Hakusai

Hakusai Chinese cabbage, literally the ‘white vegetable’ is the big daddy of Japan’s leafy greens, and is used much as cabbage in the west. It is a winter vegetable, best eaten between November and February. Added fresh from the field to a simple but good dashi stock with tofu and in-season tara cod, it forms the base of a superb taranabe cod hotpot. Dip cod and hakusai into a ponzu citrus sauce. Absolutely brilliant. It’s also full of vitamin C.