Shungiku: Chrysanthemum Greens in Japanese Hot Pot and Tempura Culture

Japan — Mediterranean origin, transmitted via China; cultivated throughout Japan; most significant use in winter nabe culture

Shungiku (春菊, Glebionis coronaria — garland chrysanthemum) is one of Japan's most important and distinctive winter leafy vegetables, prized for its intensely aromatic, slightly bitter green flavour that makes it an essential component of hot pot dishes (nabe) and a beloved tempura ingredient. The name means 'spring chrysanthemum' — a slight seasonal misnomer, as shungiku is harvested primarily in autumn and winter, though its chrysanthemum-family flowers bloom in spring. The plant is a cultivated form of the Mediterranean crown daisy, brought to Japan via China and integrated into Japanese cooking with deep specificity. Shungiku's flavour profile is unlike any other Japanese cooking green: there is a pronounced aromatic bitterness reminiscent of chrysanthemum tea, a slightly astringent green note, and an underlying sweetness that develops with brief heat exposure. This specific aromatic complexity makes shungiku a functional flavour element in nabe cooking — not merely a vegetable addition, but an aromatic herb that elevates the broth. In sukiyaki, shabu-shabu, chanko nabe, and mizutaki, a handful of shungiku leaves added in the final 2 minutes of cooking releases its aromatic oils into the broth and provides a signature scent-and-flavour marker that distinguishes nabe as a winter preparation. Shungiku tempura is the second major preparation: the leaves are battered in a thin tempura batter (minimal wheat flour, cold water, no egg — for the lightest result) and fried in small clusters at 170°C for 60–90 seconds. The brief fry sets the batter while preserving a just-wilted interior with the aromatic oils intact — the result is simultaneously crisp (from the batter shell) and intensely fragrant from the released shungiku oils. Blanched briefly (5–8 seconds in boiling salted water) and shocked in ice water, shungiku also serves as a side dish dressed in gomae (sesame dressing) or aemono, where its bitterness is balanced by the sweetness of the sesame.

Intensely aromatic, chrysanthemum-herbal bitterness with underlying sweetness; brief heat transforms from sharp and raw to fragrant and mellow; oil-rich for a leaf green