Mitsuba

[Mitsuba (Japan); Japanese wild parsley, Japanese cryptotaenia, Japanese honewort, white chervil; San ye qin (China); Cryptotaenia japonica]

Native to Japan, Korea, eastern China, and Vietnam, this herb is called for in many Japanese recipes. This is a problem, as Mitsuba is available only in Japanese markets and in some Korean markets. The roots are also edible. Photo by Mbc licensed under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike v3.0 Unported.

Cooking:

This herb is used mainly raw or as a garnish, as the flavor is destroyed and it becomes bitter with more than couple minutes cooking. Tender stems may be blanched and used with the leaves. Roots are blanched and used in stir fries and the like. Young sprouts are used in salads.

Subst:

None exact. Flatleaf Parsley is more robust in flavor and texture. Celery Leaf and Cilantro, or a combination, are also suggested.

Canadian Honewort

[Cryptotaenia canadensis]

Native in the United States from North Dakota south to Texas and east to the to the Atlantic. In Canada, Manatoba east to the Atlantic. Some botanists consider this to be the same species as Mitsuba, but others differ. In any case, culinary usage for this plant is the same as for Mitsuba, including edible roots. Photo by BotBin licensed under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike v3.0 Unported.