Gai lan, kai-lan, Chinese broccoli, or Chinese kale (''Brassica oleracea'' var. ''alboglabra'') is a

leafy vegetable Leaf vegetables, also called leafy greens, vegetable greens, or simply greens, are plant leaves eaten as a vegetable, sometimes accompanied by their petioles and shoots, if tender. Leaf vegetables eaten raw in a salad can be called salad gree ...

with thick, flat, glossy blue-green leaves with thick stems, and florets similar to (but much smaller than)

broccoli Broccoli (''Brassica oleracea'' var. ''italica'') is an edible green plant in the Brassicaceae, cabbage family (family Brassicaceae, genus ''Brassica'') whose large Pseudanthium, flowering head, plant stem, stalk and small associated leafy gre ...

. A ''

Brassica oleracea ''Brassica oleracea'', also known as wild cabbage in its uncultivated form, is a plant of the family Brassicaceae. The species originated from feral populations of related plants in the Eastern Mediterranean, where it was most likely first cultiv ...

cultivar A cultivar is a kind of Horticulture, cultivated plant that people have selected for desired phenotypic trait, traits and which retains those traits when Plant propagation, propagated. Methods used to propagate cultivars include division, root a ...

, 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 ''Matthiola incana'' is a species of flowering plant in the cabbage family Brassicaceae. Common names include Brompton stock, common stock, hoary stock, ten-week stock, and gilly-flower. The common name stock usually refers to this species, thou ...

'' or hoary stock. The flavor is very similar to that of broccoli, but noticeably stronger and slightly more bitter.

Cultivation

Gai lan is a cool season crop that grows best between . It withstands hotter summer temperatures than other brassicas such as broccoli or

cabbage Cabbage, comprising several cultivars of '' Brassica oleracea'', is a leafy green, red (purple), or white (pale green) biennial plant grown as an annual vegetable crop for its dense-leaved heads. It is descended from the wild cabbage ( ''B.& ...

. Gai lan is harvested around 60–70 days after sowing, just before the flowers start to bloom. The stems can become woody and tough when the plant bolts. It is generally harvest for market when tall however it can also be produced as "baby gai lan." The "baby" version is cultivated through crowding of seedings and generous fertilization; they resemble

Brussels sprouts The Brussels sprout is a member of the Gemmifera cultivar group of cabbages (''Brassica oleracea''), grown for its edible buds. Etymology Though native to the Mediterranean region with other cabbage species, Brussels sprouts first appeared i ...

although they have looser folds.

Hybrids

Broccolini is a hybrid between broccoli and gai lan.

Uses

Culinary

The stems and leaves of ''gai lan'' are eaten widely in

Chinese cuisine Chinese cuisine comprises cuisines originating from Greater China, China, as well as from Overseas Chinese, Chinese people from other parts of the world. Because of the Chinese diaspora and the historical power of the country, Chinese cuisine ...

; common preparations include gai lan

stir-fried Stir frying ( zh, c= 炒, p=chǎo, w=ch'ao3, cy=cháau) is a cooking technique in which ingredients are fried in a small amount of very hot oil while being stirred or tossed in a wok. The technique originated in China and in recent centuries ...

with

ginger Ginger (''Zingiber officinale'') is a flowering plant whose rhizome, ginger root or ginger, is widely used as a spice and a folk medicine. It is an herbaceous perennial that grows annual pseudostems (false stems made of the rolled bases of l ...

and

garlic Garlic (''Allium sativum'') is a species of bulbous flowering plants in the genus '' Allium''. Its close relatives include the onion, shallot, leek, chives, Welsh onion, and Chinese onion. Garlic is native to central and south Asia, str ...

, and

boiled Boiling or ebullition is the rapid phase transition from liquid to gas or vapour; the reverse of boiling is condensation. Boiling occurs when a liquid is heated to its boiling point, so that the vapour pressure of the liquid is equal to the p ...

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, thi ...

. It is also common in

Vietnamese Vietnamese may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Vietnam, a country in Southeast Asia * Vietnamese people, or Kinh people, a Southeast Asian ethnic group native to Vietnam ** Overseas Vietnamese, Vietnamese people living outside Vietna ...

, Burmese and

Thai cuisine Thai cuisine (, , ) is the national cuisine of Thailand. Thai cooking places emphasis on lightly prepared dishes with aromatics and spicy heat. The Australian chef David Thompson (chef), David Thompson, an expert on Thai food, observes that ...

. In Chinese cuisine it is often associated with

dim sum Dim sum () is a large range of small Chinese dishes that are traditionally enjoyed in restaurants for brunch. Most modern dim sum dishes are commonly associated with Cantonese cuisine, although dim sum dishes also exist in other Chinese cu ...

restaurants. In Americanized Chinese food (like

beef and broccoli Beef and broccoli, also sometimes called broccoli beef, is a Westernised Chinese dish. Origins Beef and broccoli was likely developed in the diaspora of Chinese immigrants in 19th century America. It became an established feature of American Ch ...

), gai lan was frequently replaced by broccoli when gai lan was not available. File:Gai lan.jpg, Gai lan trimmed and prepared for cooking. File:baby kailan chinese.jpg, Baby gai lan served Cantonese-style. File:Phat khana mu krop.jpg, ''Phat khana mu krop'': Thai-style fried Chinese broccoli with crispy

pork belly Pork belly or belly pork is a boneless, fatty Primal cut, cut of pork from the Abdomen, belly of a pig. Pork belly is particularly popular in American cuisine, American, British cuisine, British, Swedish cuisine, Swedish, Danish cuisine, Danish, ...

References

External links