How to Store Chinese Toon Sprouts? A Detailed Guide to the Latest Preservation Methods

Chinese toon is also known as xiangchun ya, xiangzhuang tou, dahong chunshu, chuntian and so on. It is a nutritious ingredient, and eating more of it is good for your health. Li Yu said: “The vegetable that can perfume one's teeth and cheeks is the Chinese toon head.” However, Chinese toon sprouts are highly seasonal, and once the season passes, you can no longer eat them. So how do you store Chinese toon sprouts? Let's take a look together below!

Storage Methods for Chinese Toon Sprouts

1. Wash the Chinese toon clean, place it in a cool, well-ventilated spot, and let the surface moisture dry. This step must be done thoroughly; it must not retain any raw water.

2. Put the dried Chinese toon sprouts in a clean basin, sprinkle in an appropriate amount of salt, gently rub to mix evenly, and salt for 3 to 4 hours, until the Chinese toon sprouts turn dark green. This step is the most crucial, because once salted, the Chinese toon will not become mushy even when frozen in the freezer, but do not use too much salt, or it will turn into pickles.

3. Put the salted Chinese toon sprouts in a food bag or freshness bag, tie the opening tightly, and place it in the freezer compartment of the refrigerator. Remember, the bag opening must be tied tightly, otherwise it will absorb odors from other foods in the refrigerator.

Tips for Selecting Chinese Toon Sprouts

1. Choose the season: Chinese toon sprouts generally start to appear in early April, and by mid-to-late April they are no longer very good, so the best time to buy Chinese toon sprouts is in early to mid-April.

2. Choose the length: When selecting Chinese toon sprouts, choose short ones, because long Chinese toon sprouts have already been growing for a relatively long time, their stems are rather hard, and they are no longer good to eat. Do not choose overly long ones.

3. Choose the thickness: When selecting Chinese toon sprouts, look carefully at their thickness, especially the stems. Thick stems mean they are newly grown tender sprouts and very fresh. Do not choose thin ones; thin ones are old Chinese toon.

4. Choose fresh and tender ones: If you want to buy fresh and tender Chinese toon sprouts, do not look at the leaves of the Chinese toon sprouts. Fresh Chinese toon sprouts also have fresh leaves, and the leaves are not easily pulled off. If the leaves of the Chinese toon sprouts fall off at the slightest touch, that proves the Chinese toon sprouts have already been stored for a very long time. Never buy Chinese toon sprouts with fallen leaves, as they contain nitrite, which is not good for your health.

5. Smell the aroma: Also, when buying, smell whether the Chinese toon sprouts have a light fragrance. If they do, then these Chinese toon sprouts are relatively fresh.

How to Eat Chinese Toon Sprouts

1. Chinese Toon with Tofu

[Ingredients] Chinese toon sprouts, brine tofu, salt, MSG, sesame oil.

[Method] 1. Break the Chinese toon sprouts apart and wash them clean. 2. Blanch them briefly in boiling water. 3. When the leaves turn green and the fragrance comes out, remove them and rinse in cold water. 4. Squeeze out the water and cut into small pieces. 5. Cut the brine tofu into small cubes, then blanch them briefly in boiling water with added salt. 6. Drain the water and remove to a plate. 7. Use an appropriate amount of salt, MSG, sesame oil and cold boiled water to mix into a bowl sauce. 8. Sprinkle the chopped Chinese toon over the blanched tofu, then drizzle the bowl sauce over it.

2. Chinese Toon with Bamboo Shoots

[Ingredients] 250 grams bamboo shoots, 50 grams Chinese toon, 8 grams salt, 2 grams MSG, 5 grams starch, 60 grams peanut oil, 25 grams sesame oil.

[Method] 1. Cut the bamboo shoots into firewood-like chunks. 2. Wash the tender Chinese toon heads clean, cut them into fine pieces, and lightly salt them briefly to remove moisture. 3. Heat the wok and add cooked peanut oil. 4. First add the bamboo shoots and stir-fry briefly, then add the Chinese toon pieces, refined salt, fresh stock and MSG, reduce the liquid over high heat, thicken with wet starch, drizzle with sesame oil, and then remove from the wok and plate.

3. Scrambled Eggs with Chinese Toon

[Ingredients] 150 grams tender Chinese toon sprouts, 6 eggs, appropriate amounts of salt, cooking wine and vegetable oil.

[Method] 1. Wash the Chinese toon heads clean, blanch them briefly in boiling water, then remove and place in cold water to cool, remove and cut into pieces. 2. Crack the eggs into a bowl, add the Chinese toon, salt and cooking wine, and stir into an egg mixture. 3. Heat oil in a wok to 70 percent hot, pour the egg mixture into the wok, stir-fry until the eggs are tender and cooked, drizzle with a little cooked oil, and plate.

4. Baked Eggs with Chinese Toon

[Ingredients] 500 grams eggs, 25 grams Chinese toon, 80 grams lard, 25 grams wet starch, 5 grams each salt and MSG.

[Method] 1. Chop the Chinese toon into pieces, and dilute the wet starch with water again. Beat the eggs, add the diluted starch, Chinese toon, MSG and salt, and stir evenly. 2. Heat the frying spoon and add 50 grams oil. When the oil is hot, switch to low heat, pour in the evenly stirred eggs, cover well, then pour in the remaining 30 grams oil along the spoon in several additions. Bake for about 10 minutes, uncover and remove, drain off the oil, then invert the eggs onto a plate and it is done.