Asian Produce Flashcards
Learn about produce common in Asian markets.
Bitter Melon
Taste: Its bitter taste is caused by quinine, which has medicinal qualities.
How to prepare: Blanching or salting reduces the melon’s bitterness. Mature melons can be cooked unpeeled, but their seeds and pith should be removed.
Bok Choy
Taste: Crunchy and juicy with a cabbage-like taste.
How to prepare: All parts of this “Chinese cabbage” are edible when young or mature. Baby bok choy is tender and delicious sautéed with garlic or added to soups.
Chinese Broccoli
Taste: Slightly bitter. The crunchy stems are more tender and sweet than the Italian variety.
How to prepare: Saute with garlic or oyster sauce.
Yardlong Beans
Taste: Chinese long beans are denser and crunchier than green beans. NOTE: can be green or purple in color.
How to prepare: Yet creative! Many recipes similar to green beans.
Daikon Radish
Taste: Has a crispy, crunchy texture with a sweeter, less pungent flavor than most radishes.
How to prepare: Daikon can be shredded, pickled, and eaten raw, or added to stews and soups, like other root vegetables. Common ingredient in kimchi and Japanese pickles.
Lemongrass
Taste: When bruised, it releases a lemony flavor, popular in Thai cuisine.
How to prepare: The white inner stem six inches above the base is the part most used in cooking. Lemongrass is typically removed from a dish before eating.
Mizuna
Taste: Also known as Japanese mustard green tastes similar to arugula but milder and sweeter.
How to prepare: It’s often eaten raw in salads, but the leaves can also be steamed, sautéed, or pickled.
Moqua
Taste: Has a light, neutral flavor like a zucchini.
How to prepare: Remove the fuzzy texture by scrubbing or peeling. It can be sauteed like zucchini, pickled or used to make a refreshing drink.
Napa Cabbage
Taste: crunchy, mild flavor.
How to prepare: well-suited to slaws and sautés.
Opo
Taste: Mild taste.
How to prepare: The po qwa variety is frequently used in stir-fries and soups, but it can also be hollowed out, stuffed, and baked.
Sinqua (aka Luffa)
Taste: Typically eaten when it’s young, it also tastes a bit like zucchini but sweeter.
How to prepare: Its spongy texture soaks up the flavor of foods it’s cooked with.
Taro
Taste: Starchy with a sweet, subtle taste similar to a potato but slightly nutty like a chestnut.
How to prepare: Wash and peel. Prep like potato (boil, saute, deep fry, etc…)
Tatsoi
Taste: The tender greens have a mustardy taste
How to prepare: Can be eaten raw or lightly cooked in soups.
Winter Melon
Taste: Very mild taste, often compared to the white rind of a watermelon or a cucumber, with a slightly grassy flavor.
How to prepare: Used in stir-fries and soups, but the flesh can also be dried and candied.
Yu Choy
Taste: Similar to broccoli rabe but sweeter.
How to prepare: The crunchy stalks can be sautéed with garlic or oyster sauce.
