Fish Wort and Red Date Water

Why people make this herbal water

Whooping cough tends to show up in the colder months, often starting as a mild cold before turning into those distinctive, relentless bouts of coughing that are hardest on little ones at night. Fish wort — known in Chinese as yu xing cao — has a long history of use in traditional Chinese medicine for respiratory complaints, and modern laboratory work has found it to have broad antimicrobial properties. Red dates bring their own gentle benefit: they contain a compound called cyclic adenosine monophosphate, which is thought to help stabilize cell membranes and reduce the intensity of allergic-type reactions. Together, they make a simple, two-ingredient preparation that parents in Cantonese households have trusted for generations.

Method

1. Rinse the fresh fish wort thoroughly, then cut into short sections.
2. Remove the pits from the red dates and slice them.
3. Combine both ingredients with 1.2 L of water in a pot.
4. Bring to the boil, then reduce to a medium simmer and cook for 20 minutes until the liquid reduces to about 600 ml.
5. Serve warm throughout the day. Repeat for 3 to 4 consecutive days.

Nourilo’s Tips

Fresh fish wort is sold at Chinese herbal stalls with the full stem and leaves intact — the whole plant is medicinal. Because it contains volatile aromatic oils, keep the cooking time to 20 minutes and do not simmer for much longer, or those active compounds will evaporate. For a purely external use, you can steep a stronger batch and apply it as a wash for vaginal infections. Children can comfortably drink half a bowl per serving; for a baby around 10 to 11 months, start with roughly half a bowl. Families where several children are ill can scale the recipe up slightly and share across the day.