1.
royal fern; its coiled young shoots eaten as a wild vegetable
A fern whose tightly curled spring shoots are gathered as 山菜 (wild mountain vegetables). The shoots must be boiled and soaked before eating, and are often sold dried.
Usually written in kana; the kanji 薇 is rare. One of the classic 山菜 of early spring, along with 蕨 and ふきのとう.
Common collocations
- ぜんまいの煮物: simmered royal fern
- ぜんまいを採る: to gather royal fern
- 干しぜんまい: dried royal fern
- ぜんまいのナムル: royal fern namul (a common Korean-style side dish)
Homonym
The same-sounding ぜんまい also means a coiled spring or clockwork mechanism (ぜんまいを巻く, to wind up a spring) — the plant's tight spiral is the source of that sense.