Yu Li Ren

Yu Li Ren is the dried seed of several closely related Prunus species in the Rosaceae family, principally Prunus humilis Bunge, Prunus japonica Thunb., and Prunus pedunculata (Pall.) Maxim. These are small deciduous shrubs, generally 0.5 to 2 meters tall, with slender ascending branches and grayish-brown bark. The leaves are alternate, ovate to oblong-lanceolate, 2 to 6 centimeters long, with finely serrate margins and short petioles. Showy solitary or paired flowers appear in spring before or with the leaves, bearing five white to pale pink petals and numerous stamens. The drupes are globose, about 1 to 1.5 centimeters in diameter, ripening red to dark red, each enclosing a single hard stone. The kernels within these stones, oily and bittersweet, are the Yu Li Ren of commerce, harvested in summer, freed from the hard endocarp, and stored carefully to prevent rancidity. Native to northern China, Korea, Mongolia, and adjacent regions.