Amp Mellow Mood with Cheap, Easy Herb

I purchased my first edible britton shiso plant 3 years ago at a neighborhood nursery among the culinary and medicinal herbs. It was mismarked Holy Basil- or tulsi, which I was going to try for its medicinal properties. I brought home Perilla frutescens - (L.)Britton. It is also commonly known as beefsteak or rattlesnake plant, so-named for its purple under-foliage and spiky flowers that dry and resemble a rattlesnake tale. Perilla, aka britton shiso, is a “weed”, which grows wild throughout America, has been used medicinally for centuries, as well as a condiment.

Perilla is high in rosmarinic acid and Omega 3 oils which enhance mental clarity and functioning. It is commercially cultivated for the oil expressed from its seeds which serve as a replacement to fish oil supplements.

In Asia, centuries ago, ceremonies were conducted before harvesting the plant, it was considered to be alive and was held as sacred, sent by God as food and medicine to treat all ailments of man. Disrespect for the plant meant death, anyone caught stepping on the plant would himself be trampled to death.

Red and green shiso leaves are frequently served as a side to sushi, wrapped into a sushi roll or serve as coloring agent for pickles. Nonetheless- the leaf of the perilla is bumpy, a little fuzzy- and did not look particularly delectable to the tongue- so it grew unhampered and ignored in my garden for a number of months. One day I was preparing fish tacos- was out of coriander- and remembered I had a bunch of lightly aromatic, untried herbs growing in my raised bed garden. I cut a generous bunch, chopped it finely and added it to cover the red snapper I was sautéing. The result was delicious.

An hour later I noticed I was unusually calm, mellow and centered- like an amplifier with all sliders moved to mid-level. My fine motor skills, focus and reasoning skills were unimpaired. Since then I’ve done all sorts of intricate hand tasks, research, website, database, mathematical tasking with high accuracy and efficiency following a cup of shiso and green tea. All that was missing was the feelings of stress and fear emanating from the pit of my stomach.

I have frequently said that after consuming shiso tea made from a couple leaves, someone could pitch a brick through my living room window, and I would respond by immediately walking outside and speaking to them unemotionally about making reparations. I would not waste time on unfocused fears or dithering about the best course of action.