oops, I already did this one here.
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Prompted by @Anna N's post in the Dinner topic, I'm bringing this one forward in the list to be gone through.
Perilla frutescens
Perilla comes in two main varieties: P. frutescens (var. frutescens), often called Korean perilla; and Perilla frutescens var. crispa also known as shiso in Japan. The plant, a member of the mint family, probably originated in China. It was first mentioned in Chinese literature around 500 AD and was introduced to Japan in the 8th or 9th centuries.
We get both varieties, and they come in various colours: green; purple; and purple and green. What we get most here is the purple/green. Known in Chinese as 紫苏/紫蘇 (Mand: zǐ sū; Cant: zi2 sou1) in which the first character means 'purple'..
The leaves are most commonly stir-fried with garlic. It is also pickled in China, like kimchi. The seeds are used in in both Japanese and Korean cuisines, but I've never seen them on sale here.
