🌿 Folk Prescriptions

Beauty is a woman’s nature. Beauty lies in the soul, in temperament, and in appearance. Of course, beauty also comes from health—true beauty is holistic and internally generated. Suddenly recalling someone saying, "There are no ugly women in the world, only lazy ones." So, seated at my computer, originally planning to have a quick boxed lunch, I stood up decisively and decided to treat myself to a lavish meal.
Health-Preserving Pharmacological Diets
When discussing healthy eating, pharmacological diets cannot be overlooked. In the city, I discovered a wellness restaurant favored by staff from health supplement companies as their "canteen." This Green Century Wellness Restaurant specializes in incorporating medicinal ingredients into dishes, each with unique tonic effects. According to reports, many regular customers are office workers.
Fruitwood Roasted Chicken
This roasted chicken is quite distinctive—it's very lean. According to the chef, the chickens used weigh around 1.2 kilograms and are naturally slim, hence lower in fat.
The chef explains that after slaughtering, the chicken is marinated in herbs like codonopsis and prepared polygonum for about five to six hours. Once the herbal components fully penetrate the meat, the chicken is removed and slightly dried with a fan before being charcoal-roasted. The charcoal used is specifically made from lychee wood. After the first roasting, it becomes a semi-finished product. When ordered, the chef gives it a brief additional roast until the skin is crisp. I tried it and found the skin crispy, the meat tender, with no excessive greasiness. Paired with sweet chili sauce, it tastes even better. The chef notes this dish boosts energy and replenishes qi.
Fresh Lily Fried Stuffed Mung Beans
This dish features tender meat inside, mung beans on top, and fresh lilies below. The chef explains the meat is mixed with chicken stock, making it exceptionally flavorful. The mung beans are first soaked, steamed until soft, then placed atop the meat. Fresh lilies are laid underneath, and the whole dish is pan-fried on both sides. The mung beans are crunchy with texture, the meat juicy and tender, and the lilies refreshing. According to the chef, mung beans clear heat and relieve summer heat, while lilies nourish the skin and enhance beauty.
Skilled Lotus Root Puff
Inside are lotus root pieces and minced meat—crisp and savory. The chef notes lotus root contains abundant vitamin C and minerals, promoting metabolism and improving rough skin.
Nourishing Delicate Soups
Guangdong people have long valued soup-making for health preservation, believing health can be "drunk." This view is echoed by celebrity Zeng Baoyi, who revealed in her book *Aba Beauty Soup* that her secret to beauty is drinking her mother’s homemade soups. Today, I introduce a popular soup shop beloved by urban fashion-conscious women.
This Gangzhou Chun Chongcao Soup Shop specializes in various soups made from cordyceps. According to the chef, winter cordyceps are sweet and warm in nature, benefiting lung and kidney function, replenishing deficiencies, and relieving coughs. Traditionally, people often boiled it or stewed it with chicken or duck.
Cordyceps Stewed Black Chicken
I saw the soup served with orange-red, flower-like strands—no actual worms. Curious, I asked the manager Mr. Su, "Where are the cordyceps?" He smiled and said, "These orange-red strands are the cordyceps." They use artificially cultivated greenhouse cordyceps. Southern greenhouse cordyceps, also known as fruiting bodies, are grown by cultivating cordyceps fungi collected from Tibet in specially formulated nutrient substrates. Tests confirm their nutritional composition matches that of wild cordyceps.
The soup looks golden-yellow, clear, fragrant, and tastes rich and smooth. The cordyceps chew pleasantly crisp. The chef explains the recipe uses cordyceps, codonopsis, goji berries, and black chicken stewed together, believed to nourish yin and beautify the complexion. I noticed some lean meat in the soup. The chef explained, according to TCM theory, lean meat is the most neutral meat—unlike beef or lamb, which are overly hot. Thus, stewing cordyceps with lean meat is ideal. Lean meat should be blanched before adding to the pot.
Of course, stewing soup with cordyceps isn't difficult. Anyone can try at home. But the chef emphasizes: never wash cordyceps before stewing, as the fungal spores responsible for medicinal value are lost upon contact with water, diminishing efficacy. The chef notes this soup is especially popular among female white-collar workers.