The tofu tree is a magical tree species rich in nutrients

When counting up some of the world's magical tree species, the tofu tree is absolutely one of them, because the pectin extracted from it can be made into a food similar to tofu, with very high edible value and nutrients.

What is the tofu tree

The tofu tree, also called chou huang jing, is a shrub of the genus Premna in the verbena family (Verbenaceae), with opposite single leaves; the leaves have a foul odor when crushed, and are ovate, ovate-lanceolate, elliptic or obovate, 8-13 cm long and 1.5-6 cm wide, with entire or irregularly coarse-toothed margins. The cymose inflorescences form a panicle, terminal; the calyx is green, sometimes tinged with purple, cup-shaped, with 5 shallow lobes at the apex and often ciliate margins; the corolla is pale yellow, usually 4-lobed, covered outside with soft hairs and glandular dots; there are 4 stamens, usually 2 long and 2 short; the ovary is superior, 4-locular. The drupe is spherical to obovate, purple; the 1000-seed weight is about 17 g. The flowering and fruiting period is May to October. It grows on hillsides, under forest, at forest edges, along roadsides and in thickets on barren hills below an altitude of 2500 m, and is best suited to slightly acidic to acidic soil. Field planting gives better growth than mountain planting. The magical tofu tree belongs to mangrove communities, is cold- and heat-tolerant, and fears drought.

What are the uses of the tofu tree

Nutritional elements: the crude protein, crude fat, crude fiber, total sugar and ash contents of tofu tree leaves are 13.48%, 3.79%, 9.87%, 8.98% and 5.95% respectively, and the pectin content is as high as 39.5%; two-dimensional electrophoresis of leaf protein revealed 34 stained spots, indicating that the leaf protein contains at least 34 water-soluble proteins. Tofu tree leaves contain 18 amino acids, with an amino acid content of up to 10.81 g per 100 g of leaves; the amino acids present in higher amounts include cystine, aspartic acid, glutamic acid, glycine, alanine and phenylalanine. Tofu tree leaves contain a variety of mineral elements, and the mineral element content is extremely rich: every 100 g of tofu tree leaves contains 870 mg calcium, 120 mg phosphorus, 59.5 mg iron and 2.07 mg zinc. In addition, every 100 g of fresh leaves contains 365.56 mg vitamin C and 21.8 mg β-carotene.

Medicinal value: the roots, stems and leaves of the tofu tree can all be used as medicine; they are bitter and cold in nature and flavor and non-toxic, and have effects such as clearing heat and detoxifying, reducing swelling and stopping bleeding, and can treat venomous snake bites, unnamed swellings and toxic sores, traumatic bleeding, dysentery, scalds and other conditions. Experiments show that tofu tree root extract significantly inhibits carrageenan-induced rat paw edema and prostaglandin E2 production, with a significant anti-inflammatory effect; the root extract also enhances the phagocytic function of macrophages and the proliferation of lymphocytes in experimental mice, strengthening the body's non-specific immune effect. Stem and leaf extracts of the tofu tree have anti-fatigue and cholesterol-lowering effects. A water decoction of the tofu tree has a strong inhibitory effect on pathogenic bacteria such as Staphylococcus aureus and dysentery bacilli.

Industrial value: pectin has good gelling and emulsifying-stabilizing effects and is widely used in industries such as food, textiles, cosmetics and medicine. The pectin content of tofu tree leaves is as high as 30%-40%, higher than that of the raw materials currently used for pectin extraction. The degree of esterification of pectin from tofu tree leaves is 73%-78%, and the gel strength is above 165 grade; both indicators are far higher than those of pectin extracted from fruit peel, corn cob and sunflower heads. The tofu tree is rich in resources, and its pectin content is high and its quality good, making it a pectin extraction raw material with broad development prospects. Moreover, the peroxidase content in tofu tree leaves is 8 times that of horseradish, the current raw material for peroxidase extraction, giving it high value for chemical utilization.

How to eat the tofu tree

Tofu tree leaves can only be picked in the mountains

First pick all the leaves and wash them clean

Rub them with your hands for a long time until the leaves turn to pulp, then fill with clean water and filter

The filtered juice must be guaranteed to have not the slightest residue, otherwise it will fail to set

To add a note on the utensils used for filtering, the filter holes must be of the very, very small kind

Take a bowl of boiling water and add a little toothpaste, stirring evenly

Use chopsticks to stir quickly in the filtered leaf juice; during stirring, slowly pour in the prepared toothpaste water, and after stirring evenly, wait about seven to eight minutes and it will become the jelly-like state you see now

Finally it is done; season it according to personal taste and it is ready to eat. Recommended seasonings: monosodium glutamate, chicken essence, light soy sauce, vinegar, ginger, chili

Value: the green, translucent jelly-like "tofu" made from tofu tree leaves as a raw material is a pollution-free, safe green health food; it is an excellent summer heat-relieving delicacy and can be served cold-dressed or stir-fried. Using tofu tree leaves as a raw material, through processes such as grinding into a slurry, removing water, filtering and coagulating, it can be processed into jelly, with a delicate, smooth mouthfeel, transparent and plump texture, and rich nutrition.

Although the artificial cultivation of the tofu tree is not yet widespread, because of its magical qualities and its economic benefits, the planting scale of the tofu tree is expanding step by step. If you are also quite interested in novel things, you can choose to plant a tofu tree to get to know it.

Although the artificial cultivation of the tofu tree is not yet widespread, because of its magical qualities and its economic benefits, the planting scale of the tofu tree is expanding step by step. If you are also quite interested in novel things, you can choose to plant a tofu tree to get to know it.