竹子 (zhúzi) is a type of grass in the Poaceae family, in which there are around 1,700 species of the Bambusoideae sub-family.
It is a beautiful plant and certainly one of the most useful. It is used to build houses, make clothes, make hats, make rafts, make musical instruments, make fish traps, for mats, as scaffolding and in the manufacture of fireworks. You can buy bamboo keyboard and mouse sets for your computer.
It is used to make baskets of all sorts, chopsticks, serving bowls,
strainers, storage boxes, cooking implements etc, etc. The list is almost endless.
And we eat it. We eat a lot of it.
Bamboo
Not all those species are edible. In fact some are poisonous so don't go digging up the first you see unless you know what you're doing.
S: 竹笋; T: 竹筍 (zhú sǔn), bamboo shoots are what we eat. They have to be gathered quickly when they appear as bamboo is the fastest growing plant on our planet and will soon be inedibly tough. Some species can grow up to one metre /three feet per day.
S: 雷笋; T: 雷筍 (léi sǔn) is collected immediately following spring thunderstorms, the name literally meaning 'thunder shoot'. These are prized.
Thunder bamboo
Also described as S: 春笋; T: 春筍 (chūn sǔn), meaning 'spring bamboo shoots'.
Peeled spring bamboo
S: 冬笋; T: 冬筍 (dōng sǔn), winter bamboo is also gathered and consumed. It is sweet and crisp.
Winter bamboo
Sweet bamboo is often labelled S: 甜笋; T: 甜筍 (tián sǔn).
Sweet bamboo
Bamboo is often pickled and Liuzhou is famous for its S: 酸笋; T: 酸筍 (suān sǔn), fermented bamboo as used in its signature dish, luosifen.
Pickled bamboo
Another culinary use of bamboo is S: 竹筒饭; T: 竹筒飯 (zhú tǒng fàn), rice etc steamed in bamboo tubes. The bamboo adds a subtle flavour.
I've also eaten chicken cooked in bamboo tubes over an open fire.
Leaves from the plant are used to wrap 粽子 (zòng zi), glutinous rice and meat or nuts. I've seen them referred to as Chinese tamales.
This 丹竹夜 (dān zhú yè), bamboo liquid makes a pleasant thirst quenching soft drink
or you may prefer 竹酒 (zhú jiǔ), bamboo wine from a bamboo 'bottle'.
I'm bamboozled..
