health Benefits

Goldfish and Shrimp

Raw Material and Uses: Shrimp, originally called "zōu," grows in rivers, lakes, and seas. There are many varieties, including lobsters, red shrimp, white shrimp, river shrimp, flower shrimp, small shrimp, grass shrimp, and tiger prawns. The smallest are only one milligram in a thousand; the largest can reach 1.5 meters in length, truly deserving the title of "giant shrimp." Small shrimp are mostly processed into dried shrimp and dried shrimp shells.

Shrimp is very nutritious, containing 16.4% protein, fat, carbohydrates, inorganic salts (calcium, phosphorus, iron, iodine), vitamins A, B₁, B₂, and nicotinic acid. Sea shrimp has a higher nutritional value, being a high-protein, low-fat food. Its protein content is about 20% higher than lean pork, and its fat content is about 40% lower. Its vitamin A content is 40% higher, and it also contains vitamin E, which has anti-aging properties.

Shrimp also has medicinal functions. Traditional Chinese medicine believes that shrimp is sweet and warm in nature, entering the liver and kidney meridians. It has the effects of tonifying the kidneys, strengthening yang, promoting lactation, and detoxifying. Traditional Chinese medicine considers shrimp an excellent food for tonifying the kidneys and strengthening yang, suitable for kidney deficiency and impotence, lower back and knee weakness, fatigue, insufficient breast milk in women after childbirth, measles, chickenpox in children, and skin ulcers, sores, and boils.

Ingredients: 6 large shrimp, 75g chicken breast, 150g eggs, 75g peanut oil, 0.5g white fungus, 6 red cherries, 25g cucumber, 30g flour. Appropriate amounts of cooking wine, salt, MSG, minced ginger, starch, chicken oil, and chicken/duck broth.

Preparation Method: Remove the heads and tails from the prawns, peel off the outer skin and sand vein, and cut along the back without cutting all the way through. Turn them open to form a pipa shape (an oval shape, smaller at the top and larger at the bottom). Then, lightly score them with crosshatch cuts. Arrange them on a plate, coat them with salt, cooking wine, and MSG, and marinate for 10 minutes. Mince the chicken breast into a paste, add egg white, salt, minced ginger, and peanut oil (heated to 90°C and cooled before use), and stir repeatedly until well mixed into a paste. Coat the marinated prawns with flour, then spread the chicken paste on the prawn meat and shape them into goldfish shapes, with a larger head and a smaller tail. Cut cherries in half and place them on either side of the prawn head as eyes. Place a piece of white fungus (soaked in water first) on top of the head. Make a total of 6 goldfish, arrange them on a plate, and steam for 10 minutes. Bring a small amount of chicken or duck broth to a boil in a pot. Add MSG, salt, and cooking wine, skimming off any foam. Thicken with cornstarch to make a thin sauce, pour over the prawns, drizzle with chicken oil, and garnish with thinly sliced ​​cucumber.

Serving Method: A delicacy served at more elaborate banquets, serving 6 people.

Efficacy: A kidney-tonifying and aphrodisiac food. It replenishes the body's nutrients and increases appetite.

Pouched Crucian Carp

Ingredient Uses: Crucian carp has delicious flesh with many fine bones. Its meat is more delicate and tender than other fish, often used as a common delicacy. Crucian carp also has auxiliary medicinal uses, such as treating edema, increasing breast milk production, treating hematochezia, and treating metrorrhagia.

Ingredients: Two live crucian carp (approximately 759g total), 200g pork, 100g shrimp, 50g rehydrated shiitake mushrooms, 50g winter bamboo shoots, 50g cooked ham, 50g peanut oil (approximately 150g used), 4 egg whites, 6 slices of cucumber, 25g soy sauce, 20g each of scallions, ginger, and garlic, 5g sesame oil, 15g sugar, 25g cooking wine, 5g salt, 5g MSG, 359g chicken/duck broth, 50g cornstarch.

Preparation Method: Scale, gut, and clean the crucian carp, removing gills and fins. Make a slit along the back (approximately 9cm long), remove the internal organs, and wash thoroughly. Peel and remove the heads and tails from the shrimp. Take 25 grams each of shiitake mushrooms, winter bamboo shoots, and ham, and finely dice them. Mince 10 grams each of scallions and ginger. Mince pork and shrimp into a paste. Place all ingredients in a bowl, then add two beaten egg whites, 15 grams of soy sauce, 10 grams of cooking wine, 25 grams of MSG, salt, and sesame oil. Mix well to form a filling. Stuff the filling into the fish belly through the cut along the back. In a separate bowl, beat two egg whites and add a little cornstarch to form a paste. Spread this paste on the cut along the back of the fish to seal the opening. Heat peanut oil in a wok until it reaches 50% of its smoking point. Place the fish in the wok and fry for about 3 minutes, until both sides are golden brown. Slice the remaining bamboo shoots and ham thinly. Slice the scallions, ginger, and garlic. Heat 50g of peanut oil in a wok over high heat. First, add the sliced ​​scallions, ginger, and garlic and stir-fry briefly until fragrant. Then add the fish, chicken/duck broth, sliced ​​shiitake mushrooms, sliced ​​bamboo shoots, sugar, and the remaining soy sauce, cooking wine, and MSG. Simmer over low heat for 20 minutes, until the sauce thickens. Remove the fish and arrange it on a plate. Add the ham slices to the broth and cook briefly. Then remove the shiitake mushrooms, bamboo shoots, and ham, and arrange them, along with sliced ​​cucumber, alternately on top of the fish. Finally, thicken the broth with a cornstarch slurry diluted with water and pour it over the fish. Garnish with four pieces of white fungus and two hard-boiled, halved eggs, sprinkled with a little chopped ham, etc., for added visual appeal. These can be omitted during cooking.

Serving Suggestion: A common home-cooked dish, suitable for a delicious meal.

Efficacy: Nourishes the weak stomach and regulates the middle jiao (digestive system), also treats phlegm and toxins, increases appetite, and nourishes the body.

Fragrant Silk Black Fungus

Ingredients and Uses: Black fungus, also known as tree chicken, black fungus, etc. Per 500g, black fungus contains 53g protein, 1g fat, 325g sugar, 35g crude fiber, 29g ash, 1785mg calcium, 1005mg phosphorus, 925mg iron, 0.15mg carotene, 0.75mg carboxin, 2.75mg riboflavin, and 13.6mg nicotinic acid. The sugars include mannan, mannose, glucose, xylose, glucuronic acid, and small amounts of pentose and methylpentose. The phospholipids in dried black fungus are lecithin, cephalin, and sphingomyelin; the sterols are mainly ergosterol and 22,23-dihydroergosterol. Taste and Properties: Sweet, neutral. Black fungus is not only a nutritious delicacy but also an ideal medicinal ingredient. In the medical field, it is often used for excessive granulation tissue in external wounds: Take soft, thick, and undamaged black fungus, soak it in warm water until it expands, disinfect it with alcohol, and clean and disinfect the area around the wound and granulation tissue with saline solution. Apply the black fungus flat to the granulation tissue, wrap it with a thin cloth, and check it every 3-4 days. Black fungus is used for nourishing and strengthening the body and can be combined with other dishes. Besides being soaked and cooked with meat and vegetables, it can also be soaked in vinegar or wine. Black fungus stir-fried with red dates is a nourishing food for postpartum recovery or recovery. Stir-frying black fungus and daylily together can have a double nourishing effect. Stir-fried black fungus with tofu can reduce blood clots and help prevent coronary heart disease. Some scholars explain that black fungus is a tonic for prolonging life. Some sources also report that black fungus contains anti-cancer substances, which are beneficial for cancer patients.

Ingredients: 50g soaked black fungus, 150g lean pork, 25g dried bamboo shoot slices (soaked and softened), 100g peanut oil, 20g pickled chili peppers (red chili peppers pickled for a year with seasonings; broad bean paste can usually be used as a substitute), 15g sugar, 25g soy sauce, 25g scallions, 15g garlic, 10g ginger, 10g vinegar, 2g salt, 1g MSG, 350g chicken/duck broth, 12g cornstarch.

Preparation Method: Cut the pork into thin strips about 6cm long. Mix 8g of cornstarch with a little water to form a paste, pour it over the pork strips, add salt, and mix well. Separately, cut the black fungus and bamboo shoot slices into thin strips, and finely chop the pickled chili peppers. In another bowl, combine the chopped scallions, ginger, garlic, sugar, soy sauce, vinegar, MSG, chicken/duck broth, and the remaining cornstarch to make a thin sauce. Heat a wok over high heat, add oil, and heat until it reaches 60% of its smoking point. Add the shredded pork and stir-fry until it separates and turns white. Then add pickled chili peppers and continue stir-frying until the oil turns red. Add wood ear mushrooms and bamboo shoots, stir-fry briefly, pour in the diluted sauce, and quickly stir-fry before removing from the heat. The entire stir-frying process should not exceed two minutes.

Serving Method: A common home-style dish; this medicinal eel dish is delicious and palatable.

Efficacy: It has nourishing, invigorating, blood-nourishing, stomach-strengthening, hemostatic, and lung-clearing effects.