Chinese cabbage

Chinese cabbage is a leafy green vegetable.

It has two main kinds.

One kind is called napa cabbage. It has wide green leaves. The leaves wrap into a tight head. It has white stems too.

The other kind is bok choy. It does not form a head. It has dark green leaves. They grow in a bunch.

These plants can grow in the cold. Some even grew on a space station! People eat them in many meals.

Chinese cabbage is a leafy green vegetable. It has two main groups.

The first group is the Pekinensis Group. People often call this napa cabbage. It has broad green leaves. These leaves wrap into a tight, round shape. It also has white petioles, which are the stems of the leaves. This kind is very popular in northern China.

The second group is the Chinensis Group. Many people know this as bok choy. These plants do not form a tight head. Instead, they grow in a cluster of dark green leaves. They look a bit like mustard or celery. This group is popular in southern China and Southeast Asia.

These plants are very strong. They can grow well in the cold. Because of this, people grow them in Northern Europe too. Even astronauts have grown them! In 2017, a crop grew on the International Space Station. Some of it was for the crew to eat. The rest was for science. People have grown these plants for a long time. A man named Li Shizhen wrote about their health uses.

Chinese cabbage is a special kind of leafy vegetable. It belongs to a group of plants called Brassica rapa. People use these greens in many Chinese dishes. There are two main groups of these vegetables. The first group is called the Pekinensis Group. Most people know this as napa cabbage. The second group is the Chinensis Group. This group includes the famous bok choy. Both groups are very important to many cultures around the world.

Each group of cabbage looks and grows differently. The napa cabbage has broad green leaves. These leaves wrap together into a tight, round shape. It also has white petioles, which are the leaf stems. This type is very popular in northern China near Beijing. The bok choy does not form a tight head. Instead, it grows in a cluster of dark green leaves. These leaves look a bit like celery or mustard plants.

These vegetables have a very long history. People mostly grew them in the Yangtze River Delta region. A naturalist named Li Shizhen helped make them popular. He wrote about their medicinal qualities in the Ming dynasty. Around the 14th century, a type was grown in Zhejiang. This type was moved north to new places. Soon, the northern harvest was larger than the southern one. The cabbage then traveled south again along the Grand Canal.

Many different names exist for these plants. In Tagalog, napa cabbage is called Baguio petsay. People in Fujianese call it "wong a pak." In Korea, napa cabbage is used for baek-kimchi. This eventually grew into the food we call kimchi. In Northeastern China, it is used for suan cai. This is a type of Chinese sauerkraut. These plants are also very good at handling the cold. Because they are hardy, they grow well in Northern Europe too.

Chinese cabbage is even part of modern science. In 2017, astronauts grew it in space. They used a plant growth device on the International Space Station. The crew members even got to eat some of the crop. The rest of the plants were saved for scientific study. This shows how much people value these leafy greens. They are a link between old traditions and new discoveries.

Chinese cabbage refers to two main groups of leafy vegetables. These plants belong to the species Brassica rapa. They are widely used in many different Chinese cuisines. Scientists classify them as subspecies pekinensis and chinensis. These vegetables belong to the same genus as common staples like broccoli and cauliflower. They are highly valued for their nutritional qualities and culinary uses. Today, they are found in markets across the entire world.

The two main groups grow in very different ways. The Pekinensis Group is often called napa cabbage. It features broad green leaves with white petioles, which are the stalks of the leaves. These leaves wrap tightly into a cylindrical shape. This shape often forms a very compact head. This group is very popular in northern China. It is especially common around the city of Beijing, also known as Peking.

The Chinensis Group includes the well-known vegetable bok choy. These plants do not form tight, round heads like napa cabbage. Instead, they grow in clusters of smooth, dark green leaves. These leaf blades often look like mustard or celery. This group is very popular in southern China and Southeast Asia. Because these plants are winter-hardy, they are also grown in Northern Europe. The scientist Linnaeus once classified this group as its own species called B. chinensis.

These vegetables have a deep history rooted in China. They were primarily grown in the Yangtze River Delta region. During the Ming dynasty, a naturalist named Li Shizhen helped popularize them. He brought attention to their important medicinal qualities. Around the 14th century, a specific variety was grown in Zhejiang. This variety was eventually brought to northern regions. Soon, the northern harvests of napa cabbage grew larger than the southern ones. These crops traveled south again via the Grand Canal to Hangzhou. They were then traded by sea as far south as Guangdong.

Different cultures use these cabbages to make unique traditional foods. In Northeastern China, napa cabbage is a staple for making suan cai. This is a type of Chinese sauerkraut. In Korea, napa cabbage is used to make baek-kimchi. This specific food eventually developed into the famous dish known as kimchi. The cabbage is also known by many different names globally. In Tagalog, it is called Baguio petsay or petsay wombok. In Hokkien, it is called "wong a pak." Other names include baechu, hakusai, and "wongbok."

Chinese cabbage is even a subject of modern space science. In 2017, a crop was grown aboard the International Space Station. Astronauts used a special plant growth device for this experiment. Some of the cabbage was grown specifically for the crew to eat. The rest of the crop was saved for scientific study. This shows how these plants are important for both food and research. They remain a vital link between ancient agriculture and future space exploration.

There are other related plants in the Brassica family. One is the Alboglabra Group, also known as choy sum. This is scientifically known as Brassica rapa var. parachinensis. Another related plant is the turnip. The turnip is the same species, Brassica rapa, but it is grown in Europe for its roots. This shows how one species can be used in many different ways. Whether as a leaf or a root, these plants are essential to many diets.