🌿 Folk Prescriptions

Leeks, also known as longevity leek or flat vegetable, have been cherished by the Chinese since ancient times. Due to their rich nutrition and ability to warm and tonify the liver and kidneys while boosting yang and consolidating essence, they are referred to as the “yang-boosting herb” in pharmacopeias.
Medicinal Value
Leeks taste sweet and pungent, are warm in nature; they have functions of tonifying the kidneys, boosting yang, warming the center, opening the stomach, and dispersing stasis. Pharmacological studies show they regulate blood lipids and help prevent and treat cardiovascular diseases. Clinically, they are used for injuries, dysphagia, regurgitation, enteritis, hematemesis, epistaxis, chest pain, impotence, premature ejaculation, seminal emission, frequent urination, etc.
As a medicinal ingredient, leeks were first recorded in Liang Dynasty Tao Hongjing’s "Supplement to the Materia Medica," stating they "calm the five zang organs and eliminate gastric heat." The "Food Therapy Herbal" says they "benefit the chest and diaphragm." The "Supplement to the Materia Medica" notes they "warm the center, move qi, tonify deficiency, harmonize the zang-fu organs, promote appetite, enhance yang, stop white discharge and abdominal cold pain—best consumed cooked."
Consuming leeks in summer aids digestion and eliminates stagnation, strengthening the spleen. In winter, they warm the kidneys and boost yang. Boiling leeks for external washing treats neurodermatitis; crushed and applied externally treats hives; juice extracted and taken at 10–20 ml per dose treats bloody stools, hematuria, and epistaxis. Additionally, leek seeds have functions of tonifying the kidneys, nourishing the liver, boosting yang, and consolidating the lower burner. Grinding leek seeds into powder, taking 15 grams twice daily with warm water, proves effective for treating impotence.
Therapeutic Recipes
◆ Stir-Fried Leeks with Walnuts and Shrimp
Primary Ingredients: 500g leeks, 100g walnut meat, 20g shrimp, appropriate amounts of sesame oil, refined salt, monosodium glutamate.
Method:
(1) Wash leeks, cut into 3 cm segments.
(2) Soak shrimp in warm water for 30 minutes, then wash.
(3) Remove shells from walnuts, wash and prepare.
(4) Heat wok over high flame, add vegetable oil, heat to 80% temperature, add walnuts and shrimp, stir-fry over medium heat until cooked, then add leeks, stir briefly, add salt and monosodium glutamate for seasoning.
Benefits: Tonifies kidneys, boosts yang.
Dosage: 1–2 times daily. Use continuously for 20–30 days.
Indications: Kidney yang deficiency, sore lower back and knees, dizziness, blurred vision, low libido, impotence, premature ejaculation, cold sperm (reduced sperm motility), oligospermia; women with irregular menstruation, cold uterus infertility, clear leukorrhea.
◆ Stir-Fried Leeks with Lamb Liver
Primary Ingredients: 150g leeks, 120g lamb liver, appropriate amounts of vegetable oil, ginger threads, refined salt, cooking wine.
Method:
(1) Wash leeks, cut into 3 cm segments.
(2) Wash lamb liver, slice thinly.
(3) Heat wok over high flame, add vegetable oil, heat to 80% temperature, fry ginger threads until fragrant, then add lamb liver and cooking wine, stir-fry evenly, add leeks and salt, quickly stir-fry until cooked.
Benefits: Tonifies kidneys, boosts yang, generates essence, nourishes blood, nourishes the liver, improves eyesight.
Dosage: Can be eaten alone or with meals, 1–2 times daily. Use continuously for 20–30 days.
Indications: Women with general weakness, scanty pale menstruation, empty sensation in lower abdomen, back and waist pain, irregular menstruation, cold uterus infertility.
◆ Leek-Ginger Milk Porridge
Primary Ingredients: 500g leeks, 30g ginger, 250ml milk.
Method:
(1) Wash leeks, chop finely; peel and wash ginger, then place both in a juicer, extract juice and reserve.
(2) Add leek-ginger juice to a pot with milk, simmer over low heat until boiling.
Benefits: Warms the center, dispels cold, strengthens the spleen, nourishes the stomach.
Dosage: Once in the morning and once in the evening, best consumed one hour after meals.
Indications: Cold-type chronic gastritis, duodenal ulcer; cold-type chronic gastritis with cold pain in the epigastrium, vomiting clear fluid, postprandial bloating, worsened by cold food, relieved by warm food, loose stools, bland taste, pale tongue, white coating.
[Dietary Caution] Cooked leeks are warming and tonifying; raw leeks are more dispersing. When cooking, avoid overheating. People with yin deficiency and internal heat, or suffering from boils, ulcers, or eye diseases, should avoid or use cautiously.
□ Associate Professor Li Zhenqiong, Guangzhou University of Traditional Chinese Medicine