Gai lan, kai-lan, Chinese broccoli, Chinese kale, or jie lan (''Brassica oleracea'' var. ''alboglabra'') is a
leaf vegetable with thick, flat, glossy blue-green leaves with thick stems, and florets similar to (but much smaller than)
broccoli. A ''
Brassica oleracea''
cultivar, gai lan is in the group ''alboglabra'' (from Latin ''albus'' "white" and ''glabrus'' "hairless"). When gone to flower, its white blossoms resemble that of its cousin ''Matthiola incana'' or Hoary Stock. The flavor is very similar to that of broccoli, but noticeably stronger and slightly more bitter.
Hybrids
Broccolini
Broccolini, Aspabroc, or baby broccoli, is a green vegetable similar to broccoli but with smaller florets and longer, thin stalks. It is a hybrid of broccoli and gai lan (which is sometimes referred to as "Chinese kale" or "Chinese broccoli") ...
is a hybrid between broccoli and gai lan.
Cultivation
''Gai lan'' can be sown in late summer for early-winter harvesting. Seedlings planted in autumn will last all winter. As with other brassicas, gai lan is harvested and consumed just as its white flowers start to bloom, as the stems can become woody and tough when the plant
bolts.
Uses
''Gai lan'' is eaten widely in
Chinese cuisine, common preparations include gai lan
stir-fried with
ginger
Ginger (''Zingiber officinale'') is a flowering plant whose rhizome, ginger root or ginger, is widely used as a spice
A spice is a seed, fruit, root, bark, or other plant substance primarily used for flavoring or coloring food. Spices ...
and
garlic
Garlic (''Allium sativum'') is a species of bulbous flowering plant in the genus ''Allium''. Its close relatives include the onion, shallot, leek, chive, Allium fistulosum, Welsh onion and Allium chinense, Chinese onion. It is native to South A ...
, and
boiled or steamed and served with
oyster sauce
Oyster sauce describes a number of sauces made by cooking oysters. The most common in modern use is a viscous dark brown condiment made from oyster extracts,The Times, 22 January 1981; ''Cook Accidentally on purpose'' sugar, salt and water thick ...
. It is also common in
Vietnamese,
Burmese
Burmese may refer to:
* Something of, from, or related to Myanmar, a country in Southeast Asia
* Burmese people
* Burmese language
* Burmese alphabet
* Burmese cuisine
* Burmese culture
Animals
* Burmese cat
* Burmese chicken
* Burmese (hor ...
and
Thai cuisine.
In Americanized Chinese food, gai lan was frequently replaced by broccoli, when gai lan was not available.
See also
*
Bok choy
Bok choy (American English, Canadian English, and Australian English), pak choi (British English) or pok choi (''Brassica rapa'' subsp. ''chinensis'') is a type of Chinese cabbage, used as food. ''Chinensis'' varieties do not form heads and have g ...
*
Choy sum
*
Kale
Kale (), or leaf cabbage, belongs to a group of cabbage (''Brassica oleracea'') cultivars grown for their edible leaves, although some are used as ornamentals. Kale plants have green or purple leaves, and the central leaves do not form a head ...
*
Rapeseed
*
Rapini
References
*
How To Stir-Fry Chinese Broccoli
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Brassica oleracea var. alboglabra
Asian vegetables
Brassica oleracea
Burmese cuisine
Cantonese cuisine
Chinese vegetables
Hong Kong cuisine
Leaf vegetables
Thai cuisine
Vietnamese cuisine