Kai-lan
Kai-lan | |
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Kai-lan | |
Details | |
Species | Brassica oleracea |
Cultivar group | Alboglabra Group |
Origin | unknown |
Cultivar group members | unknown |
Kai-lan | |||||||||||||||||||
Chinese name | |||||||||||||||||||
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Simplified Chinese | 芥兰 | ||||||||||||||||||
Traditional Chinese | 芥蘭 | ||||||||||||||||||
Literal meaning | "mustard orchid" | ||||||||||||||||||
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Burmese name | |||||||||||||||||||
Burmese | ကိုက္လန္ | ||||||||||||||||||
Vietnamese name | |||||||||||||||||||
Vietnamese alphabet | cải làn or cải rổ | ||||||||||||||||||
Thai name | |||||||||||||||||||
Thai | ผักคะน้า (phak khana) |
Kai-lan (also written as gai-lan) is the Cantonese name for a vegetable that is also known as Chinese broccoli or Chinese kale. It is a leaf vegetable featuring thick, flat, glossy blue-green leaves with thick stems and a small number of tiny flower heads similar to those of broccoli. Broccoli and kai-lan belong to the same species Brassica oleracea, but kai-lan is in the group alboglabra [Latin albus+glabrus white and hairless]. Its flavor is very similar to that of broccoli, but slightly more bitter. It is also noticeably stronger. Broccolini is a hybrid between broccoli and kai-lan, produced by Mann Packing Company, Inc.
Kai-lan is eaten widely in Chinese cuisine, and especially in Cantonese cuisine. Common preparations include kai-lan stir-fried with ginger and garlic, and boiled or steamed and served with oyster sauce. It is also common in Vietnamese cuisine, Myanmar (as ကိုက္လန္) and Thai cuisine.
Kai-lan can be sown in late summer for early-winter harvesting. Seedlings planted in autumn will last all winter.[citation needed]
Gallery
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Baby kai-lan served Cantonese style
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Phak khana mu krop: Thai style fried Chinese broccoli with crispy pork
See also
References
- "Chinese Kale (Gai Lan, Chinese Broccoli)". Evergreen Seeds. Retrieved 6 February 2013.
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Brassica oleracea var. alboglabra. |
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