Stachys sieboldii
Miq.
Chinese Artichoke, Japanese artichoke, Japanese potato
Wikimedia Commons
Wikimedia Commons - Krzysztof Ziarnek, Kenraiz
What to Eat
Edible parts: Tubers, Root, Leaves, Stem tubers, Vegetable
The tubers have a crunchy texture and a sweet, nutty flavour. They can be eaten raw, pickled, dried or cooked. A wide range of uses for this vegetable leads to various dishes in the cuisine of many countries. They can be prepared similarly to Jerusalem artichokes. The leaves can be dried and made into a tea. In Chinese and Japanese cuisine, S. affinis is primarily pickled. In particular, its tuber is a part of Osechi, cooked for celebrating Japanese New Year. Dyed red by leaves of Perilla (red shiso) after being pickled, it is called chorogi. In Korea it is called choseokjam (초석잠). In French cuisine, its cooked tuber is often served alongside dishes named japonaise or Japanese-styled.
Where to Find It
It is a cool temperate plant. It can grow in cold places. They need a temperate climate, full sun and a well drained soil. In China it grows on wet hillsides and areas covered with water up to 3200 m altitude in northern regions. It needs a pH between 6-6.5 for best growth. It suits plant hardiness zones 4-8. Hobart Botanical Gardens. In Sichuan.
Arabia, Asia, Australia, Belgium, Canada, China, Egypt, Europe, France, India, Inner Mongolia, Japan, Malaysia, Middle East, North Africa, North America, SE Asia, Slovenia, South Africa, Southern Africa, Tasmania, USA,
How to Identify
A herb. It keeps growing from year to year. The underground stems or rhizomes are white. The stems above ground are 30-120 cm long. The leaf stalks are 1-3 cm long and the leaf blades are oval and 3-12 cm long by 1.5-6 cm wide. The base is wedge shaped. The flowers are red to purple. The nutlets are black-brown and oval. They are 1.5 cm across.
Nutrition Score: 33/100
| Part | Moisture | kJ | kcal | Protein | Vit A | Vit C | Iron | Zinc |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tuber | 66.7 | 226 | 54 | 2.3 | — | — | 7.4 | — |
How to Grow
It can be grown from seed or tubers. Tubers can be planted 5 cm deep and 30 cm apart. The tubers are harvested after the plant dies back.
Medicinal Uses
In traditional Chinese medicine, the entirety of S. affinis is used as an agent to treat colds and pneumonia. In addition, root extract of S. affinis has shown antimicrobial activity. Furthermore, Baek et al. observed antioxidant activity in 2004. Also in 2004 inhibitory effects on acetylcholine esterase, monoamine oxidase and xanthine oxidase activities were observed in rat brains after 20 days of feeding with methanolic extracts of S. affinis. Ethanol extract from this plant also seems to have antitumour activity.
Other Information
It is a commercially cultivated vegetable. It is cultivated in China. It is widely cultivated for its root tubers in Japan.
Notes
There are about 300 Stachys species. Chemical composition: leaves and tubers contain stachydrin; tubers contain stachyose and manneotetrose.
Names & Synonyms
Choro-gi, Chorogi, Crosnes de Japan, Crosnes, Digua, Gan lu zi, Knotroot, Kon loh, Luosicai, Sieboldov čišljak, Tung tung chow
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