莼菜 (chúncài) · water shield

Meanings

1 water shield
2 Brasenia schreberi (an edible aquatic plant)

About the ingredient

蔬菜 Vegetables

Tiny rolled leaves of a water plant coated in a clear, slippery jelly, eaten for that smooth texture more than for any taste. Made into light soups, above all Hangzhou's West Lake water shield soup.

Characters

Examples

HSK 5

西湖的莼菜汤是杭州名菜。

Xīhú de chúncài tāng shì Hángzhōu míngcài.

West Lake water shield soup is a famous Hangzhou dish.

HSK 7-9

莼菜的嫩叶滑溜溜的，口感很特别。

Chúncài de nènyè huáliū liū de, kǒugǎn hěn tèbié.

The tender leaves of water shield are slippery and have a very distinctive texture.

Tips

history

Immortalized by the 莼鲈之思 ('longing for water shield and perch') story in 《世说新语·识鉴》: during the Western Jin, official 张翰 (Zhang Han) was serving in Luoyang when an autumn wind reminded him of his hometown Wu's water shield soup and perch sashimi - he resigned on the spot and went home. The phrase became a literary byword for homesickness and for leaving office to return to rural life.