Aralia cordata (Udo)

Japanese: ウド(独活) - ウド（英語表記）Aralia cordata

A large perennial plant of the Araliaceae family. It grows wild in the mountains and fields from Hokkaido to Kyushu, but is also cultivated for food. The stems are thick, soft, green, and about 1.5 m tall. The leaves are bipinnate and compound, with long stalks. Several leaves grow alternately on the stem. The leaflets are ovate with serrated edges. In summer, the plant produces a globular inflorescence of pale green, five-petaled flowers. The upper flowers are bisexual, while the lower flowers are male. The fruits are small and globular, ripening to a black color. Young seedlings are soft and have a unique fragrance, and are highly valued as food. The stems that grow in summer are hard and inedible, so they are called "big udo trees" as an analogy for uselessness. Cultivated udo are young seedlings that appear in early spring, covered with soil and made into a bean sprout-like shape. The skin is peeled off and the bitterness is removed with salt water, and the plant is used in vinegared dishes, salads, stews, etc.

Source: Encyclopaedia Britannica Concise Encyclopedia About Encyclopaedia Britannica Concise Encyclopedia Information

Japanese:

ウコギ科の大型多年草。北海道から九州まで，山野に普通に自生するが，また食用として栽培される。茎は太く軟らかく，緑色で高さ 1.5mぐらいになる。葉は長い柄をもち，2回羽状複葉。数枚の葉が茎に互生する。小葉は卵形で，縁に鋸歯がある。夏，淡緑色で5弁の小花が集った球形の花序をさらに総状につける。上方の花は両性花で，下方は雄花になる。果実は小球形で黒く熟する。若い苗は軟らかく独特の香りがあって食用として珍重される。夏の伸びた茎は硬く，食用にならないので「ウドの大木」と呼ばれ役に立たないことのたとえにされる。栽培されるウドは早春に出る若い苗を土でおおってもやし状にしたものである。皮をむき塩水であくを抜いて，酢の物，あえ物，煮物などに用いられる。

出典　ブリタニカ国際大百科事典小項目事典ブリタニカ国際大百科事典小項目事典について　情報

<<: Oud (English spelling)

>>: Uto [city] - Uto