Chinese Vegetable Glossary for Cooks: What the Market Names Actually Mean

A Chinese wet market is dense with vegetables that have no counterpart in Western supermarkets, and even familiar ones often appear in forms that render them unrecognisable. A visitor trying to cook in a Chinese kitchen, or simply trying to understand what is on their plate, benefits from knowing the basics. This glossary covers the vegetables most likely to appear in markets and restaurant dishes, grouped by type.

Leafy greens

Gai lan (芥兰, jiè lán — Chinese broccoli): thick stems with dark, slightly waxy leaves and small broccoli-like florets. Flavour is more bitter and robust than Western broccoli. The classic preparation is blanching followed by a pour of hot oyster sauce. Widely available across China, particularly in Cantonese cooking.

Bok choy (白菜, bái cài — literally "white vegetable"): the word is used loosely to cover several related brassicas. The most common form in markets is Shanghai bok choy — small, round, mild, and versatile. It absorbs surrounding flavours readily and is the default green in hot pot and stir-fries. Baby bok choy (小白菜, xiao bai cai) is the very small version often served braised or steamed whole.

Kong xin cai (空心菜 — water spinach, morning glory): a hollow-stemmed green that wilts quickly in a very hot wok with garlic and sometimes fermented tofu. The hollow stem gives it its name (kong xin, "hollow heart"). Best cooked at high heat for short periods — the stems and leaves have different cooking times by about 30 seconds.

Napa cabbage (大白菜, dà bái cài — large white vegetable): the workhorse vegetable of northern Chinese cooking. Used raw in dumpling fillings (squeezed dry first), braised, pickled, or added whole to hot pot. Cheap, abundant, and available year-round in the north. Its mild flavour and ability to absorb liquid make it suited to long cooking.

Chrysanthemum greens (茼蒿, tóng hāo): a leafy green with a distinctive herbal, slightly bitter flavour and a fragrance unlike any Western green. Standard in Cantonese hot pot. Often available only in autumn and winter. The flavour is more assertive raw than cooked.

Pea shoots (豆苗, dòu miáo): the young tendrils and leaves of the pea plant. Stir-fried with garlic for approximately 90 seconds — they collapse rapidly. Delicate and sweet, best treated simply. A seasonal item, most tender in spring.

Alliums

Garlic chives (韭菜, jiǔ cài): flat-leafed, stronger in flavour than Western chives — closer to a garlic leaf than an onion-family vegetable. Essential in jiaozi fillings (pork and chive is one of the two standard filling combinations in northern China), and used in egg stir-fries and pancakes. Available year-round.

Yellow chives (韭黄, jiǔ huáng): the same plant grown in darkness, which prevents chlorophyll development. Pale yellow, considerably milder in flavour, more delicate in texture. Used in noodle dishes and stir-fries where a gentle allium note is wanted without the assertiveness of green garlic chives.

Garlic shoots / garlic scapes (蒜薹, suàn tái): the flowering stem of the garlic plant, cut before the flower opens. Firm, slightly crunchy, less pungent than garlic cloves but with more texture. Standard accompaniment in Sichuan twice-cooked pork (hui guo rou) and widely stir-fried as a side dish.

Spring onion (葱, cōng): used throughout Chinese cooking as a flavouring rather than a vegetable in its own right. The white base and green top have different flavour intensities; recipes sometimes specify one or the other. Also used raw as a garnish.

Root vegetables and gourds

Lotus root (莲藕, lián ǒu): the rhizome of the lotus plant, distinctive for its pattern of air channels that become circles when sliced. Texture ranges from crunchy (briefly cooked) to starchy and slightly sticky (long braised). Common preparations: stuffed with glutinous rice, stir-fried with vinegar and sugar, or simmered in pork rib soup. The raw lotus root oxidises quickly — keep in water after cutting.

Taro (芋头, yù tou): a starchy corm with purple-flecked white flesh. Always eaten cooked — raw taro contains calcium oxalate crystals that irritate the mouth. Used in dim sum (taro crust dumplings, wu gok), steamed as a starch alongside meat, or made into taro paste for sweet dishes. Some people are sensitive to raw taro skin — prepare with gloves or rinse hands thoroughly.

Water chestnut (荸荠, bí qi): small, dark brown corms sold muddy in markets and tinned in supermarkets. The flesh stays crunchy after cooking, making it useful in stir-fries and meatball fillings where textural contrast is wanted. Mild, slightly sweet flavour. The tinned version is an adequate substitute for fresh in cooked applications.

Bitter melon (苦瓜, kǔ guā): a bumpy, green or white gourd with an intensely bitter flavour that is an acquired taste. Used in stir-fries with fermented black beans and garlic (the bitterness and umami balance), in soups, or stuffed with minced pork and steamed. High in vitamin C and used in traditional medicine for blood sugar management. The degree of bitterness can be reduced by salting the sliced melon and leaving it for 20 minutes before cooking.

Winter melon (冬瓜, dōng guā): a large, pale green gourd with white flesh and very mild flavour. Its primary culinary role is absorbing surrounding liquid — it is added to soups and braises where it becomes tender and takes on the surrounding flavour. Peking duck restaurants often serve winter melon soup alongside the main duck course.

Fungi

Wood ear mushroom (木耳, mù ěr): a dark, thin, ear-shaped fungus sold dried (expanded with water before use) or fresh. Crunchy, almost cartilaginous texture; minimal flavour of its own. Used in stir-fries and cold salads for texture. Also called black fungus — the same product.

King oyster mushroom (杏鲍菇, xìng bào gū): a firm, thick-stemmed mushroom with a meaty texture that holds up well in hot pot and stir-fries. Takes on cooking liquid and seasoning readily. Often sliced into rounds and griddled.

Enoki mushroom (金针菇, jīn zhēn gū): thin, long white stems in clusters, mild flavour. Used raw in salads with sesame sauce, or briefly cooked in hot pot.

Shoots

Bamboo shoot (竹笋, zhú sǔn): fresh shoots are seasonal (late spring), slightly bitter and crisp. Tinned versions are available year-round but considerably milder. Used in braised dishes, mapo tofu, and as a hot pot ingredient. Fresh shoots require boiling before use to remove residual bitterness.

Water bamboo stem (茭白, jiāo bái): not actually bamboo — the swollen stem of an aquatic grass, creamy-white with a delicate, slightly sweet flavour. Sliced and stir-fried with pork or eggs. A seasonal vegetable most commonly available summer through autumn.