Tatsoi

Tatsoi (Brassica rapa subsp. narinosa[1] or Brassica rapa var. rosularis[2]) is an Asian variety of Brassica rapa grown for greens. Also called tat choy, it is closely related to the more familiar Bok Choy. This plant has become popular in North American cuisine as well, and is now grown throughout the world.

The name comes from Cantonese 塌菜 taap3 coi3 or “drooping vegetable”, often rendered ‘tat soi’, ‘tat choy’. However, its natural habitat is alongside the Yangtze River, where it is called 塌棵菜 (Shanghai and around Lake Tai, Wu thaq-khu tshe), 烏塌菜 (Lake Tai and Nanking, Wu wu-thaq tshe, literally “dark drooping veggie”). Mandarin borrowed the name 塌棵菜 (Pinyin tā kē cài). It is also called ‘Chinese flat cabbage’, ‘rosette pakchoi’ or ‘broadbeaked mustard’,[3] ‘spoon mustard’,[2] or ‘spinach mustard’.

The plant has dark green spoon-shaped leaves which form a thick rosette. It has a soft creamy texture and has a subtle yet distinctive flavour.