UTILIZATION AND COMPOSITION OF ORIENTAL VEGETABLES 25 
To prepare for the table. — Wash well the tender part of 1 bunch of 
swamp cabbage; cut in 3-inch lengths. Have at hand a heated pot 
containing iy 2 teaspoons of peanut oil and a small piece of crushed 
garlic. Add cabbage and fry briskly five minutes. Season with salt 
or soy sauce before serving. 
Swiss Chard (Beta vulgaris cicla). (Fig. 22) 
Chinese name : Tim-choi 
Japanese name : To-jisa 
Figure 22.— Swiss chard 
Leaf: Ovate to oblong in shape ; light to dark green in color ; smooth, fleshy, 
thick, and broad; 6 to 8 inches long; 3 to 6 inches broad. 
Petiole: Light green to light pink; 4 to 8 inches long. 
Midrib: Large and conspicuous. 
Swiss chard or leaf beet is a member of the common beet family, 
In it develops large fleshy leaves instead of the root. The plant is a 
herbaceous biennial and grows 1 to 3 feet high. The leaves are 
gathered periodically and can be removed without injuring the plant, 
it is a native of Europe, northern Africa, and Asia. 
Swiss chard is usually marketed in bunches with its leaves placed 
alternately in opposite directions, which gives the bunch the appear- 
ance of a dumb-bell. 
