Chinese Hawthorn Fruit

The red fruits of Crataegus pinnatifida (to be distinguished from Crataegus monogyna, the European hawthorn, whose traditional uses are different).

The Chinese hawthorn bears distinctly larger fruits, of an intense scarlet at full maturity.

Harvested in autumn, dried in slices or whole, they keep their very pronounced sweet-sour savour and their wealth of pectin.

A fruit much loved in sweet Chinese cookery: Tang Hu Lu, the hawthorn skewers glazed with rock sugar.

The reference herb of the register that dissolves the accumulation of rich foods, particularly after a meal heavy in meat.

Also traditionally used to quicken a stagnant Blood in certain settings, and within the register of an even course through the median sphere.

The charred roasted form (Shan Zha Tan) has different actions.

• After-meal infusion: 1 tablespoon in a cup, hot water, 10 minutes — after a hearty meal
• Decoction: 9 to 15 g, simmer for 20 minutes
• Tang Hu Lu: a popular tradition: hawthorn skewers glazed with rock sugar, a sweetmeat and a comfort of the transformation register (Yun Hua) after the festivities
• Carbonised form (Shan Zha Tan): a different turn, oriented more towards the cohesion of the Blood

To be used in moderation where the Qi is markedly deficient (a herb that moves can exhaust a Qi that is already weak).