Should I peel the sponge gourd before stir-frying

Luffa is a common vegetable. It has good nutritional value and tastes great. Although the luffa skin can be eaten, its taste is not good, so in general, the skin needs to be removed before stir-frying. Luffa has relatively good nutritional effects. It has a certain effect in promoting skin whitening, removing wrinkles and maintaining skin elasticity. Let’s take a look at this aspect.

Should I peel the sponge gourd when stir-frying it?

The loofah can be fried without peeling, but the taste is not very good. Luffa can be divided into two categories: with edges and without edges. The one with ridges is called ridged loofah. The gourd is long and stick-shaped, thicker at the front end, green in color, with hard skin and no fuzz. It has 8 to 10 ridges, white flesh, and is tender and crisp. The one without edges is called common loofah, commonly known as "water melon". Common varieties include: snake-shaped loofah and stick loofah. Snake-shaped loofah is also known as thread loofah. The gourd is slender, some can reach more than 1 meter, slightly thicker in the middle and lower parts, green in color, slightly rough in skin, often with fine wrinkles, and of medium quality. Stick loofah is also known as flesh loofah. The shape of the loofah changes from short cylindrical to long stick-shaped. It is slightly thicker at the bottom and gradually becomes thinner at the front. It is about 35 cm long and 3 to 5 cm in diameter. The rind is mainly green.

Edible loofah can be eaten cold, stir-fried, roasted, made into soup, or squeezed into juice for diet therapy. Wash and slice the loofah, blanch it in boiling water, then mix it with sesame oil, soy sauce, vinegar, etc. to make cold loofah. Stir-fried loofah is light and delicious, and can clear away heat and dampness.

Braised loofah with mushrooms can nourish qi and blood, and dredge meridians. Tomato and loofah soup can clear away heat and toxins, and eliminate restlessness and fever. It is especially suitable for consumption when you feel hot and stuffy, thirsty, and have a dry throat. Take an appropriate amount of raw loofah, wash it and squeeze out the juice, then add honey in a ratio of 10:1 and mix well to make raw loofah juice, which has the effect of clearing heat, relieving cough and reducing phlegm. Take 30 grams of loofah flowers and 15 grams of Sophora japonica flowers. Add the above medicines together with water, boil them, remove the residue and take the juice. Take one dose daily, divided into two doses, to treat bloody stools.

The efficacy and function of loofah

1. Moisturizing and whitening. It protects the skin, eliminates plaques, and prevents skin aging. It is a rare beauty product for delicate skin. The juice of loofah vines and stems has the special function of maintaining skin elasticity. It can beautify and remove wrinkles, so loofah is known as "beauty water".

2. Improve brain health. It is beneficial to the brain development of children and the brain health of middle-aged and elderly people, and loofah extract has a significant preventive effect on Japanese encephalitis virus.

3. Promote blood circulation and dredge meridians. It has the effects of relieving cough and reducing phlegm, cooling blood and detoxifying. External use can stop bleeding and reduce inflammation, and eating more of it can help regulate menstruation for women.

4. Detoxify and reduce swelling. Luffa vine tastes bitter and cool in nature, and has the effects of promoting blood circulation, activating tendons and joints, and relieving cough and phlegm. Luffa is sweet and mild in nature, and has the effects of clearing away heat and detoxifying, and promoting diuresis and reducing swelling.

5. Anti-scurvy. Luffa contains a high amount of vitamin C, which can be used to prevent scurvy and various vitamin C deficiencies.

6. Improve brain health and beautify your skin. Because loofah is high in vitamin B and other nutrients, it is beneficial to the brain development of children and the brain health of middle-aged and elderly people. The juice of the loofah vine stem has the special function of maintaining skin elasticity and can beautify and remove wrinkles.

7. Antiviral and anti-allergic. Luffa extract has a significant preventive effect on Japanese encephalitis virus. An anti-allergic substance, bromocriptine acid, is also extracted from the luffa tissue culture medium, which has a strong anti-allergic effect.