Bamboo shoots

Bambusa spp., Borinda spp. …

vegetable

Young, tender, crunchy shoots, cut at ground level in spring, peeled and then well cooked; mostly found canned, sliced. They provide fibre.

Origin

East Asia

Season (United States)

imported · all year round

Preparation

Never raw: they hold cyanogenic compounds. Ten minutes at a rolling boil, water thrown out, clears them — and canned ones have already had that treatment.

Did you know?

Some bamboos grow 91 cm in 24 hours, almost 4 cm an hour; 120 cm in a single day has even been measured.