Interesting little-known things about the famous goji candy in Chinese martial arts movies

'When I was a kid, I always thought it was a sugar-coated marshmallow, but when I tried it, I realized it was wrong' is the sharing of a girl who had a trip to Beijing and enjoyed gourd in ' legend', a dish associated with many people's childhoods through ancient Chinese swordplay movies.

In fact, there are many people who have had the same misconception, many people even think that goulash is made from round sugar cubes or a special type of candy.

However, all of the above ingredients are incorrect. To better understand this candy, let's go "back in time" to learn 3 interesting things about the origin, meaning and special processing of the dish known as the traditional gift. of China below.

The interesting origin of candied goji

Candied gourd - a dish associated with many people's childhood through ancient Chinese swordplay movies.

The goulash in Chinese is called 糖葫芦 (Tánghúlu) or 冰糖葫芦 (Bīngtánghúlu). According to records left, this dish appeared more than 800 years ago, starting from the Southern Song Dynasty (1127-1279). Legend has it that in the palace at that time, there was a noble concubine loved by Emperor Tong Quang Tong who unfortunately fell seriously ill. The royal physician in the palace tried many ways to cure this concubine but could not. Her illness was getting worse and worse, leading to many days of skipping meals and drinking, and her body became thinner and weaker.

The emperor was very worried and issued a notice to find the famous doctor everywhere, whoever can cure it will be richly rewarded. Fortunately at that time, a healer appeared and asked for a pulse for the concubine. After taking the pulse, the healer prepared a 'medicinal ladder' from the eye-catching red fruit with sugar water. After the trial period, the situation gradually improved, not less than half a month later, it completely recovered.

Because of its good use, easy to eat, and delicious taste, this "medicinal ladder" was soon loved by people and spread everywhere and gradually became an indispensable popular dish of the people. here.

This special 'medicinal ladder' is today's goji candy with the main ingredient being medlar - an important medicine in Eastern medicine that has the ability to nourish the face, improve the digestive system, increase appetite . Up to now, this fruit has also been confirmed by Western medicine to have many good uses for the digestive and cardiovascular systems, helping to strengthen both the immune system and anti-platelet aggregation.

Why is it called lollipops?

The reason for this name is because the original shape of gourd is similar to real life gourd. With 2 medlar fruits skewered together, the large fruit is below the small one above. However, according to the development and needs of buyers, currently, 1 skewer of gourd must have 8-10 medlar fruits, not 2 as before.

The skewers of goulash with eye-catching, fresh colors and a sweet and sour taste are loved by many people.

In addition, the main ingredients besides medlar also use many other fruits such as strawberries, kiwi, dates, yellow kumquats. Admire the skewers of gourd with eye-catching colors, fresh and delicious with flavor. Just enough sweet and sour from fruits and thin layer of crispy sugar makes it hard not only for children but also for many adults to resist this special snack.

The way to do it is simple but extremely sophisticated, requiring meticulous care

Today, goulash is sold everywhere in China. This is a dish that any tourist to China wants to try once. Although at first glance, this dish seems to be very easy to prepare. However, to get a skewer of traditional Beijing-style gourd with a layer of crispy, iridescent sugar, mixed with a slightly sweet and sour taste from medlar, requires careful and meticulous processing. possible.

The first is from the stage of sharpening bamboo sticks, each bamboo stick is polished with sandpaper to ensure the removal of all splinter, but it is required not to be too smooth because it is easy to slip when skewering the fruit.

Next is the step of choosing medlar fruits, large, ripe red medlars that are not distorted. Especially, the medlar fruit used to make gourd is mainly the North medlar fruit, also known as the Chinese Son Tra, the scientific name is Crataegus pinnatifida. This fruit is quite similar to the male medlar whose scientific name is Crataegus cuneata, also known as the Vietnamese cat apple. However, there is a difference because the apple is usually more sour, so it is less used as a candy.

After having enough ingredients to prepare for the step of cooking sugar water, this is the stage that requires the most care and meticulousness. The sugar water cooks until it boils, the air bubbles are really small and turn to a transparent iridescent golden color to meet the standards for wrapping the fruit.

In the book 'Taste of Beijing' by Cui Dayuan published in 2009, it is written that goulash is an indispensable gift of Beijing on cold winter days. The processing is delicate, especially the sugary drink that needs the most attention. If you want to know if the sugar water is standard or not, dip the chopsticks in the sugar water and then immediately dip it in cold water. If you taste it and find it still sticky, continue to cook, if it's crispy, it's enough. Immediately dip the fruit in, if you add a little more sugar water, it will turn bitter.

 Candied gourd is an indispensable gift of Beijing on cold winter days.

In particular, it should be noted that the layer of sugar needs to be extremely thin, if it is too thick, it will not only lose its crispiness but also make the gourd lose its balance when the sweetness overwhelms the fruit. If you make this mistake, you will no longer have the right taste of gourd.

The end

Gou candy not only brings interesting culinary experiences and many health benefits, but also contains many layers of cultural significance of the Chinese people.

The skewers of red gourd are full, symbolizing luck, goodness and consummation. Chinese people believe that eating gourd has the effect of dispelling bad luck and bringing good luck to those who enjoy it. Because of these good meanings, the Chinese often have the habit of giving each other goji berries to children with the wish that they grow up healthy and meet lots of luck in life.

Every year, on January 9th, the Chinese people also choose to celebrate the goulash festival. This festival is usually held in Qingdao (China) and lasts all week attracting many domestic and foreign tourists to attend.