Buk Choy Centella Spinach Basella alba Chi Qua Choy Sum rapa var. chinensis Alternate Names: Pennywort, Gota Ceylon spinach is a vigorous Benincasa hispida var. chieh-qua var. parachinensis Alternate Name: Chinese Chard Cola, Arthritis tropical vine with fleshy leaves. Alternate Name: Hairy Melon Alternate Name: Chinese Flowering Buk choy literally means “white Centella has a long history of use While Ceylon spinach can generally While Chi qua may be unfamiliar to Cabbage ” in . Baby buk in traditional remedies for various be used in the same way as many Australians, it is one of the Choy sum and “baby” choy sum choy is a dwarfed variety up to ailments. It grows vigorously in European spinach, it is important staples of the Chinese diet. Chi can be easily distinguished by their 20cm tall and is sometimes called the home garden, and can not to overcook it or it can become quas are distinguished by their bright green oval leaves and yellow “Moonbuk” or “Gongmoon buk become a pest under warm, wet slimy. Only the leaves and young coating of fine hairs and need to be flowers. Its mild flavour, crunchy choy”. It is almost like two conditions. In and stems are eaten. Like okra, Ceylon handled carefully, as the hairs can stems and soft leaves make it a in one, the thick, juicy , the leaves are crushed spinach has mucilaginous qualities cause skin irritations. Very young good match for many different stems adding an interesting texture and made into a sweetened drink. which can make it useful for chi quas can be eaten raw, but they and flavours. Simply wash to a dish while the dark green It can also be added to soups, thickening soups and . are more usually cooked. They have and roughly chop the whole bunch leaves add a different consistency stews or eaten raw as part of a a mild, pleasant flavour not unlike then stir fry, steam or add to and flavour. Buk choy is commonly salad. zucchini. They can be peeled, then soups, stews or even . steamed, stir fried or boiled in soup. chunks added to soup or sliced and Bunches can be kept for up to a When buk choy, it is best to stir fried or barbequed. They are week in a plastic bag in the fridge. add the stems first as they take particularly good when the seedy longer to cook. Slicing them core is scraped out and the gourd diagonally helps to expose the inner stuffed with , or other surfaces which will soak up the flavoursome mixture before baking and flavours in the or steaming. surrounding dish.

Coriander Leaves Dong Qua En Choy Amaranthus tricolor plant Houttuynia cordata Coriandrum sativum Murraya koenigii Benincasa hispida Alternate Name: Chinese spinach Alternate Name: Lizard's Tail Alternate Name: Cilantro Curry leaves are generally sold as Alternate Name: Winter melon A mild tasting leafy vegetable. The This is a plant with a truly unique is a native of southern small stems with dark green tapered Dong quas look somewhat similar commonest variety has colourful flavour and aroma. The small, heart Europe rather than Asia. Widely leaves growing on either side. They to watermelons. They can grow to red and green leaves, but a smaller shaped leaves have a pungent, fishy used in Asian , it is also are harvested from a small tree be extremely large, weighing up to fully green variety is also sold. It flavour and aroma. In Vietnam they common in South America, India native to India and are mainly used 20kg. Dong quas and chi quas are has a very short storage life, so are commonly included in salads and the Middle East. In America it in Indian and Sri Lankan . the same species, and both are needs to be kept cold and eaten as and used as an ingredient in is usually referred to by its Spanish While the leaves have quite a strong covered with a layer of fine hairs soon as possible after purchase. paper rolls. It is occasionally used name “cilantro”. All parts of the aroma when fresh, this develops when young. However, as the melon Like beetroot, en choy’s bright red to make , and is an ingredient in plant are eaten, including the roots, into a rich curry flavour when matures, the hairs are replaced by a colour comes from anti-oxidants a wide range of folk remedies. stems, leaves and seeds. Fresh cooked. They are usually fried in oil white waxy layer, allowing it to be called betalains. These are water leaves lose their flavour and aroma with other before being stored for several months with little soluble, so cook lightly to preserve quickly when cooked, dried or added to or vegetables. loss of quality. It has a rather bland them as well as retain maximum frozen, and should be used soon Leaves can be frozen for later use, flavour and is mainly used in soups flavour and texture. after purchase due to their short which maintains their flavour better and stews or stuffed with a storage life. Add them at the end of than drying. flavoursome filling and baked. cooking, or use as a fresh garnish on salads, soups or other cooked .

Fu Qua Gai Choy var. foliosa and rugosa var. alboglabra An aromatic rhizome of the Alternate Name: Bitter Melon Alternate Names: Chinese Mustard Alternate Name: Chinese Broccoli family, galangal is widely used in Garlic chives are sold as bunches This unique vegetable can be very and Swatow Mustard People may be familiar with gai lan Thai, Vietnamese and Indonesian of either flat, garlic flavoured bitter, a property which appeals to Part of the large and diverse or “Chinese broccoli” from yum cuisines. Young, bright pink pieces leaves, or round, flower bearing many Asian palates, but sometimes mustard family. Leaves can be more cha, where it is served steamed have the best flavour and texture; stems. While the leaves may be less to European Australians. or less crinkled, the thick ribs and with a drizzle of oyster . Gai older rhizomes tend to be woody, used fresh in , Appearance ranges from white to veins more or less prominent, and lan has been grown in Europe, as making them difficult to cut. It has garlic chives are usually lightly dark green with bumpy to deeply colour ranges from bright to dark well as Asia, for thousands of quite a different flavour to ginger, cooked due to their strong flavour. pointed and ridged skin, and 5 - green. They also vary in flavour, years. The whole plant can be and tends to be harder. As a result, They make a flavoursome addition 30cm long. To reduce its bitterness, mature can be extremely eaten; stems, leaves and even it should either be sliced very finely, to noodles, soups, omelettes and cover thin slices with salt before peppery. However, baby gai choy flowers. It is great in a stir fry, ground to a paste, or added to vegetable dishes. The flowering rinsing and cooking. It is often can be eaten fresh and is a added to soup or even steamed and cooked dishes as larger slices and stems are particularly good stir prepared by removing the seeds and delicious way to up a salad, served with hollandaise sauce. chunks which can be removed fried, while the leaves are often pith, stuffing with a meat mixture giving it a hot, mustardy bite. before serving. Galangal is an used in Chinese pancakes. and steaming. Sliced it can make an Varieties with thick, fleshy leaf ribs essential ingredient in Tom Yum attractive addition to stir fries and are often preserved by pickling with soups and Thai curry pastes. soups, or can be blanched and used garlic and chilli. Leafier types can Although it dries out quickly at in a spicy salad. be used in stir fries, stews and room temperature, it is also cold soups, and combined with other sensitive, so cannot be stored for strong flavours such as more than a few days in the fridge. paste or oyster sauce.

Ginger Zingiber officinale Gow Gee Lycium barbarum Green Green Carica papaya Kaffir Citrus hystrix The aromatic rhizomes of ginger Alternate Name: Goji (Berries) Mangifera indica The large torpedo shaped papaya A highly aromatic, tropical citrus, variety is used unripe, its flesh cut have been used to flavour foods A native to and Japan, gow Green mango is simply an unripe the kaffir lime has glossy double into long shreds and seasoned since the time of Confucius. Very gee grows best in warm to , usually a variety such as Nam leaves which can be used to add a as a salad vegetable. In North East young ginger has thin, golden skin temperate conditions. Many Doc Mai. The flesh is fragrant with wonderful citrus flavour and aroma Thailand and it is pounded and pinkish shoots. This is the type cultivars are quite thorny and can a sweet / sour flavour. A popular to marinades, curries and even of ginger which can be candied, way to prepare the fruit is to add and heavily seasoned with chilli, salads. The grated rind of the small, be trimmed to make a dense and sugar and fish sauce with peanuts, pickled or steeped in water to make impenetrable hedge. Gow gee is , lime , fish sauce and knobbly green fruit can be used ginger tea. Mature ginger has other ingredients to grated flesh snake beans and tomatoes as an similarly, while the juice can give a commonly used as a vegetable in accompaniment to the staple sticky brown skin and a more fibrous and eat as a salad. In many parts powerful lime kick to sweet and , with the leaves rice. Green papaya can also be texture. Peel, then slice thinly, grate of Asia the flesh is often eaten savoury dishes. Both leaves and often added to soup. However, in pickled with fish or shrimp. When or shred to add flavour to many simply thinly sliced with salt and fruit can be frozen for future use, or recent years it is the berries which ripe, its flesh is yellow and edible dishes. Ginger is often used with chilli. refrigerated for several days. have received the most attention. as a fruit although it has a somewhat garlic and chilli as a flavour base Commonly marketed in Western unpleasant smell. Cantonese use for marinades, or mixed with spring countries as “Goji berries”, these the semi ripe fruit in both sweet onions and coriander to flavour small, red dried fruit are considered and savoury soups. steamed fish. Young ginger, finely by some to be a potent source of sliced, can even be added raw to antioxidants as well as possessing salads. other nutriceutical properties.

Kang Kong Ipomea aquatica La Lot Piper sarmentosum Lemon Grass Long Coriander Lotus Root Kang Kong is closely related to A close relative of pepper, the citratus The lotus plant is one of the most 'Morning Glory vine’, and like its deeply veined, glossy leaves of la Lemon grass is an essential Sometimes called cilantro, this useful plants in all Asia. All parts relation, can become a weed under lot can be eaten raw in a salad or ingredient in much South East Asian aromatic has an aroma similar can be eaten, from the flower buds damp conditions. The plant has blanched as a vegetable. La lot is cuisine. Originally from the tropics, to coriander. A short lived annual, it and seeds to the stems and tubers. long, pale green hollow stems that somewhat pungent and spicy in it can be grown in temperate areas is quite easy to grow in a warm Lotus roots themselves have a float on top of the water, while the flavour, with a more delicate texture given a warm, sunny position, rich spot where it is protected from mild, slightly nutty flavour. darker green leaves can be slender than the closely related “Betel leaf”. soil and plenty of water during direct sun during the day. Long However, they absorb the flavours or heart shaped. Kang Kong has a The leaves are often used in Thai summer. Use the basal white to light coriander is widely used in many of sauces and other ingredients, mild flavour and can be used raw in and Vietnamese cooking, where green part of the stem, peeling away parts of South East Asia, often and so can be quite flavoursome. salads as well as lightly cooked. In they used as wrappers for savoury the outer leaves to expose the firm shredded finely and used as a They also stay crisp and crunchy many parts of Asia it is eaten stir such as spicy prawns with core. Slice finely, then mince or garnish. Like coriander, it can add after cooking, adding an interesting fried with chilli, garlic or a savoury ginger, or lemongrass . crush slightly to maximise the flavour to curries, mixed vegetables texture to many dishes. Tubers are paste. To prepare, strip the leaves flavours. It is often used as a part of or simply be mixed with rice. usually lightly peeled then sliced from the stems and slice the stems curry bases and marinades but can thinly to make the most of their diagonally. Stir fry the stems for a also be added to soups, stir fries delicate, lace like appearance. An minute or so before adding the and stuffings. excellent ingredient in a stir fry, leaves and cook only until the leaves they also make an interesting are just wilted. Serve immediately. addition to soups and salads.

For further information visit www.marketfresh.com.au © Melbourne Market Authority 2012 Published by Melbourne Markets. This guide has been produced with information provided by Dr Jenny Ekman (DPI, NSW) & Meera Freeman. Distributed by your friendly, local greengrocer. Okra Hibiscus esculentus Pandanus Pak Choy Pea Eggplant Solanum torvum Alternate Name: Lady's Fingers roxb. Brassica rapa var. chinensis Small, green pea eggplants are Alternate Name:  Okra is a vegetable people generally This spear shaped leaf has a nutty Alternate Names: Shanghai Chinese produced in clusters on a plant Perilla is most closely associated either love or hate. The seed pod of flavour and is used to flavour Chard, Shanghai Buk Choy which is so vigorous as to be with , although it is a hibiscus, it is usually green, desserts. When crushed, it can Pak choy is a green stemmed widely considered a weed. Unlike also used in other parts of South although purplish varieties are also be used as a green colouring variety of buk choy. However, it is other eggplants, the fruit have East Asia. Both green and dark red sometimes available. The ridged agent and is available fresh, frozen, quite different in texture and flavour; tough skins, hard flesh and a bitter varieties are grown, of which the pods are covered with downy fur canned or in essence form. The the stems are more flattened and taste. Their main use is to be green has the stronger flavour. and contain small white seeds. pale green jellies, cakes and soy less juicy, the leaves are more added whole to Thai curries, to Perilla has a slightly spicy flavour, However, it is the plant’s drinks in Asian stores are tender and the whole vegetable has which they add texture as well as variously described as somewhere mucilaginous properties that make coloured and flavoured with pandan. a milder flavour. Pak choy is one of flavour. They can also be pounded between , mint and even . it unique. Sliced and cooked for a Fresh leaves can be knotted and the best vegetables to include in a into a spicy paste for use as a side A single, perfect leaf may be used long time, this “goo” dissolves and added to cooking oil or when stir fry. Simply roughly chop the dish. as a wrapper for sushi, while red thickens the dish, as in the famous steaming sticky rice. They are also whole plant and add it to the dish leaves can add colour and flavour to southern USA dish gumbo. wrapped around chicken pieces near the end of cooking. salads. The red leaves are also Alternatively, okra can be cooked and grilled. Alternatively, add to soup, curry or used to colour pickles pink, while whole, quickly and with an acidifier casserole. Pak choy can also be both red and green varieties are such as lemon juice to keep it sliced in half and steamed (whole if popularly served tempura style, slightly crunchy, as in a stir fry or small), then drizzled with a little soy combined with pickled sour plums tempura. sauce and oil or butter to (umeboshi) or rolled with rice and make a spectacular side dish to any seaweed. .

Shallots Seng Qua Shui Qua Luffa cylindrica Sin Qua Luffa acutangula Snake bean Allium cepa var. aggregatum Benincasa hispidis ssp. Alternate Name: Sponge Luffa Alternate Name: Ridged Luffa Vigna unguiculata These small golden brown to red Alternate Name: Long Melon subsp. sesquipedalis The shui qua is closely related to Sin quas originated in India, but are onions have a crisp texture and Snake beans can be used similarly to Seng qua is similar to chi qua but the sin qua and has a similarly mild now grown in many parts of the delicious, mild flavour somewhere green beans. They have a slightly dry tends to be lighter coloured and flavour and spongy texture. Young, world. They are long slender between onion and garlic. They can texture compared to green beans, so smooth skinned instead of hairy. tender shui quas can be cut in half, gourds distinguished by the 10 be pounded into flavour bases while they can be simply steamed Peel and slice thinly or cut into the seedy centre scooped out, then ridges which run from tip to tail. for soups, marinades and curry and served on their own, they are chunks. Try basting thin slices with stuffed with a mince or rice mixture Good quality sin quas should be pastes, sliced and used fresh best added to other dishes. They are chilli, garlic and soy and grilling on and steamed or baked. Sometimes bright, glossy and firm. Sin quas in salads or dried and crisp-fried a key ingredient in Thai fish cakes the BBQ. Store in a cool place for shui quas are allowed to grow very have a slightly spongy texture and for use as a fragrant garnish, and keep their texture well after up to a fortnight. large on the vine, then dried to mild flavour somewhat similar to cooking, making them a useful especially for soups or rice crepes. make the “loofahs” that we use in zucchinis. After peeling to remove addition to stir fries, stews or Crisp-fried are available the bath or shower. the hard ridges, the sin qua can be casseroles. commercially. steamed, stir fried, grated into an omelette or fritter or added to soup.

Snow Pea Shoots Spearmint Spring Onion Allium fistulosum Sweet Potato Ipomoea batatas Taro Colocasia esculenta Pisum sativum viridis, M. spicata Alternate Names: Bunching onion, Like taro, this is a staple food in Taro has been cultivated for many These shoots are the harvested tips This hardy has green onion, welsh onion many parts of the tropics. While thousands of years and is one of from freshly germinated snow pea slightly crinkled leaves that are Probably originating in north- Australians are familiar with the the staple foods of the Pacific as seeds. They are often initially more tapered and a lighter shade western China, this plant may be tubers, the leaves and shoots are well as many parts of Asia. The grown in the dark to keep them of green than common mint. one of the first Asian vegetables to widely used as a leafy green tubers should be peeled before use tender, then finally exposed to light It is often included in the mixed be grown in Australia, having been vegetable in many parts of Asia. due to the presence of calcium to allow the green leaflets to bunches of Vietnamese herbs. brought here during the 1850’s The tubers themselves have high oxalate crystals concentrated in the develop. They have a mild ‘pea like’ Spearmint leaves can be infused gold-rushes by Chinese nutritional value; orange fleshed skin. They can then be used much flavour and crunchy texture. Snow and used in tea. The oil is also used immigrants. These onions are varieties are particularly high in Beta like potatoes; boiled, baked, fried, pea shoots are a wonderful in . distinguished by their hollow stems Carotene, pro-vitamin A and mashed or a thousand other uses. addition to a salad and make a and lack of bulb development even antioxidants. It also has a relatively While their texture can be a little dry, great garnish. They can be stored when allowed to fully mature. low glycaemic index, more suitable they have a sweet nutty flavour and for up to a fortnight in the fridge so Relatively mild, these make an ideal for diabetics and dieters than other are relatively high in vitamins, long as humidity is kept high. alternative in any dish where bulb carbohydrate sources. Sweet potato minerals and protein. onions would dominate the meals has many uses. It is fantastically flavour, including , salad, sweet if baked, makes tasty chips, sauces, quiche and many more. colourful mash, creamy soup, smooth textured sliced tempura, or simply boil or steam until tender and eat with some cracked pepper, butter or lemon juice.

Taro Shoots Ocimum basilicum Thai Round Eggplant Tung Ho Chrysanthemum Colocasia esculenta Alternate Name: Asian Basil Solanum undatum coronarium Curcuma domestica, C. longa Taro shoots are the stems of This tropical variety of sweet basil These small eggplants have a Tung ho is a true chrysanthemum, Turmeric root is a member of the certain species of taro. They is easily recognised by its purplish similar, mild flavour to larger similar to the varieties commonly ginger family and has a similarly should always be cooked before stems and flower spikes. It has a varieties, but can be full of seeds, grown as ornamental garden intense flavour. Dried turmeric is a eating because they contain distinct aniseed perfume and giving them quite a different texture. plants. Although chrysanthemums common colourant in foods (E100) calcium oxalate crystals, even flavour and features prominently in Usually about the size of a golf ball, originated in the Mediterranean, it is and the plant has many traditional small quantities of which can cause both Thai and Vietnamese cuisine. they come in various shades of only in Asia that they are used as a medicinal and ceremonial uses, burning or swelling when eaten. Roughly tear or chop the leaves green, white and purple. Thai vegetable. Edible chrysanthemums especially in India. The flavour and The thin skin should be peeled before adding to Thai style stir fry eggplants are usually quartered and are particularly popular in Japan aroma of fresh turmeric is quite before use, then the foamy textured or Vietnamese salads and soups. added to curries, but may also be and China. The leaves are usually different to the dried powder often flesh can be boiled or added to stir fried with chilli. picked while the plants are small used in cooking, and adds a rich soup. In Vietnamese cuisine, and tender. Tung ho is highly spicy flavour and golden colour to chunks of stem are commonly aromatic and has a pleasant, any dish. Grate or slice thinly and added to fish soup. succulent texture but can be very grind into a paste for use in curry bitter, especially if overcooked. It is bases and marinades. best lightly steamed or stir fried with other ingredients, such as beef or strongly flavoured fish.

Vietnamese Mint White & Green Radish Wombok Yam Bean Pachyrhizus erosus odorata Raphanus sativus Brassica rapa var. pekinensis Alternate Name: Jicama Not a true mint, this herb has long, Alternate Names: Daikon, Lo Bok Alternate Name: Chinese Cabbage Yam bean or “jicama” originated in pointed green leaves with distinct White Radish may be long and While the green leaves can be Central and South America, but is purplish markings. The leaves are slender, short and stumpy or even slightly peppery, the thick white ribs now grown widely in many parts of extremely pungent and have a hot almost spherical and can reach up to are sweet and juicy. The inner Asia. The white flesh is crisp and peppery taste, and is therefore used 5kg in weight. White radish is leaves are particularly tender and juicy, with a mild, slightly sweet For further information visit sparingly in both hot and cold usually less hot and peppery than succulent. Perfect for use in a flavour. After peeling, it can be www.marketfresh.com.au dishes. It is often added fresh to the red radishes familiar to coleslaw or shredded on a thinly sliced and eaten raw in a Vietnamese salads and rice paper Europeans but can still be quite sandwich or hamburger. Shredded it salad. It is a great addition to a stir Published by Melbourne rolls, while in it is used in strongly flavoured. They are usually is also a key ingredient in fry as it does not soften with Markets in 2012. This guide noodle dishes and soups. It is an cooked but can also be used raw in dumplings and rolls. Korean relish, cooking, adding a crunchy texture essential ingredient in the spicy has been produced with salads. Peel first to reduce kim chee, can be made from while tending to absorb other information provided by soup “”; with the result it is then grate and mix with soy sauce to wombok pickled in salt, garlic and flavours in the dish. Yam bean can sometimes called “laksa leaf”. Dr Jenny Ekman (DPI, NSW) use as a dip with Japanese dishes, chilli. It can also be used in soups, be stored for several weeks in the and Meera Freeman. pickle with other ingredients or make casseroles or stir fries. The leaves fridge, although its flavour Distributed by your friendly, into savoury cakes and steam. Also can be used as wrappers for other deteriorates over time. local greengrocer. used in casseroles, soups and stir foods during steaming. Stored in a fries. Can be stored for several plastic bag in the refrigerator, it can weeks in a plastic bag in the fridge. stay fresh for at least 2 weeks. © Melbourne Market Authority 2012