Shepherd's purse: A precious herb to nourish the liver, brighten eyesight, and lower blood lipids

Shepherd's purse: A precious herb to nourish the liver, brighten eyesight, and lower blood lipids

The vegetable mentioned here is shepherd's purse (rau te thai). In our country, it is also known by other names such as cay te, dia me thai, wild mustard, or triangle grass. Scientific name: Capsella bursa-pastoris (L.) Medik. Notably, this plant grows wild in Northern Vietnam, most abundantly in Sapa (Lao Cai), Ninh Binh, Lang Son, Cao Bang... often found in fallow fields.

This is a delicious, widely loved wild green. Shepherd's purse not only provides abundant nutrition in winter but is also a culinary "treasure". Shepherd's purse has tender green leaves rich in vitamin C, vitamin A, iron, calcium, and other nutrients.

Usually in the cold winter, this wild vegetable is both delicious and provides essential nutrients for the body, making it an ideal choice for nourishing and maintaining good health.

According to Traditional Chinese Medicine, shepherd's purse has a bland, sweet taste and a cool nature, entering the liver and stomach meridians. It helps clear heat, relieve coughs, stop bleeding, promote urination, reduce swelling, and alleviate asthma. It also nourishes the spleen and harmonizes the stomach, clears the liver and brightens the eyes, and stops bleeding while promoting diuresis. It is used for nosebleeds, coughing up blood, vomiting blood, blood in urine, blood in stool, conjunctivitis, edema, aches, and pains...

The "Compendium of Materia Medica" (an encyclopedia of Chinese herbal medicine) records that shepherd's purse benefits the liver and five internal organs; its roots can be used to treat eye ailments, brighten vision, and strengthen the stomach; and its seeds can help alleviate eye pain, nourish the five internal organs, and treat chronic dysentery.

In addition to its high nutritional value, shepherd's purse is a valuable medicinal herb that can help enhance immunity. Both Eastern and Western medicine use shepherd's purse as a hemostatic agent, antipyretic, and diuretic, prescribing it for conditions such as intestinal bleeding, uterine hemorrhage, hemoptysis, and menorrhagia.

This vegetable is rich in carotene, making it an excellent food for treating dry eyes and night blindness. The nutrients in shepherd's purse help reduce cholesterol and triglyceride levels in the blood and liver, lower blood pressure, and reduce inflammation.

Shepherd's purse is known to clear heat, brighten vision, and reduce inflammation. Therefore, traditional medicine offers an excellent remedy for blurred vision and liver heat using shepherd's purse: cooking fresh greens into porridge to eat daily. This dish nourishes the liver, and regular consumption helps improve eyesight.

Eating a lot of these greens can boost vitamin C levels in the body, providing antiviral effects. Wild greens also contain significant amounts of dietary fiber, which, once consumed, can promote large intestine motility, combat constipation, and boost metabolism.

Thereby helping to prevent and treat hyperlipidemia, hypertension, coronary heart disease, obesity, diabetes, colorectal cancer...

Dr. Nguyen Duc Quang shared several herbal remedies using shepherd's purse in Suc khoe & Doi song.

- Remedy for dysentery with bloody stool: Decoct and drink 30g of charred shepherd's purse.

- Remedy for lung abscess, chest tightness, shortness of breath, or generalized edema: 20g of dried shepherd's purse, 5 jujubes. Slice or tear the jujubes, decoct together with shepherd's purse, and drink one dose per day.

- Remedy for ascites, emaciated limbs, and scanty urination: Shepherd's purse 100g, Descurainia seeds 100g. Grind finely and make into honey pills (10g each). Take 1 pill 3 times a day with dried tangerine peel decoction.

Dosage: 50 - 100g fresh plant, 10 - 15g dried; decocted, infused, juiced, or combined with other remedies.

Delicious and nutritious ways to prepare shepherd's purse

Shepherd's purse soup with scallops and egg

According to Giao Thong Newspaper, to prepare this delicious dish, you need shepherd's purse, scallops, eggs, sliced ginger, salt, and cooking oil. Instructions: Wash the shepherd's purse thoroughly and cut into bite-sized pieces. Wash the scallops, drain them, then place them in a pot and steam over high heat until they open; pry the scallop meat out and set aside. Beat 2 eggs in a bowl and stir well. Heat oil in a pan, pour in the beaten eggs, stir-fry until curds form, then add water and bring to a boil over high heat. Add the scallop meat and shepherd's purse, bring to a boil, season with salt, pepper, and sesame oil to taste, and serve.

Shepherd's purse and pork soup

100g fresh shepherd's purse, 80–100g pork bones. Simmer the pork bones until tender, then add the finely chopped shepherd's purse and season with salt and fish sauce to taste. Eat 1–2 times a day during main meals. Recommended for nosebleeds, blood in urine, conjunctivitis (pink eye), etc.

Shepherd's purse cornmeal cake

Instructions:

- Wash and finely chop shepherd's purse. Wash fresh shiitake mushrooms, blanch, let cool, squeeze out excess water, cut into thin slices, and set aside. Julienne carrots. Soak wood ear mushrooms until soft and cut into bite-sized pieces.

Fry the egg until cooked, then cut into pieces. Soak the dried shrimp in water until soft, then drain.

- Place the prepared shepherd's purse, carrots, wood ear mushrooms, eggs, and shredded dried shrimp into a large bowl, add a pinch of salt and cooking oil, then mix well to make the dumpling filling.

- Take an adequate amount of filling, gently roll it into a round shape, and coat it in cornstarch. Make sure to roll it 3-4 times so the cornstarch absorbs moisture from the filling, creating an evenly balanced coating of starch.

- Place the cornmeal cakes into a steamer, steam over high heat with plenty of steam for 10 minutes, then remove and enjoy.

If you harvest a lot of shepherd's purse now and cannot finish it all, you can preserve it for later use.