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Tangaek — Decoctions · Vegetables

子 Chajogissi (차조기씨)

Perilla seed is the seed of the perilla plant (紫蘇) — the purple, shiso-type perilla known in Korean as chajogi. As a medicinal ingredient it goes by the name jasoja (紫蘇子), literally "purple perilla seed." The Dongui Bogam does not give it an entry of its own: it appends this short section to the main article on perilla, without a separate listing of the herb's nature and flavor. The text adds two practical notes on its use — the seed pairs well with dried tangerine peel (itself a standard herbal ingredient, as herbs in traditional Korean medicine are often combined because they are considered to work well together), and it is lightly roasted before use, a common processing step for herbal materials.

The plant ripens its seeds in autumn: small, round, about the size of a grain of millet. Deulkkae — the Korean perilla familiar as a food crop, a variety that branched off from the same species — yields the seeds ground into the perilla-seed powder used in Korean cooking. Perilla seeds are likewise rich in oil, and like deulkkae they are sometimes pressed for it.

Original, read line by line 東醫寶鑑 · Tangaek — Decoctions vol. 2

  1. 主上氣咳逆.

    It chiefly treats sanggi (上氣, qi rising) and haeyeok (咳逆, coughing counterflow).

    HomiclubPerilla seed ripens in autumn as round grains about the size of millet. The seed of the Korean deulkkae, split from the same species, is what perilla powder is milled from, and the purple perilla seed is likewise oily enough to be pressed.

  2. 調中, 益五藏, 下氣, 止霍亂反胃, 利大小便, 止嗽, 潤心肺, 消痰氣.

    It regulates the center, augments the ojang (五藏, five viscera), sends qi downward, stops sudden turmoil disorder and banwi (反胃, stomach reflux), benefits the stool and urine, stops coughing, moistens the sim (心, heart) and pye (肺, lung), and dissolves damgi (痰氣, phlegm qi).

  3. 又療肺氣喘急. 與橘皮相宜, 微炒用. 《本草》

    It also treats hurried panting from pyegi (肺氣, lung qi). It suits tangerine peel well, and is lightly roasted for use. 《Boncho (本草)》

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This is a cultural and historical record from a classical text, not a claim about any food’s effects. Nothing here is a health supplement or intended to prevent or treat disease. Consult a medical professional about health concerns. · Text: Korean Medicine Classics DB · Reading: Homiclub