Hi everyone, I’m Jacqueline, Hsuan-hui.
We’re now here at Baihe District
and I’m now at the lotus park.
The lotus here is so beautiful.
Let’s go and appreciate its beauty.
There are many lotus fields to admire alongside the lotus park.
Lotuses are not only beautiful to look at,
but also have many uses.
This is Mr.Chen.
Hi, Mr.Chen.
Hello, Hsuan-hui.
Hi, everyone .
This beautiful lotus field
has actual economic values.
What are the growth characteristics of the lotus?
And what are the tasks that should be done
during the whole year?
When we plant lotus,
the year-long process includes
sowing seeds in spring,
and picking them up in full blossom during summer.
That is why it’s summer when we view and pick lotus or eat lotus seeds.
Most lotuses bloom for only three days.
Three days after the full bloom, only the seedpods are left.
After 21 days, the lotus seeds have started to mature.
Lotus seeds have twin cotyledons.
Between them, there is an embryo, called a lotus core.
In autumn, the water of the lotus fields is drained.
In winter, the lotus roots are gathered to make lotus root powder.
Every part of the lotus can be made into different kinds of things,
and so could you please give me a brief introduction
of all these different kinds of parts and their functions?
In terms of different parts of lotus,
the leaves can be dried
and then be used in lotus leaf wrapped rice.
Lotus is a plant with high economic value.
Besides looking pretty,
the petals, leaves, seedpods, stems and roots of
a lotus can all be utilized.
There are many trace elements in a lotus.
For instance, the pollen of a lotus is very nutritious
and can be used to make tea or broth!
After a lotus withers the seedpods are revealed.
Lotus seeds grow in the lotus seedpods.
Lotus seeds fit well with any dish,
no matter whether it is lotus seed chicken soup,
dry fried lotus seeds with peppers and salt,
lotus leaf and seed rice,
or even red dates with lotus seed soup are all delicious.
The lotus roots harvested in winter
can be made into lotus roots powder or lotus root tea.
Lotuses of Baihe District are special
because their farmlands are irrigated
by the special water from the hot springs of Guanziling.
As a result, the lotus seeds and roots receive sufficient nutrients.
That is why lotus seeds in Baihe are extremely soft after cooking.
They have a dense and smooth texture that melts in your mouth.
So when we want to harvest the lotus,
is there anything that we should pay attention to?
When we harvest the lotus,
we can see that its stem floats on the water,
so we will follow the stem deep to the bottom with our hands,
then use our thumb and forefinger to twist it off from the soil.
Afterwards, we rinse the flowers.
Water in a lotus field isn’t deep.
Yet, it’s easy to imagine how hard it is to walk
among the pristine lotuses with all the mud underfoot.
The hard part of harvesting lotuses is probably not falling over.
When harvesting for different uses,
the part of the lotus that is harvested also differs.
Ornamental lotuses
are cut from underneath the water at the bottom.
If lotuses are going to be dry preserved,
they have to be cut from the receptacle.
To get the lotus seeds, of course you have to harvest the lotus seed pods.
Processing still has to be done to gather the lotus seeds
from the lotus seed pods.
So how can we take out the lotus seeds from the lotus seed pod?
First, we have to use the spoon edge and cut it open,
and then rip it off.
Now you can take out the lotus seeds, like this.
Lotus seeds have green outer skin when harvested
from lotus seed pods.
The lotus seeds have to be deskinned to be edible.
Speaking of the processing of lotus seed,
there are three more steps.
First is to use this tool to strip off the seed shell.
Don’t underestimate these two pieces of wood.
They are specially designed
with grooves in the bottom to roll lotus seeds.
The top piece of wood has a hidden blade.
The blade can’t be thicker
than the skin of the lotus seed,
or else it would damage the lotus seed.
A circular cut is made using a rolling motion,
to make it easier to remove the skin of the lotus seeds.
The second step is to remove the skin.
The third step is to remove the core of the lotus seed.
Using a needle and pushing upwards,
the core can be removed.
The core of a lotus seed has a bitter taste
so that it isn’t popular.
However, the core of lotus seeds
can be used to make tea.
Wow! There are a variety of products here.
So, could you please introduce one or two for me?
Hsuan-hui, for girls who want to maintain their beauty and keep young,
you can drink perfume lotus.
It contains vegetal-placental hormones
which is good for girls.
You can smell its fragrance, it’s really nice.
When coming to the lotus park in the summer,
there is no need to worry about not having a place
to rest from the sun.
There are a few stores at the front of the park
where you can rest
and try lotus root tea or lotus blossom tea.
They are very refreshing.
Here at the lotus park,
you can not only enjoy the beauty of lotus
but also enjoy a lot of food or products made by lotus.
So I recommend every one of you to definitely
come here and take a visit.
The lotus park is not the only place you can see lotuses.
You can see lotus fields all alongside Baihe.
We’re now here at Siaonanhai ,
and this is a tourist attraction
where you can also enjoy the beauty of lotus
and also a lot of other flowers can also be discovered here.
The views here at Siaonanhai are spectacular.
It is really suitable to take a stroll and enjoy the flowers.
If you’re tired, you could also rent a T-Bike.
In the summer,
it is also the season for the golden shower trees to bloom.
There is also a famous lotus viewing spot on Golden Shower Tree Boulevard.
Many people take pictures and tag themselves there.
If the wind is blowing, you might have a chance to understand
how the golden shower tree gets its name.
Isn’t that romantic?
Remember that you can only view the lotuses blooming in the morning!
There are also many communities in Baihe promoting short trips.
You can sign up as a group to book a short trip.
This is Neijiau Community.
A group of mothers in the community
are making red clay salted duck eggs.
Everything is done by themselves from packaging, production, to marketing.
I’m now here to learn how to make the red clay salted egg.
To make red clay salted duck eggs,
of course you would need to first find red clay.
You need to break the red clay first.
Next, you would pass the red clay through a sieve.
At the same time, break apart any pieces that are still too large.
When the red clay has been broken down fine enough,
the red clay is added to salt water and mixed evenly with a mixer.
The duck egg has to be cleaned beforehand.
Next, the duck egg is dipped in rice wine,
and then covered evenly in red clay.
Finally, it is covered in rice husks
to prevent the red clay from sticking.
Tada~we are done!
After we cover it with the red clay,
we would just leave it alone for like twenty days.
And if you want a saltier flavor,
you can leave it alone for like twenty five days.
This is the twenty-day’s-egg,
it tastes really good.
You can have a taste of local cuisine on a community short trip and
home-cooked meals made with local ingredients.
Although it is a simple home-cooked meal,
you can really taste the flavors of the land.
This is a dish made with lotus seed.
Along within the lotus seed,
it is mixed with the taste of different kinds of vegetables,
so it tastes a little sweet
but also very delicious.
This is Wa gui (Savory Rice Cake).
It ‘s kinda like the rice pudding.
It’s a traditional dish we eat in Taiwan.
There’s also a dessert prepared for us.
The watermelon!
Perfect for summer.
Definitely the best thing you should eat on this kind of hot day.
Don’t miss out on Guanziling when you visit Baihe.
You can soak in the hot springs, admire the setting sun,
or eat barrel broiled chicken.
You have got to take a nice break when coming to Baihe!