Porridge has a history of at least 5,000 years in China. Since ancient times, porridge has been hailed as "the elixir of nourishing and bearing children", "nourishing the stomach and benefiting qi" and "the best thing in the world to help people"
Zhou Shu, compiled by Linghu Defen in the Tang Dynasty, recorded that "those who started from the emperor cooked porridge in the valley" (that is, it is said that those who started from the emperor steamed porridge in the valley at the earliest), which is the earliest record about porridge.
China porridge was mainly used as food 4000 years ago, and was first used as medicine 2500 years ago. According to Records of the Historian Biography of Bian Que and Cang Gong, Chunyu Kun, a famous doctor in the Western Han Dynasty, treated Wang Qi's disease with "fire porridge", saying that porridge can tonify the qi of the five internal organs, one drink can clear away heat and sweat, two drinks can clear away heat, and three drinks can get rid of the disease.
In the Middle Ages, the function of porridge was to highly integrate "edible" and "medicinal" and enter the level of "health preservation" with humanistic color. After eating porridge, Su Dongpo, a great writer and gourmet, wrote a famous poem, "I don't know myself deeply, but I know there is a real taste in the world" (describing the delicious porridge makes people upside down).
Lu You, a famous poet in the Southern Song Dynasty, also strongly recommended eating porridge for health preservation, believing that it could prolong life. He once wrote a poem "Eat Porridge", a well-known poem "Only eating porridge can make you immortal" (just send it to the gods who eat porridge, which means that porridge tastes extremely high). As a result, the world's understanding of porridge has risen to a new height.
Li Shizhen in Ming Dynasty wrote in Compendium of Materia Medica: "Eating a big bowl of porridge every day will make your stomach empty and your stomach weak. The tonic is not refined, extremely delicate and compatible with the stomach. It is also the most wonderful way to eat. " (I just eat a big bowl of porridge every day. The stomach is weak on an empty stomach, and the porridge is extremely delicate and suitable for the stomach. This is a good way to adjust your diet. )
It can be seen that the relationship between porridge and China people, like porridge itself, is thick and sticky. As a traditional food, porridge is more important in China than in any other country in the world.
Extended data
The historical story of breaking horseshoe crabs with porridge.
Fan Zhongyan's mother, Xie Yisheng, suffered a lot and suffered too much, so she pinned too much hope on her son. While studying at Liquan Temple, his stepfather's family was in trouble, and Fan Zhongyan knew it well.
Every time he left home for the temple, his mother always suggested that he bring more food and rice. On the one hand, he is worried that his son is not full and tired, on the other hand, he is afraid of adding burden to the temple owner. However, Fan Zhongyan doesn't bring much every time, and the number of times he brings it is surprisingly small. When her mother nags, Zhong Yan always says confidently, "I know a lot." When I first arrived at the temple, I handed the whole grains to the kitchen to cook for me, and ate with the monks along with the bell of the temple.
But Fan Zhongyan concentrates on reading and thinking from morning till night, often turns a deaf ear to the bell, forgets to eat, and when he goes to cook again, it is too late. Seeing Fan Zhongyan's sleepless study, the kind monk or young monk offered to bring him food. Zhong Yan is very sorry for causing trouble to others.
In order to read conveniently, he prepared a small pot and stove and cooked by himself. According to his established idea, Fan Zhongyan measured rice and added water every night, lit the firewood he picked up in a small stove and cooked rice porridge. While reading, continue to cook porridge with firewood. A pot of rice porridge was cooked, and it was past midnight, so he went to bed in his clothes.
The next morning, the rice porridge in the pot was cold and solidified into a round whole. He took out a knife and drew a cross on the solidified porridge. The whole pot of porridge was divided into four pieces. Take two tablets in the morning and two tablets in the evening, two meals a day. This is "rowing porridge".
Wild leek, wild onion, wild garlic and wild celery naturally grow on the mountains around the temple, as well as more than a dozen edible wild vegetables such as amaranth, bitter vegetable, shepherd's purse, dandelion, cowherb seed and wormwood. When Fan Zhongyan went to the cave to study during the day, he pulled out several kinds of wild vegetables. When eating, cut a dozen wild leeks, or wild onions, or wild garlic into fine powder, add a little salt and mix well, and a meal is ready. This is a "broken horseshoe".
After studying in Liquan Temple for three years, Fan Zhongyan basically lived a hard and self-disciplined life. With the display of Fan Zhongyan's brilliant achievements on the historical stage of the Northern Song Dynasty, "rowing porridge to break the shackles" has become a special idiom specifically referring to Fan Zhongyan's hard study in his youth.