Choy sum
| Choy sum (Cantonese) Cai xin (Mandarin) | |
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Choy sum plants, growing on a farm | |
| Species | Brassica rapa var. parachinensis |
| Cultivar group | Chinensis, Pekinensis groups |
| Origin | China, before the 15th century |
| Cultivar group members | Many; see text. |
| Choy sum (cai xin) | |||||||||||||||||||
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| Chinese | 菜心 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Hanyu Pinyin | càixīn | ||||||||||||||||||
| Jyutping | coi3sam1 | ||||||||||||||||||
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Choy sum (also spelled choi sum or choi sam in Cantonese; cai xin in Standard Mandarin) is a leafy vegetable commonly used in Chinese cuisine. It is a member of the genus Brassica of the mustard family, Brassicaceae (Brassica rapa var. parachinensis or Brassica chinensis var. parachinensis). Choy sum is a transliteration of the Cantonese name (Chinese: 菜心), which can be literally translated as "heart of the vegetable". Choy sum is also called yu choy (you cai in Standard Mandarin; Chinese: 油菜). It is also known as Chinese flowering cabbage.