Chinese herbal medicine is a treatment method that many people choose, but younger people often struggle with the process of decocting the herbs. In fact, there is nothing particularly difficult about decocting herbs, as long as you pay attention to some details. Let's take a look!
1. Gentle heat and strong heat
Gentle heat is called "wen fire," while strong heat is called "wu wen." It is said that rapid decoction extracts the active ingredients quickly, while prolonged decoction allows the herbs to fully release their potency. Generally, herbs should be decocted with strong heat first and then with gentle heat. As recorded in the "Compendium of Materia Medica," the method of using strong heat first and then gentle heat has been proven effective.
2. Double-boiling
For some precious herbs, such as ginseng and antlers, to protect their active ingredients from being lost, they can be sliced into thin pieces and double-boiled in water for 2-3 hours, and then the decoction is consumed.
3. Bundled decoction
To prevent the decoction from becoming turbid and reduce irritation to the throat, larynx, and gastrointestinal tract, herbs like cinnabar, talcum, spiraea, and orpiment should be wrapped in a thin cloth before boiling.
4. Late addition
Herbs with aromatic smells, such as peppermint, cardamom, sandalwood, and rhubarb, should be added when other herbs are almost decocted. They should be decocted for 4-5 minutes to prevent prolonged decoction from causing the volatile oils to dissipate and reduce the efficacy.
5. Pre-decoction
Shellfish and mineral medicines are difficult to decoct due to their hardness. They should be crushed and pre-decocted for about 10-20 minutes after boiling, and then other herbs, such as turtle shell, tortoise shell, cinnabar, fresh oyster shell, albino stone, and dragon bone, can be added. For sandy herbs like loam and glutinous rice root, as well as light and bulky herbs like reed root, wheat root, and bamboo shavings, it is also recommended to pre-decoct them to obtain a clear juice, and then use the clear liquid to decoct other herbs instead of water.
6. Dissolving
Gelatinous and highly soluble herbs, such as donkey-hide gelatin, deer antler gelatin, honey, and chicken blood vine, should be heated and dissolved separately before adding them to the decoction. Stir them well while hot to ensure full dissolution, so as to avoid burning the pot and sticking to other herbs during decoction, which may reduce the efficacy of the medicine.
