Grass Jelly, Guilinggao or Turtle Jelly 🐢 (no turtle shell extract in this can)

As a teenager, I visited relatives in Hong Kong who diagnosed from observation that I had too much of the fire element in my body (yang element) and the cure was guilinggao for dessert which was cooling (yin properties) 😆. I dutifully consumed some of this slightly bitter jelly, which is an acquired taste!

I found a can on a Chinese supermarket shelf recently and reminiscing on the past, I bought one. Outside of Asia it is available in any Chinese supermarket in the Western world. Grass jelly essentially contains the same key herbal ingredients.

I was surprised to learn from Wikipedia that the original herbal Chinese medicine does contain an extract of turtle shell 🐢. I can assure you that the commercial variety invariably does not.

The herbal and health ingredients are listed as mesona chinensis benth ( a herb plant that grows in South East Asia), honey, liquorice, honeysuckle flower, dandelion, pagodatree flower, cape, jasmine, Dahurian Angelica root and lohankuo (monk fruit).

The reputed benefits of this herbal medicine are improved circulation and skin complexion, muscle growth, itch relief and kidney health.

I am contemplating serving this for dessert this evening, @fleur 🌱

(Facts from Wikipedia)

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