Choy sum

Choy sum (Cantonese)
Cai xin (Mandarin)
Choy sum plants, growing on a farm
SpeciesBrassica rapa var. parachinensis
Cultivar groupChinensis, Pekinensis groups
OriginChina, before the 15th century
Cultivar group membersMany; see text.
Choy sum (cai xin)
Chinese菜心
Hanyu Pinyincàixīn
Jyutpingcoi3sam1
Transcriptions
Standard Mandarin
Hanyu Pinyincàixīn
IPA[tsʰâɪ.ɕín]
Yue: Cantonese
Jyutpingcoi3sam1
IPA[tsʰɔ̄ːy sɐ́m]
Southern Min
Hokkien POJchhài-sim or
tshài-sim

Choy sum (also spelled choi sum, choi sam in Cantonese; cai xin, caixin in Standard Mandarin) is a leafy vegetable commonly used in Chinese cuisine. It is a member of the genus Brassica of the mustard family, Brassicaceae (Brassica rapa var. parachinensis or Brassica chinensis var. parachinensis). Choy sum is a transliteration of the Cantonese name (Chinese: 菜心), which can be literally translated as "heart of the vegetable". Choy sum is also called yu choy (you cai in Standard Mandarin; Chinese: 油菜). It is also known as Chinese flowering cabbage.[1]

  1. ^ "CHOY SUM | South Pacific Seeds". Archived from the original on 2013-02-08. Retrieved 2013-04-18.