According to Traditional Chinese Medicine, eel helps to replenish Qi and blood, making it suitable for symptoms of fatigue, coughing, and rheumatism. Modern medicine has proven that golden eel can also treat diabetes and enhance memory.
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Grilled eel in bamboo tube (Photo: VNN) |
Eel, also known as “heavenly fish” or “long fish,” is one of the “four delicious river delicacies” (Four Great River Treasures) and is referred to as “the ginseng of aquatic animals.” Eel has a warm nature and sweet taste, and is effective in nourishing Qi and blood, strengthening bones and tendons; it is suitable for symptoms of fatigue, cough, thirst, dysentery, rheumatism, weakness in joints and muscles, otitis media, kidney deficiency with lower back pain, and facial nerve paralysis.
Modern medicine has proven that golden eel can also treat diabetes and enhance memory, making it an excellent food for individuals with high blood sugar levels and those who engage in mental work. The head of the eel is warm and beneficial for the brain.
Some eel dishes with medicinal effects
Treating diarrhea in children (5-6 bowel movements per day, sour or foul-smelling stools): 125 g of eel, 5 g of chicken inner membrane, 10 g of Chinese yam, 2 slices of fresh ginger. Clean the eel, sauté with ginger until fragrant, splash a little rice wine, add just enough water, then add the chicken inner membrane and Chinese yam. Use high heat, then lower to simmer for one hour, adding seasoning. Children should drink the broth.
Treating Qi and blood deficiency after childbirth and chronic illnesses: 250 g of eel, sufficient seasoning, clean and gut the eel, cut into pieces, marinate with rice wine, and steam until cooked.
Treating children with poor appetite, indigestion, and sweating at night: 1 eel (250-300 g), 6 g of chicken inner membrane, onions, ginger, soy sauce, salt, wine, and monosodium glutamate to taste. Clean the eel, remove the internal organs, cut into 6 cm pieces, wash the chicken inner membrane, place it in a porcelain bowl with the eel meat, add onions, ginger, rice wine, salt, and soy sauce, then steam on high heat until cooked, mixing in monosodium glutamate before serving.
Treating malnourished children (pot-bellied, thin, poor appetite): 300 g of eel meat; 15 g each of angelica and codonopsis; 25 g of onion; sufficient salt. Clean the eel, slice it, place angelica and codonopsis in a cloth bag, put it in a pot with the eel, add water, and cook for 1 hour. Remove the bag, season with onion, ginger, and salt, and cook for another hour. Consume the eel meat and broth.
Treating Qi and blood deficiency, weakness in muscles and bones, fatigue: 250 g of eel, 25 g of codonopsis, 15 g of angelica, 30 g of beef tendons. Clean and gut the eel, cut into pieces, place in a clean clay pot with codonopsis, angelica, and beef tendons, add appropriate water, and heat until cooked.
Nourishing the nerves, cooling the liver, clearing heat, and preventing hepatitis: 2 eels (300 g each); seasoning; 30 g of honeysuckle; 15 g each of corn silk, mulberry leaves, codonopsis, jujube seeds, black ginseng, and plantago seeds. Decoction to extract the liquid. Clean the eel, cut into 2 cm pieces, remove the backbone, rinse with salt water, add the decoction, eel, and seasoning, and simmer until cooked, then serve hot.
Treating hemorrhoids and uterine prolapse due to Qi deficiency: 1 large eel, gut, and boil with water and 10 g of codonopsis until tender for drinking the broth. Season to taste, ginger can be added.
Hematuria due to Yin deficiency and excess heat: 250 g of eel, thinly sliced, and 250 g of bitter melon. Boil with just enough water. Divide into 2 servings for the day.
Treating weakness, shortness of breath, dizziness: 250 g of eel, 100 g of lean dog meat, 15 g of astragalus, 50 g of jujubes (pitted). Stew until cooked.
Nourishing the brain for intellectual workers: 75 g of eel head, 15 g of roasted pork, 15 g of cabbage core, 5 g of garlic, 25 g of cooking oil, 5 g of rice wine, and 3 g of chicken fat. Slice the meat and core. Sauté the eel head, add wine, and seasoning, cook until thick, then add cabbage core and meat to boil for eating. The eel head can also be braised with pork belly, chicken feet, duck wings, shiitake mushrooms, and ginger garlic, suitable for the elderly suffering from Qi and blood deficiency and confusion.
Treating high blood sugar and memory loss: Eel cooked in tomato sauce for consumption.
For women with painful breast inflammation: Burned eel skin, powdered, and taken with rice wine. Pregnant and breastfeeding women should avoid this.
Malaria and anemia: Eel stir-fried with purslane.
Nourishing the elderly, underweight children, and postpartum women: Several large eels, gut, and remove the blood vessels along the spine: Clean with salt, marinate with soy sauce, ginger, and a little white wine. Wait until the rice is almost done, spread the eel on top, and steam until cooked. Serve hot.
