Chinese Vegetables Illustrated

[liuzhou]

2 minutes ago, heidih said:

 

It has become quite in vogue here.  More cauliflower than broccoli taste to my not too discerning palate. Beautiful though. This I think https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Romanesco_broccoli

 

Yeah. I've found it and edited. Thanks.

[heidih]

33 minutes ago, liuzhou said:

 

Yeah. I've found it and edited. Thanks.

 

Often served roasted whole to preserve the outer space look.  https://www.foodandwine.com/recipes/roman-style-romanesco

[liuzhou]

10 minutes ago, heidih said:

 

Often served roasted whole to preserve the outer space look.  https://www.foodandwine.com/recipes/roman-style-romanesco

 

Well I won't be roasting it. We don't have ovens here!

[heidih]

Oh yes I do recall. I had a Mexican woman working for me who was perplexed by home ovens  - they do not have them either. What I really want is a wood fired outdoor one - a girl can dream. This city is riddled with restaurant ones like Nancy's Pizzeria Mozza https://la.pizzeriamozza.com/

[dcarch]

7 hours ago, heidih said:

Oh yes I do recall. I had a Mexican woman working for me who was perplexed by home ovens  - they do not have them either. What I really want is a wood fired outdoor one - a girl can dream. This city is riddled with restaurant ones like Nancy's Pizzeria Mozza https://la.pizzeriamozza.com/

 

How about this?

 

 

 

dcarch

[liuzhou]

That is extremely rare and I don't think I can build one in my apartment block, like the apartment blocks most people in China live in.

99% Chinese people, in fact most people around the world, do not have ovens.

[liuzhou]

Here's one I knew about  but only saw in the supermarket for the first time today.

 

Simplified Chinese 一点红; Traditional Chinese 一點紅 (Mandarin: yī diǎn hóng; Cantonese: jat1 dim2 hung4).

 

Emilia sonchifolia, lilac tasselflower or cupid's shaving brush. Mostly used in Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), but the leaves and shoots are edible.

 

 

 

Note: The literal meaning of the Chinese is "one spot (of) red", which is blatantly untrue, as the 280 grams of greenery I bought contained not one, but two reddish flowers.

 

Edited May 22, 2020 by liuzhou (log)

[heidih]

10 hours ago, liuzhou said:

Here's one I knew about  but only saw in the supermarket for the first time today.

 

Simplified Chinese 一点红; Traditional Chinese 一點紅 (Mandarin: yī diǎn hóng; Cantonese: jat1 dim2 hung4).

 

Emilia sonchifolia, lilac tasselflower or cupid's shaving brush. Mostly used in Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), but the leaves and shoots are edible.

 

 

 

Like  dandelion relative. Peppery and lightly bitter?  A "spring tonic" green.

[Katie Meadow]

On 1/18/2020 at 9:27 PM, heidih said:

 

Often served roasted whole to preserve the outer space look.  https://www.foodandwine.com/recipes/roman-style-romanesco

We sprang it on our daughter when she was learning about fractals. We used to call it Fibonacci, thus avoiding the dreaded "b" word. I liked it okay, but I'm not a fan of broccoli. I do like cauliflower, however. 

[liuzhou]

13 minutes ago, heidih said:

Like  dandelion relative. Peppery and lightly bitter?

 

It's not related to dandelion, but to sunflowers. But yes, mildly peppery.

[heidih]

33 minutes ago, liuzhou said:

 

It's not related to dandelion, but to sunflowers. But yes, mildly peppery.

 

Not quibbling but they are in the same taxonomic family as are the smiling sunflowers - asteraceae

[Burmese Days]

On 10/23/2018 at 6:16 AM, liuzhou said:

Allium ampeloprasum

 

These are, of course, what I, and probably you, call leeks. One of my favourite vegetables.

Minor correction. That's not leek, it's dacong, aka welsh onion.

Leeks are Allium ampeloprasum. Dacong are Allium Fistolum.

Leeks are more onion-y while dacong functions mostly as a large scallion. They're often the preferred to scallion in northern china where it is used in a similar way as the south uses scallion.
Here's a photo comparing (in order from left to right) dacong, leeks, and scallions.

 

Source
 

[liuzhou]

20 minutes ago, Burmese Days said:

Minor correction. That's not leek, it's dacong, aka welsh onion.

Leeks are Allium ampeloprasum. Dacong are Allium Fistolum.

Leeks are more onion-y while dacong functions mostly as a large scallion. They're often the preferred to scallion in northern china where it is used in a similar way as the south uses scallion.
Here's a photo comparing (in order from left to right) dacong, leeks, and scallions.

 

Source
 

 

Well, these names are highly variable in different parts of the world. Even within China. Some of my Chinese dictionaries give 'leek' as the translation of 大葱 (dà cōng); some don't. The supermarket I bought them in describes them as 韭葱 (jiǔ cōng) which also means 'leeks'.

 

Edited August 13, 2020 by liuzhou (log)

[liuzhou]

Another new arrival in these parts.

 

苦菊 (kǔ jú) - literally 'bitter chrysanthemum'; Cichorium endivia; endive.

 

 

I have no notion how the locals use it (I'm willing to bet the locals don't know either), but they probably stir fry it with garlic. If I find out otherwise, I'll edit.

 

[SusieQ]

3 hours ago, liuzhou said:

Another new arrival in these parts.

 

苦菊 (kǔ jú) - literally 'bitter chrysanthemum'; Cichorium endivia; endive.

 

 

I have no notion how the locals use it (I'm willing to bet the locals don't know either), but they probably stir fry it with garlic. If I find out otherwise, I'll edit.

 

 

Wow, beautiful photo/vegetable. Makes me want to jump in. 

[dcarch]

Here is an interesting one for you liuzhou, Chinese Vegetable Tree - Toona sinensis.

 

I have never had it and never seen it here or when I was in China, just came across it on a gardening forum. I Googled it, sounds extremely interesting:

 

"---- The young leaves of T. sinensis (xiāngchūn) are extensively used as avegetable in China; they have a floral, yet onion-like flavor, attributed to volatileorganosulfur compounds.^[10] Plants with red young leaves are considered of better flavour than those where the young leaves are green.^[4][11][12]

In China and Southeast Asian countries such as Malaysia, the young leaves of Toona sinensis or commonly known as Chinese Mahogany is used to make Toona paste, which is used as a condiment to serve with plain rice porridge as breakfast and simple meals, or to enhance the flavour of a dish or soup. Common dishes made with Toona paste are Chinese Mahogany fried rice, Chinese Mahogany beancurd, and Chinese Mahogany mushroom soup.---"

 

So I bought two seedlings. I hope they will do well in my garden.

 

dcarch

 

 

 

[Eatmywords]

On 3/18/2021 at 1:02 AM, liuzhou said:

Another new arrival in these parts.

 

苦菊 (kǔ jú) - literally 'bitter chrysanthemum'; Cichorium endivia; endive.

 

 

I have no notion how the locals use it (I'm willing to bet the locals don't know either), but they probably stir fry it with garlic. If I find out otherwise, I'll edit.

 

It's Chicory!  Delicious semi bitter green typically used in salads.  Quick rinse in the horse urine to get the bugs out and you're good to go.

[liuzhou]

5 hours ago, Eatmywords said:

It's Chicory! 

 

Quote

What Americans call endive, the British call chicory, and what the Americans call chicory, the British call endive.

 

http://www.foodreference.com/html/fchicoryandendive.html

 

Quote

Curly endive, or frisée (var crispum). This type has narrow, green, curly outer leaves. It is sometimes called chicory in the United States and is called chicorée frisée in French.

Wikipedia

Edited March 23, 2021 by liuzhou (log)

[Eatmywords]

Right right.  Frisee should be the proper term to avoid confusion as they are both in the chicory family.  

[liuzhou]

30 minutes ago, Eatmywords said:

Right right.  Frisee should be the proper term to avoid confusion as they are both in the chicory family.  

 

Ah, but frisée has yet another meaning in French, confusing the issue even more.

[liuzhou]

For the first time in 25 years in China, I found my favourite vegetable. None of my friends has a clue what it is! But that was true of asparagus just a few years ago; now it's everywhere.

 

It shouldn't come as a surprise to learn that it has multiple names in Chinese; it has in English, too.

I call them artichokes. Or, when I'm in the Latin mood, Cynara cardunculus var. scolymus. You might call them globe artichokes, French artichokes or green artichokes. Certainly not Jerusalem artichokes, which are unrelated, and which were only so named because some cloth-eared idiot misheard the real name!

 

 

In Chinese, they are 菜蓟 (cài jì) which means 'vegetable thistle' or 洋蓟 (yáng jì) which means 'foreign thistle'. I know how I like to cook and eat them, but have no idea what my friends would do with them and neither do they, because they've never met them before!

I'll update this in about ten years when they've worked it out!

 

By the way, there is also something called 'Chinese artichoke' (Stachys affinis), 甘露子 (gān lù zǐ) which is no relation either and tastes nothing like mine.

 

 

Edited May 4, 2021 by liuzhou (log)

[heidih]

Oh yes so share if yu learn how they are being used - would be interesting like the okra technique you recently shared.

 

The thistle name makes so much sense. A German woman was in my yard once and spied by gino0rmous cardoon and shouted "oh what a lovely thistle"

Edited May 4, 2021 by heidih (log)

[rotuts]

@liuzhou 

 

pleased to see this.

 

glad they have long stems.

 

few people know that the ' heart ' of the artichoke 

 

extends down the stem.

 

and if the stems are fat enough , are worth carefully peeling

 

for that ' extended heart '

 

here  they are usually cut more flush , I think for shipping purposes

 

but some cleaver Markateers are selling them ' long stem '

 

in places like WholeFoods , as they are sold by the lbs , so those stems

 

cut off , are not Money in the Bank.

 

I grew up not far from the Artichoke Capital of the World

 

in CA.

 

love them myself , as did my6 family.

[liuzhou]

Another new one (at least to here) turned up in the supermarket this morning.

 

 

南非冰草 (nán fēi bīng cǎo), literally 'South African Ice Grass', Mesembryanthemum crystallinum, is known in English as 'common ice plant', 'crystalline ice plant' or just plain 'ice plant'. Native to southern Africa and southern Europe, it is a succulent, now naturalised (sometimes invasively) in North and South America and Australia. It is a popular vegetable in Japan where it was first successfully cultivated on a commercial scale. Now it is grown in northern China, especially Shandong.

 

The ice name comes from the bladder cells or water vesicles resembling ice on the leaves and stems.

 

 

The leaves and stems (and seeds) are all edible. I'm guessing the locals here will just stir fry it. In its native South Africa, the leaves and stems are often pickled.

 

As to taste, it is slightly sweet, with a fresh herbal taste; the texture is pleasantly crisp. The plant has the ability to absorb salt, so be careful with seasoning.

 

Edited September 7, 2021 by liuzhou (log)

[Burmese Days]

On 10/24/2018 at 1:39 AM, liuzhou said:

Now,  I get confused.

 

These are described locally as 蒜苗 (Mand: suàn miáo; Cant: syun3 miu4), which translates as garlic shoots.

 

 

To give you an idea of scale, those tiles are 51cm / 20 inches square.

 

 

Hmm. Most suspicious. Look more like scallion/green onion/spring onion to me.

 

To compound my suspicions, we also get these.

 

 

蒜芯 (Mand: suàn xīn; Cant: syun3 sam1) or garlic scapes.

 

Surely if garlic has 'scapes' it can't have 'shoots'. But what do I know? I am a linguist not a botanist. It all 'scapes me.

 

I'm pretty late to the party but while doing my seed shopping for the upcoming spring I believe I've solved this little mystery. 

 

• Garlic is... well garlic. It's the bulb of the Allium sativum plant. 
• Garlic Shoots aka Green Garlic is the immature garlic plant pulled out of the ground. The white part of the shoot is the garlic bulb that was planted. If left in the ground it would eventually grow a whole head of garlic. 
• Garlic scapes are the flowering part of the garlic plant. It's normally picked from the plant to increase garlic bulb yield. In that sense garlic scapes are a delicious byproduct.