Sugar Beet

original: 菾菜, tiáncài. This refers to varieties of Beta vulgaris, encompassing both leaf beets (Swiss Chard) and early forms of the sugar beet.

This plant was recorded as a "medium-grade" item in the Supplementary Records original: 名醫別錄, Míngyī Biélù, a classic pharmacological text from the 3rd century.. It is the same as the Chard vegetable original: 莙達菜, jūndácài.; in Hunan, it is called the "Sweet Vegetable." There is a variety with red stems that is unsuitable for eating; people grow it only for ornament. Note that the name Junda was first recorded in the Jiayou Materia Medica An imperial botanical work compiled between 1057–1060.. The great physician Li Shizhen grouped these together because the words "Beet" and "Sweet" original: 菾 and 甜, both pronounced tián. sound so similar. However, the descriptions provided by various authors claiming the leaves resemble Shengma Cimicifuga, or Bugbane. or Shuodiao Sambucus chinensis, or Chinese Elder. do not match this plant at all. For now, I will tentatively follow the existing classifications.

The flavor of this vegetable is sweet but "incorrect" meaning an unappealing or cloying sweetness, making it a very low-quality foodstuff. Because it is easy to plant and fertilize, only lazy gardeners tend to grow it. This stands in stark contrast to the Commentary on the Tang Materia Medica, which claims that when steamed with fish, it is "extraordinarily fragrant and delicious." Furthermore, it was once used in the summer months to make porridge with tea to relieve heat, though no one makes such porridge these days. The True Materia Medica states it treats "cold phlegm" A traditional Chinese medicine term for thick, clear fluids associated with a "cold" constitution or digestive sluggishness. trapped in the diaphragm and stomach. It must not be eaten in excess. Indeed, in places where truly fine vegetables are plentiful, this one is rightly rejected.