Celtuce () (''Lactuca sativa'' var. ''augustana'',Masatoshi Yamaguchi Caroline Foley ''angustata'', or ''asparagina''), also called stem lettuce, celery lettuce, asparagus lettuce, or Chinese lettuce, is a cultivar of

lettuce Lettuce (''Lactuca sativa'') is an annual plant of the family Asteraceae. It is most often grown as a leaf vegetable, but sometimes for its stem and seeds. Lettuce is most often used for salads, although it is also seen in other kinds of food, ...

grown primarily for its thick stem or its leaves. It is used as a

vegetable Vegetables are parts of plants that are consumed by humans or other animals as food. The original meaning is still commonly used and is applied to plants collectively to refer to all edible plant matter, including the flowers, fruits, stems, ...

. In Mainland China, the family is informally called ''woju'' (), which is also the name of a cultivar. It is especially popular in both mainland

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 ...

and

Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the nort ...

, where the stem is interchangeably called ''wosun'' () or ''qingsun'' (). The pale green leaves, which are tender, and white stems can be eaten raw (in salads) or cooked. It can be pickled, grilled, roasted, or stir-fried. It is mild but nutty, with a slight smoky aftertaste. It is high in vitamins. Popular sources identify it as originating in the

Mediterranean The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Western Europe, Western and Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa ...

region and then being brought to China during the

Tang Dynasty The Tang dynasty (, ; zh, t= ), or Tang Empire, was an imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 618 to 907 AD, with an interregnum between 690 and 705. It was preceded by the Sui dynasty and followed by the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdom ...

, about A.D. 600–900. It can be grown from seed and is sown from April through May in the Northern Hemisphere. The seeds can be planted in a set bed or a temporary nursery bed and then transplanted to the growing site. They should be spread 30 cm apart each way. The young (edible) leaves are ready about 4–5 weeks after planting and the edible stems are ready when about 30 cm tall. They are usually harvested between July and September. The plant can suffer from

aphid Aphids are small sap-sucking insects and members of the superfamily Aphidoidea. Common names include greenfly and blackfly, although individuals within a species can vary widely in color. The group includes the fluffy white woolly aphids. A t ...

attack. The stem is usually harvested at a length of around 15–20 cm and a diameter of around 3–4 cm. It is crisp, moist, and mildly flavored, and typically prepared by slicing and then stir frying with more strongly flavored ingredients.

References

Stem vegetables Lettuce {{Vegetable-stub

See also

References