Fo-Ti Root (Treated) - Organic - Polygonum multiflorum Radix (Treated) - He Shou Wu (Zhi)

From China

Mr. He, and his black hair. He shou wu translates as Mr. He with black hair - from an old story about a man named He who took the root and whose white hair returned to black. The name Fo-Ti is not Chinese at all. It was invented by an American importer in the twentieth century and stuck, which is why you will find the same root sold under two names that share nothing.

Chinese practice draws a hard line between the raw root and the prepared one. This is the treated kind, steamed in black bean liquid until it turns dark and loses its bitterness - the form the classical texts call for.

How it is used: the dark slices are simmered into a decoction, usually alongside other roots rather than on their own. Bittersweet and earthy.