1.
leafy greens; green vegetables
A general term for green leafy vegetables used in cooking, such as spinach, komatsuna, bok choy, and similar greens.
青菜を茹でる。
To boil leafy greens.
味噌汁に青菜を入れた。
I added leafy greens to the miso soup.
青菜は栄養が豊富なので、毎日の食事に取り入れたい。
Leafy greens are nutritious, so I want to include them in my daily meals.
A collective term for green leafy vegetables, combining 青 (green/blue) and 菜 (vegetable). In Japanese cooking, 青菜 encompasses vegetables like 小松菜, ほうれん草, 青梗菜, and similar greens.
USAGE:
Commonly used in recipes and cooking contexts. When a recipe calls for 青菜, the cook can choose whichever leafy green is available. The word also appears in the proverb 青菜に塩 (lit. 'salt on greens'), meaning to look wilted or dejected.
COMMON COLLOCATIONS:
- 青菜の炒め物 — stir-fried greens
- 青菜の{おひたし} — blanched greens in broth
- 青菜に塩 — looking dejected (idiom)
RELATED TERMS:
- 小松菜 — komatsuna; a specific type of Japanese mustard green
- 葉物野菜 — leafy vegetables; a more precise synonym
- 野菜 — vegetables; the general category