Bok choy (Brassica campestris, Chinese 白菜 bái cài) is an Asian relative of the common cabbage. The English umbrella term Chinese cabbage usually refers to a type of bok choy, particularly the Pekinensis variety. It is also known as bok choi, particularly in Australia.
| Bok choy (Pekinensis group) | ||||||||||||||
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| Scientific classification | ||||||||||||||
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| Brassica campestris L. pekinensis |
Varieties
There are two distinctly different groups of Brassica campestris, and a wide range of varieties within these two groups.
The Pekinensis group is the more common of the two, especially outside Asia; names such as da bai cai, pe-tsai, Chinese white cabbage, nappa cabbage and hakusai (Japanese) usually refer to members of this group. Pekinensis cabbages have broad green leaves with white petioles, tightly wrapped in a cylindrical formation and usually, but not necessarily, forming a compact head. As the group name indicates, this is particularly popular in northern China around Beijing (Peking), as well as in Japan and Korea.
The Chinensis group was originally classified as its own species under the name B. chinensis by Linnaeus. Smaller in size, the Mandarin term xiao bai cai as well as the descriptive English names Chinese chard, Chinese mustard, celery mustard and spoon cabbage are also employed. Chinensis varieties do not form heads; instead, they have smooth, dark green leaf blades forming a cluster reminiscent of mustard or celery. Chinensis varieties are popular in southern China and South-East Asia.
Commercial variants of Chinensis include:
- choy sum (菜心 cai xin; also baby bok choy), lit. "vegetable heart", can refer to either a small, delicate version of bok choy or simply the flowering heart of any Chinese cabbage
- Shanghai pak choy (上海白菜 shang hai bai cai) refers to dark green varieties where the varioles are also green
Nomenclature
The Chinese characters 白菜 simply mean "white vegetable", and are used to refer to both groups of B. campestris. The name bok choy and its variations bok choi and pak choi are all taken from the Cantonese readings of the name.
See also
- Kai-lan (Chinese broccoli)