Pig blood curd (), also known as "blood tofu" or "blood pudding" (), is a popular delicacy originating from

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...

. It is commonly served with carbohydrates, such as

noodles Noodles are a type of food made from unleavened dough which is either rolled flat and cut, stretched, or extruded, into long strips or strings. Noodles are a staple food in many cultures and made into a variety of shapes. The most common noo ...

congee Congee ( , derived from Tamil language, Tamil ), is a form of savoury rice porridge made by boiling rice in a large amount of water until the rice softens. Depending on rice–water ratio, the thickness of congee varies from a Western oatmeal ...

Background

Pig blood curd originated from blood rice pudding () in southern China. Blood rice pudding is a pastry made from blood and rice grains. Rice is the main ingredient of southern Chinese cuisine; the two common methods to cook rice are steaming and boiling. Duck meat is a source of supplement (), however, because of the poor living conditions in the past, poultry was only offered as sacrifices in Chinese festivals. In order to get nutrition from the ducks, farmers saved the blood, steamed it with rice, and served it with sauce. Later, blood rice pudding spread to neighboring towns and villages, and people named it duck blood pudding (). However, because of the rising price of duck, and the inability of chicken blood to coagulate into pudding, pig blood replaced duck blood, resulting in the birth of pig blood curd.Wilson J. Warren Meat Makes People Powerful: A Global History of the Modern Era University of Iowa Press, 2018.

Preparation

Pig blood curd is solid pig blood. Manufacturers coagulate fresh blood by letting it sit in a clean container for around 10 minutes. The blood cube is cut into smaller pieces, then heated in a pot with medium heat with water. During the heating process, salt is added to solidify the blood cubes.

Characteristics and variations

Pig blood curd is soft and smooth, as well as slightly chewy. It can be eaten by itself, or served in boiled soup, hot pot, or even made as a snack on a stick.Blood tofu: bloody delicious?
''Travel'', China.org.cn. March 12, 2010. Retrieved (23.03.2014) Pig's blood can also be made into a variety of dishes: In China, there are recipes like "pig blood curd

" (), which is pig blood curd in congee, and "maoxuewang" (), a Sichuan dish served with pig blood curd, part of the cow's stomach, luncheon meat, eel, some form of intestine, and bean sprouts in Sichuan style spicy soup. In Taiwan, pig's blood is made into a street snack called " pig's blood cake" (), which is a mixture of pig's blood, fried or steamed sticky rice, and peanut flour served on a stick.Street Food From Taiwan: Pig's Blood Cake
Nicholas Chen, Seriouseats. Retrieved (23.03.2014) Pig's blood is also made into food by many western countries. For example, in Britain,

black pudding Black pudding is a distinct national type of blood sausage originating in the United Kingdom and Ireland. It is made from pork or occasionally beef Blood as food, blood, with Lard, pork fat or Suet, beef suet, and a cereal, usually oatmeal, oat ...

(blood sausage) is made from pig's blood and a high proportion of oatmeal.Tradition Black Pudding
Guise Bule, The English Breakfast Society. Retrieved (23.03.2014)

Nutrition

Pig blood curd offers significant health benefits due to its high nutritional content and unique properties. It is rich in

protein Proteins are large biomolecules and macromolecules that comprise one or more long chains of amino acid residue (biochemistry), residues. Proteins perform a vast array of functions within organisms, including Enzyme catalysis, catalysing metab ...

, containing a variety of essential

amino acids Amino acids are organic compounds that contain both amino and carboxylic acid functional groups. Although over 500 amino acids exist in nature, by far the most important are the Proteinogenic amino acid, 22 α-amino acids incorporated into p ...

that closely resemble those found in the human body, making it easy to digest and absorb. This nutrient-dense food also contains beneficial compounds like

lecithin Lecithin ( ; from the Ancient Greek "yolk") is a generic term to designate any group of yellow-brownish fatty substances occurring in animal and plant tissues which are amphiphilic – they attract both water and fatty substances (and so ar ...

and

iron Iron is a chemical element; it has symbol Fe () and atomic number 26. It is a metal that belongs to the first transition series and group 8 of the periodic table. It is, by mass, the most common element on Earth, forming much of Earth's o ...

, which are important for overall health. The health benefits of pig blood curd include supporting

weight loss Weight loss, in the context of medicine, health, or physical fitness, refers to a reduction of the total body mass, by a mean loss of fluid, body fat (adipose tissue), or lean mass (namely bone mineral deposits, muscle, tendon, and other conn ...

, as it contains ample iron that helps prevent

anemia Anemia (also spelt anaemia in British English) is a blood disorder in which the blood has a reduced ability to carry oxygen. This can be due to a lower than normal number of red blood cells, a reduction in the amount of hemoglobin availabl ...

during

dieting Dieting is the practice of eating food in a regulated way to decrease, maintain, or increase body weight, or to prevent and treat diseases such as diabetes and obesity. As weight loss depends on calorie intake, List of diets, different kinds of ...

. It aids in

blood clotting Coagulation, also known as clotting, is the process by which blood changes from a liquid to a gel, forming a thrombus, blood clot. It results in hemostasis, the cessation of blood loss from a damaged vessel, followed by repair. The process of co ...

and benefits the colon, while traditional Chinese medicine uses it to treat anemia. Additionally, its high iron content is easily absorbed and supports the growth and development of children, pregnant women, and nursing mothers. Pig blood curd may also help prevent

cancer Cancer is a group of diseases involving Cell growth#Disorders, abnormal cell growth with the potential to Invasion (cancer), invade or Metastasis, spread to other parts of the body. These contrast with benign tumors, which do not spread. Po ...

due to trace elements that hinder the growth of malignant cells. It contains a substance called wound

hormone A hormone (from the Ancient Greek, Greek participle , "setting in motion") is a class of cell signaling, signaling molecules in multicellular organisms that are sent to distant organs or tissues by complex biological processes to regulate physio ...

, which can destroy damaged cells and promote tissue regeneration. The

phospholipids Phospholipids are a class of lipids whose molecule has a hydrophilic "head" containing a phosphate group and two hydrophobic "tails" derived from fatty acids, joined by an alcohol residue (usually a glycerol molecule). Marine phospholipids typi ...

in pig blood curd improve memory and combat aging by enhancing the connection between

nerve cells A neuron (American English), neurone (British English), or nerve cell, is an excitable cell that fires electric signals called action potentials across a neural network in the nervous system. They are located in the nervous system and help to ...

. Additionally, it contains

vitamin K Vitamin K is a family of structurally similar, fat-soluble vitamers found in foods and marketed as dietary supplements. The human body requires vitamin K for post-translational modification, post-synthesis modification of certain proteins ...

, aiding in

blood coagulation Coagulation, also known as clotting, is the process by which blood changes from a liquid to a gel, forming a blood clot. It results in hemostasis, the cessation of blood loss from a damaged vessel, followed by repair. The process of coagulatio ...

and healing, and boosts trace elements in the body, benefiting those with

nutritional deficiencies Malnutrition occurs when an organism gets too few or too many nutrients, resulting in health problems. Specifically, it is a Deficiency (medicine), deficiency, excess, or imbalance of energy, protein and Vitamin deficiency, other nutrients whic ...

or heart and kidney issues. Besides, pig blood curd helps cleanse the body of harmful

heavy metals upright=1.2, Crystals of lead.html" ;"title="osmium, a heavy metal nearly twice as dense as lead">osmium, a heavy metal nearly twice as dense as lead Heavy metals is a controversial and ambiguous term for metallic elements with relatively h ...

and contaminants by producing substances that neutralize their effects and facilitate their excretion from the body.

References

External links