noun
eating game meat in winter to ward off cold
A traditional practice, especially in mountainous regions, of eating wild boar, deer, or other game meat during winter as a way to build stamina and resist the cold. The term is historical and regional; not an everyday word.
昔、山里では冬になると薬食いと称して猪肉を食べた。
Long ago, in mountain villages, people ate wild boar meat in winter, calling it kusurigui.
Compound of 薬 (kusuri, 'medicine') and 食い (kui, 'eating'), literally 'medicine eating', reflecting the belief that eating game meat in winter has health benefits.