Medicated Diet in China
2 min readLike the cuisines，Chinese medicated diet also possesses a rich history.The story “Shennong Tastes a Hundred Herbs” reveals that the Chinese began to explore the function of foods as early as ancient times.Chinese people have always noted the medical value of different plants such as fungus，herbs，and vegetables.Sun Simiao，a leading Tang Dynasty doctor，once commented，“Food has the function of eliminating evil influences and soothing the vital organs，cultivating one’s mind and building one’s strength.”6 During the periods of Jin and Tang，medicated diet came into being.The Song and Yuan Dynasties witnessed the fully developed medicated diet，which became more advanced during the Ming and Qing Dynasties.In modern times，medicated diet continues developing greatly and is expanding its international market.Various kinds of medicinal food，such as medicated cans，health-care drinks and medicated wine，has been produced both for prevention and cure of diseases.
Medicated diet is not just a simple combination of food and Chinese herbs，but a specialhighly processed diet made from Chinese herbs，food，and seasonings under the theoretical guidance of diet preparation based on differentiation of syndromes，an important TCM theory.It not only has the efficiency of medicine but also the delicacy of food，and can be used to prevent and cure diseases，build up health and prolong one’s life.
Chinese medicated diet has the following characteristics.First，individual differences are considered while selecting different herbs.The bodily functions，in the Chinese view，follow the basic Yin Yang principles.Many foods are also classifiable into those that possess the Yin and Yang quality.For different patients with the same symptom，their physical status and health condition must be taken into great account when deciding what kind of food they should take，considering their different balance of Yin and Yang.7Second，different from medicine，medicated diet is suitable for both prevention and treatment.And there is proof that medicated diet has a notable effect on the prevention and cure of diseases.Besides，it actively functions in preserving health as well.Third，medicated diet tastes good and is convenient for taking.The Chinese saying goes“Good medicine tastes bitter”.
However，most of the materials used in the diet are both edible and medical，and they are made into a tasty diet with other food through careful cooking.In the cooking of medicated food，slow cooking methods such as stewing，braising and simmering are usually used in order to fully extract the herbs’healing properties.Typical medicated foods include:Stewec Pigeon with Gouqi（Medlar）and Huangqi（Membranous Milk Vetch），Braided Pork with Lotus Seed and Lily，and Stewed Pig’s Brain with Gastraodia Tuber.
