贡菜 (gòngcài): 'tribute vegetable' — pickled dried celtuce stalks

Meanings

1 'tribute vegetable' — pickled dried celtuce stalks
2 crunchy dried stem lettuce (苔干), a specialty of Anhui's Souxian

Characters

贡

Examples

凉拌贡菜脆脆的，是下酒好菜。

Liángbàn gòngcài cuìcuì de, shì xiàjiǔ hǎo cài.

Cold-dressed gongcai is crunchy — a great side dish for drinks.

贡菜吃起来有点像海蜇，但其实是蔬菜。

Gòngcài chī qǐlai yǒudiǎn xiàng hǎizhé, dàn qíshí shì shūcài.

Gongcai tastes a bit like jellyfish, but it's actually a vegetable.

Tips

history

贡菜 literally means 'tribute vegetable' — the 苔干 (dried celtuce stalk) from 涡阳/蒙城 in Anhui's Bozhou region was sent as tribute to the Qing imperial court, earning the name. The stalks are split, sun-dried, and rehydrated before eating — springy and celery-like, famous for showing up on hot-pot menus as a crunchy dipping vegetable.