The winter solstice is one of the twenty-four solar terms, the shortest day in a year. In Taiwan we want to eat glutinous rice balls, so what are we going to do in Japan?

In Japan, the winter solstice eats pumpkin and makes grapefruit soup. The reason for eating pumpkin is because the winter solstice is the end of the year. At this time, they will eat food that ends with ん according to the ancient quintet, the last sound of Iroha's song "いろはにほへと". People who know Japanese may think that the Japanese word for pumpkin is かぼちゃ, not ん ending, but since ancient times it was called なんきん, so it is completely fine.

When it comes to grapefruit soup, why is this? In fact, the origin of the winter solstice soup in Japan is not clear. Looking back at history, grapefruit soup does not have a long history, as recorded in Dongdu Shiji: "Winter Solstice. Star Festival. Today, all people's cakes are made, and family servants and servants are congratulated. Another year's の slightly 暦 を じ て て と す. Today, 銭湭魚馬屋にてyuzu soup is burning. ' As mentioned above, during the winter solstice, everyone makes cakes to celebrate the resurrection of the sun. Today, we make grapefruit soup in the soup.

It is generally believed that yuzu soup began in the Edo period when the sento culture appeared. At that time, it was believed that soaking yuzu soup on the winter solstice would make one stay healthy and not catch a cold in winter.

We know that soaking grapefruit soup is good, so what does winter solstice have to do with soaking soup? This is because the Japanese とうじ of the winter solstice has the same pronunciation as the soup to heal the wounds and recuperate. Therefore, it is reasonable to soak in the grapefruit soup to strengthen the body in the winter solstice. It can only be said that the Japanese really like the homophonic stem from the past.

In addition to strengthening the body, grapefruit soup has a strong aroma. The ancients also believed that it could purify the body and exorcise evil spirits. Therefore, the winter solstice is the shortest day, which represents the day when the sun will be reborn or reborn, and grapefruit will also be used. The soup comes to bathe and cleanse the body. In addition, because the fruit of grapefruit takes a long time to bloom and bear fruit, soaking grapefruit in the winter solstice at the end of the year also has the meaning of a year of hard work and finally exchanged for sweet fruit.

Yuzu soup has various meanings in Japan, soaking in yuzu soup is believed to promote blood circulation and relieve cold hands and feet, warm the body to prevent colds, and beautify the skin due to the citric acid and vitamin C contained in the peel. The vitamin C content of grapefruit is quite outstanding among citrus fruits. The vitamin C content in 100 grams of juice is 40 mg, and the vitamin C content in the peel is particularly high, which is 150 mg. Vitamin C enhances the skin's water retention and has an antioxidant effect, so it can be expected to prevent dryness and aging of the skin.

Do you want citron soup with bubbles to strengthen your body and beauty at home? Yebisu Japanese Medicine Direct Delivery recommends the following citron soup and citron related products that you can easily enjoy at home, so that you can spend this winter in a healthy and beautiful way.

[Quaternary medicines] Warm bubble carbonated soup foaming bath agent grapefruit 20 tablets

Kochi Prefecture YUZU Yuzu Emulsion 300ml

Traditional Floral Vaseline Hand Cream 15g

Nitto Black Tea Ginger Grapefruit Tea 10 Packs

Nissin Famous Store Series (newly launched in November 2021) AFURI Yuzu Salt Porridge