1.
rapeseed; canola; field mustard
A plant of the Brassica family grown for its oil-rich seeds and as a green vegetable. Its bright yellow flowers are an iconic sight of spring in Japan.
油菜の花が咲いている。
The rapeseed flowers are blooming.
春になると、畑が油菜の黄色で染まる。
When spring comes, the fields are dyed yellow with rapeseed.
油菜は食用としても栽培され、おひたしや炒め物にして食べる。
Rapeseed is also grown as a food crop and eaten as boiled greens or in stir-fries.
Literally 'oil vegetable' — named because its seeds are pressed to produce cooking oil (菜種油). The plant is also known as 菜の花 (canola flower), especially when referring to the flowers or the plant as a spring symbol.
CULTURAL CONTEXT:
Fields of brilliant yellow 油菜 flowers are a beloved spring sight in Japan. 菜の花 is a seasonal word (季語) for spring in haiku. The plant is also eaten as a vegetable — the young shoots and flower buds are a spring delicacy.
COMMON COLLOCATIONS:
- 油菜の花 — rapeseed flower
- 菜種油 — rapeseed oil, canola oil
- 油菜畑 — rapeseed field
RELATED TERMS:
- 菜の花 — canola flower; the popular name for the flowers and the edible shoots
- 菜種 — rapeseed; refers specifically to the seeds
- 白菜 — Chinese cabbage; a related Brassica vegetable