Green Grass Jelly, Plants, How To Make and Benefit

Green grass jelly, or called "Cincau" in Indonesia, is a gel similar to jelly, which is obtained from soaking leaves or stems of certain plants with water. The gel will be formed because the leaves or stems of these plants contain carbohydrates that can bind water molecules.

Grass jelly has a fresh and tasteless taste with a distinctive aroma. It is most widely used as a main component of refreshing drinks, for example in green grass jelly ice.

Types of Plants for Making Green Grass Jelly

1. Vines Green Grass Jelly Plants
Vines Grass jelly (Cyclea barbata), as the name implies, is a soft-trunked plant that creeps by twisting. The stem is dark green. The length of the stem can reach 13 - 16 ft to reach a location that gets sunlight. The heart-shaped leaves are rather round, dark green, and filled with fine hair. The length and width of the leaves are about 4 inches. Tapered leaf tips.

Vines Grass jelly always has two households, namely male and female flowers are on two different plants. Male and female flowers are in the form of small panicles that grow hanging from the former axillary leaves (stem segments). The fruit is in the form of berries which also form with oval beads measuring 0.19 inches. When young, the fruit is green and brownish-white when ripe. Inside this fruit, there are black seeds that can be sown.

Vines Grass jelly forms rhizomes (tubers) in the soil. Tuber length can be up to 20 inches with a diameter of 0.7 - 1 inch. The color of the tuber skin is bright brown with a whitish inside. With this tuber, Vines grass jelly plants that dry completely in the dry season will grow new plants at the beginning of the rainy season.

2. Green Grass Jelly Shrubs
Grass jelly shrubs leaves are oval-shaped with tapered ends. The color of the leaves is also dark green with a width of 3 inches and a length of 5 inches. The leaves have a smooth and sleek texture but are stiff and thick. Branches of grass jelly shrubs will always issue hanging roots as well as in ficus plants. Propagation of grass jelly shrubs is enough to do with cuttings. The cuttings should be taken from branches that have brown skin. Better yet, if the branches have been overgrown by hanging roots.

Easy Ways to Make Grass Jelly

For how to make grass jelly yourself at home, it's very easy. Just prepare the following materials and equipment:

Materials:

• Old grass jelly leaves (30 sheets)
• 800 ml Water

Equipment:

• 2 small basins
• Filters (can use a thin cloth)

Making Steps:

1. Clean with running water the old grass jelly leaves until clean.
2. Place the grass jelly in the basin, add a little water, and knead/squeeze until the leaves are destroyed.
3. After the grass jelly leaves have been crushed, add water and squeeze again for 15-20 minutes.
4. After feeling the mixture of grass jelly and water is rather thick, filter with a filter or a thin cloth.
5. Then let it stand for 45 minutes - 1 hour until the grass jelly thickens and forms a gel.
6. Grass jelly is ready for consumption.

Benefits of Green Grass Jelly

According to research, green grass jelly has properties to control high blood pressure. The substances contained in green grass jelly can be used as medicinal ingredients, in addition to being used as a refreshing drink.

The Latin plant called Cyclea barbata, included in the tribe of Menispermaceae, has leaves that have been studied to contain carbohydrates, polyphenols, saponins, flavonoids, and fats. Calcium, phosphorus, and vitamins A and B are also found in green grass jelly leaves.

Research on the efficacy of grass jelly to treat high blood pressure was carried out by Prof. Dr. Sardjito, Dr. Rajiman, and Dr. Bambang Suwitho from the Faculty of Medicine, Gadjah Mada University, Yogyakarta. In that study, patients were given 5 grams of fresh grass jelly, crushed with 150 cc of boiled water, and then squeezed. The juice is given to patients to drink twice a day.

The trial was conducted on patients suffering from high blood pressure with age above 40 years. As a result, the patient experienced a significant decrease in blood pressure. A patient who was 70 years old and whose blood pressure reached 215mm/120mm experienced a decrease in blood pressure to 160mm/100mm within one month after consuming grass jelly.

In addition, the fiber content in grass jelly is also high. Research on grass jelly revealed there were 6.23 grams per 100 grams of crude fiber content in the grass jelly gel. This means that if grass jelly is consumed together with fruits and vegetables every day, it can be sufficient to meet the daily fiber needs of 30 grams so that it can help fight degenerative diseases such as coronary heart disease. Meanwhile, the calories contained are 122 calories and 6 grams of protein.

Other Benefits of Green Grass Jelly (Traditional Remedies)

1. Stomach Heat & High Blood Pressure
Provide 20 pieces of green grass jelly leaves and then wash them clean. Squeeze and then give 1 glass of cold drinking water, then filter with a cloth. Add lime according to taste. Leave it in a cool place until it becomes jelly. Put in a glass and give honey or other sweeteners and drink.

2. Dysentery
Make a potion as mentioned in number one. Drink for a week in a row.

3. Sprue
Do it with the ingredients as mentioned in number one for 5-7 consecutive days.

4. Boils
Provide enough green grass jelly leaves. Wash thoroughly, then crush and tape to the festering part. This is efficacious for removing pus.

5. Fever
Take the grass jelly plant rhizome, wash clean, and then finely slice. Boil with enough water. Drink this mixture after cooking. The rhizome can also be brewed with enough hot water and then drunk.

Although green grass jelly can be made with 2 different types of grass jelly plants, for consumption and to get many health benefits, the green grass jelly vines are the best choice. For the best refreshing drink, serve this green grass jelly with Organic Coconut Milk.