''Allium monanthum'', the Korean wild chive, is a spring vegetable with minuscule bulbous roots that have a mild onion flavor and found in the woodlands of

Korea Korea ( ko, 한국, or , ) is a peninsular region in East Asia. Since 1945, it has been divided at or near the 38th parallel, with North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea) comprising its northern half and South Korea (Republic o ...

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

, northeastern

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...

(

Primorye Primorsky Krai (russian: Приморский край, r=Primorsky kray, p=prʲɪˈmorskʲɪj kraj), informally known as Primorye (, ), is a federal subject (a krai) of Russia, located in the Far East region of the country and is a part of t ...

), and northeastern

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...

(

Hebei Hebei or , (; alternately Hopeh) is a northern province of China. Hebei is China's sixth most populous province, with over 75 million people. Shijiazhuang is the capital city. The province is 96% Han Chinese, 3% Manchu, 0.8% Hui, an ...

Heilongjiang Heilongjiang () formerly romanized as Heilungkiang, is a province in northeast China. The standard one-character abbreviation for the province is (). It was formerly romanized as "Heilungkiang". It is the northernmost and easternmost province ...

Jilin Jilin (; alternately romanized as Kirin or Chilin) is one of the three provinces of Northeast China. Its capital and largest city is Changchun. Jilin borders North Korea (Rasŏn, North Hamgyong, Ryanggang and Chagang) and Russia (Prim ...

Liaoning Liaoning () is a coastal province in Northeast China that is the smallest, southernmost, and most populous province in the region. With its capital at Shenyang, it is located on the northern shore of the Yellow Sea, and is the northernmost ...

).Flora of China v 24 p 202. big>单花薤
dan hua xie ''Allium monanthum''
/ref>

Description

''Allium monanthum'' is unusual in the genus in being usually

dioecious Dioecy (; ; adj. dioecious , ) is a characteristic of a species, meaning that it has distinct individual organisms (unisexual) that produce male or female gametes, either directly (in animals) or indirectly (in seed plants). Dioecious reproductio ...

(male and female flowers on separate plants), but rarely hermaphrodite or gynomonoecious. The species produces a single round bulb about in diameter. Scapes are relatively short for the genus, rarely more than tall. Leaves are flat, long and narrow, longer than the scape.

Umbel In botany, an umbel is an inflorescence that consists of a number of short flower stalks (called pedicels) that spread from a common point, somewhat like umbrella ribs. The word was coined in botanical usage in the 1590s, from Latin ''umbella'' "p ...

s are small, with one flower on pistillate (female) plants and 4-5 flowers on staminate (male) plants. All flowers are white, pink or red. File:Allium monanthum 4.jpg, Roots, bulbs, stalks, and leaves

Culinary uses

Korea

Called ''dallae'' () in

Korean Korean may refer to: People and culture * Koreans, ethnic group originating in the Korean Peninsula * Korean cuisine * Korean culture * Korean language **Korean alphabet, known as Hangul or Chosŏn'gŭl **Korean dialects and the Jeju language ** ...

, Korean wild chives are used in Korean herbal cooking alongside other ''

san-namul Namul ( ko, 나물) refers to either a variety of edible grass or leaves or seasoned herbal dishes made of them. Wild greens are called ''san-namul'' (, "mountain namul"), and spring vegetables are called ''bom-namul'' (, "spring namul"). On t ...

'' (mountain vegetables) such as deodeok, angelica-tree,

gondre ''Cirsium setidens'', also known as gondre and Korean thistle, is a perennial plant in the genus ''Cirsium'' in the family Asteraceae. It grows naturally in submontane and mountainous area in Korean peninsula where its young leaves are used as n ...

and Siberian onion. Having a similar flavor profile to

Tree onion The tree onion (''Allium'' × ''proliferum'') is a perennial plant similar to the common onion (''A. cepa''), but with a cluster of bulblets where a normal onion would have flowers. Tree onions are also known as topsetting onions, walking ...

, Korean wild chives can be eaten raw or blanched as a ''

namul Namul ( ko, 나물) refers to either a variety of edible grass or leaves or seasoned herbal dishes made of them. Wild greens are called ''san-namul'' (, "mountain namul"), and spring vegetables are called ''bom-namul'' (, "spring namul"). On t ...

'' (seasoned herbal vegetable dish), pickled as a ''

jangajji ''Jangajji'' () or pickled vegetables is a type of ''banchan'' (side dish) made by pickling vegetables. * Unlike kimchi, ''jangajji'' is non-fermented vegetables, usually pickled in soy sauce, soybean paste, or chili paste. ''Jangajji'' dishe ...

'', or pan-fried to make ''

buchimgae ''Buchimgae'' (), or Korean pancake, refers broadly to any type of pan-fried ingredients soaked in egg or a batter mixed with other ingredients. More specifically, it is a dish made by pan-frying a thick batter mixed with egg and other ingredie ...

'' (pancake). As a

herb In general use, herbs are a widely distributed and widespread group of plants, excluding vegetables and other plants consumed for macronutrients, with savory or aromatic properties that are used for flavoring and garnishing food, for medicinal ...

, Korean wild chives make a good last minute addition to ''

doenjang-jjigae Doenjang-jjigae (Korean: 된장찌개; Korean: wen.dʑaŋ.t͈ɕi.ɡɛ, referred to in English as soybean paste stew, is a Korean traditional '' jjigae'' (stew-type dish), made from the primary ingredient of ''doenjang'' (soybean paste), and ...

'' (soybean paste stew) and other ''

jjigae ''Jjigae'' (Korean: 찌개, ) is a Korean stew. There are many varieties; it is typically made with meat, seafood or vegetables in a broth seasoned with ''gochujang'' (red chilli paste), ''doenjang'' (soy bean paste), ''ganjang'' (soy sauce) or ...

'' (stews).

Soy sauce Soy sauce (also called simply soy in American English and soya sauce in British English) is a liquid condiment of Chinese origin, traditionally made from a fermented paste of soybeans, roasted grain, brine, and '' Aspergillus oryzae'' or ''Asp ...

based dips are often flavored with Korean wild chives. In

North Korea North Korea, officially the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the northern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and shares borders with China and Russia to the north, at the Yalu River, Y ...

radish The radish (''Raphanus raphanistrum'' subsp. ''sativus'') is an Eating, edible root vegetable of the family Brassicaceae that was domesticated in Asia prior to Roman Empire, Roman times. Radishes are grown and consumed throughout the world, be ...

water kimchi flavored with Korean wild chives is a popular spring ''

banchan ''Banchan'' (, from Korean: ) or bansang are small side dishes served along with cooked rice in Korean cuisine. As the Korean language does not distinguish between singular and plural grammatically, the word is used for both one such dish or ...

'' (side dish). File:Dallaemuchim on samgyeopsal (Allium monanthum).jpg, ''Dallae-

muchim Namul ( ko, 나물) refers to either a variety of edible grass or leaves or seasoned herbal dishes made of them. Wild greens are called ''san-namul'' (, "mountain namul"), and spring vegetables are called ''bom-namul'' (, "spring namul"). On t ...

'' (seasoned wild chives) on ''

samgyeopsal ''Samgyeopsal'' (; ), ''samgyeopsal-gui'' ( ), or grilled pork belly is a type of ''gui'' (grilled dish) in Korean cuisine. Etymology Directly translated from Korean, ''samgyeop-sal'' () means "three layer flesh," referring to striations of ...

'' (grilled pork belly) File:Dallae-bulgogi 2.jpg, ''Dallae-

bulgogi ''Bulgogi'' (불고기; ; from Korean language, Korean ''bul-gogi'' ), literally "fire meat", is a ''Gui (food), gui'' (구이; Korean-style grilled or roasted dish) made of thin, marination, marinated slices of meat, most commonly beef, gri ...

'' (bulgogi with wild chives) File:Dallae-doenjang-guk.jpg, ''Dallae-

doenjang-guk ''Doenjang-guk'' () or soybean paste soup is a '' guk'' (soup) made with ''doenjang'' (soybean paste) and other ingredients, such as vegetables, meat, and seafood. * It is thinner, lighter, and milder than ''doenjang-jjigae'' (soybean paste stew ...

'' (soybean paste soup with wild chives)

References

External links

* {{Taxonbar, from=Q846916 monanthum Flora of Eastern Asia Flora of Manchuria Flora of South-Central China Flora of the Russian Far East Korean vegetables Namul Onions Plants described in 1886 Dioecious plants

Description

Culinary uses

Korea

See also

References

External links