Old Factory Bitter Herb

Old Factory Bitter Herb

　　Old Factory Bitter Herb is a specialty of Laochang Town in Gejiu City, Honghe Prefecture, Yunnan Province. This bitter herb has earned a distinctive reputation for its unique flavor. Especially around the Spring Festival, its scarcity makes it all the more prized.

　　According to *Dian Nan Ben Cao*, bitter herb has the effects of “cooling blood heat, soothing the stomach, purging accumulated stagnation in the abdomen, and promoting urination and bowel movement.” *Compendium of Materia Medica* also states that bitter herb can “treat bloody strangury and hemorrhoid rashes.”

　　In most people’s minds, bitter herb gets its name from its bitter taste. However, in Laochang Town—Gejiu City’s highest-altitude area at 2,750 meters—there grows a special variety of bitter herb that is not only not bitter but also very easy to cook. This herb can be found in many restaurants across Laochang Town. As a local specialty, many have tried transplanting it elsewhere, but once removed from its native soil, it loses its unique flavor due to “climate incompatibility.”

　　People from nearby counties and cities around Gejiu, even those from the provincial capital Kunming, flock to Laochang Town to purchase the bitter herb. Some farmers’ crops are pre-ordered early in the morning, as many wish to give this green and healthy vegetable as a New Year gift to relatives and friends.