Gourd is both cooling and detoxifying.

BSCKI. Duong Ngoc Van (Medlatec General Hospital) said that squash is an ingredient that can be used to prepare many delicious, cool dishes in the summer. Squash is mild, sweet, helps with urination, detoxification and cooling. Squash has high nutritional content, containing a lot of water. According to research, 100g of squash contains up to 95% water, 21% calcium, 25% phosphorus, 2.9% glucid, 1% cellulose, 0.2 mg iron, 0.5% protein; many vitamins that are good for health such as vitamin B, C...

People can use parts of the gourd to improve their health. For example, the sweet, neutral peel has diuretic properties and treats bloating. The pulp and seeds of the gourd are rich in vitamins and nutrients that can treat headaches and worms. In particular, the gourd contains a lot of insoluble fiber that helps clean the intestines, reduce constipation and improve digestion.

There are many squashes in the summer, people can make delicious dishes from this fruit to change the taste and cool down, detoxify on hot days. However, experts advise that although squash is delicious, people should not eat more than 3 meals of squash but should mix it with many other vegetables and fruits to balance nutrition, diversify the source of vitamins and nutrients. In addition, people with cold stomach, bloating should avoid eating because it can make the condition worse.

Delicious summer dish to cool down with easy-to-make squash

* Steamed squash with shrimp and meat

+ Ingredients for steamed squash with shrimp and meat

- 300gr shrimp

- 300gr minced shoulder meat

- Shiitake mushrooms

- Young squash. You should choose a small, elongated squash because it will be softer to eat than a round one.

- Seasonings: fish sauce, salt, seasoning powder...

+ How to make steamed squash with shrimp and meat:

- Step 1: Clean shrimp, puree and mix with meat. Soak shiitake mushrooms until they expand, wash and chop finely. Then mix well together, add spices and let sit for about 10 minutes to absorb.

- Step 2: Scrape and wash the squash, cut into bite-sized pieces, and scoop out the insides. You should leave a little at the bottom so that when you put the filling in, it will look better. Next, use a spoon to scoop the shrimp filling in, gently press around to tighten it, and stick the shrimp tail up for decoration. After making all the ingredients, steam for about 15 minutes.

Pickled Gourd

Besides boiling, stir-frying, and making soup, you can make a very unique pickled squash dish.

+ Ingredients for making pickled gourd

- 2 squash

- Second rice washing water

- White salt

+ How to make pickled gourd

Wash the outer shell of the squash, cut off the 2 stems, then soak in diluted salt water for about 20 minutes. Next, slice the squash into pieces about 1cm, and dry the squash in the sun. When the squash is dry, prepare a clean glass jar and arrange the squash in the jar. Add rice water and dissolved salt, pour water over the squash and press down. Leave for about 3-4 days to get the finished product.

When the gourd is sour, people use it to cook sour gourd soup, braised fish or simply wash it to reduce the sourness, then grind garlic, chili, sugar, mix well and leave it in the refrigerator overnight to have an attractive dish. This sour pickled gourd dish is extremely delicious when eaten with boiled meat.

Steamed squash with salmon

According to the instructions of Ms. Nguyen Viet Hang (Hanoi), you can prepare a simple dish of steamed squash with salmon as follows:

+ Ingredients for steamed squash with salmon:

- 500g squash

- 150g salmon

- 1 bag of shiitake mushrooms

- Oyster sauce, sesame oil, green onion, seasoning powder

+ How to make steamed squash with salmon:

Peel the squash, remove the seeds and cut into 10cm pieces. Chop the green onions and mushrooms and mix well. Slice the salmon, marinate with 2 tablespoons of oyster sauce, sesame oil and add a little seasoning powder, pepper and stir-fry. Finally, add the mixture of mushrooms, green onions and salmon to the squash and steam until cooked.