Yellowcress / marsh cress
A low herbaceous plant of the mustard family that once grew wild around Guangdong rice paddies, sold fresh in whole bundles with the roots still attached. Its peppery, faintly bitter leaves give the classic pairing with snakehead fish its distinctive herbal edge; the whole plant is washed thoroughly of grit and simmered.
TCM properties
Nature · cold Flavour · pungent、bitter Meridians · lung、liver
Traditional food therapy
In Cantonese food therapy it is used to clear heat, dispel dampness and moisten the lungs, and the soup with snakehead fish is a long-standing folk pot for these purposes.
Cautions: read first
- Take care if you run cold and deficient
- Not suitable for those with anaemia, low blood pressure or a weak constitution
- Not suitable for women during their period or the postnatal confinement month (坐月)
Preparation
Wash the whole plant, roots and all, until the grit is gone; it is used mostly fresh, though a dried form exists.
Origin
Pearl River Delta, Guangdong (once wild in the rice paddies, now mostly cultivated). Rarely seen fresh in Australian retail; presence unverified, so check Asian greengrocers or herbal shops in person
Availability in Australia
Herbal shops / specialists
