Ningxia specialty: Potatoes

Ningxia specialty: Potatoes

　　The scientific name of the potato is "Solanum tuberosum," and it is commonly known as "potato," "earth egg," or "foreign yam." It is mainly produced in Guyuan City of Ningxia, as well as Tongxin County and Yanchi County in Wuzhong City. Scientific research shows that processing potatoes into starch using traditional methods can increase their value by 30%, while processing them into noodles, vermicelli, or sheets can boost their value by 80%. In Guyuan City, there are several large and medium-sized potato processing enterprises, represented by XiJi County Shasha (Group) Co., Ltd., over 20 township-level rough-processing enterprises, and individual processors mainly from areas such as Yangfang in Guyuan County and Yaozhou in XiJi County. These processors can directly consume large quantities of locally produced potatoes each year. The potatoes produced in Tongxin and Yanchi are mostly transported elsewhere or used as feed for sheep. The once humble "potato beans" have become "golden beans" that help farmers generate income through processing and develop livestock farming.

Eating sprouted potatoes can easily cause poisoning

Regarding dietary taboos, a topic currently of interest to many netizens. One claim states that eating potatoes with tomatoes or potatoes with eggs can lead to poisoning. Is this claim true?

Borscht, a dish made with tomatoes and potatoes, is a specialty of Russian cuisine. Eggs and potatoes are also commonly used ingredients in homemade salads. Therefore, the claim mentioned by the netizen that "eating potatoes with tomatoes or potatoes with eggs can cause poisoning" is not factual.

However, there were indeed online reports of an 8-year-old girl who, three hours after eating a mixture of boiled potatoes and eggs, broke out in red spots all over her body, fainted near her school, and died on the way to the hospital. Subsequently, the claim that "boiling eggs and potatoes together can be deadly" spread rapidly in the area. But experts have refuted this claim.

Tip: How to self-rescue in case of food poisoning

So, what really happened with the poisoning and death of the young girl in Chongqing?

— It’s quite simple. Both potato sprouts and green tomatoes contain alkaloids (solanine). Consuming either of these can cause symptoms to appear within 10 minutes to several hours. Initial symptoms include an itchy and burning sensation in the throat, a burning or painful feeling in the upper abdomen, followed by gastrointestinal symptoms such as severe vomiting and diarrhea. Other possible symptoms include dizziness, headache, mild consciousness impairment, and difficulty breathing. In severe cases, death may occur due to heart failure or respiratory center paralysis.

Therefore, it’s not that these two foods can’t be eaten together, but rather that you should avoid eating sprouted potatoes and green tomatoes. When cooking potatoes at home, if you find sprouts, not only should you remove the sprouts, but you should also cut away the greenish parts of the potato connected to them. As for tomatoes, be sure not to buy unripe green ones.