Vegetables

Chinese Chives

Chinese chives form bunches of flat, solid, narrow dark-green leaves.

3 identity clues

Chinese chives form bunches of flat, solid, narrow dark-green leaves.
Look for strap-like flat blades and fibrous white bases, not hollow tubular leaves.
Chinese chives are dark green; yellow chives are pale yellow from blanching.

Reading language:

Names in other languages

繁體中文: 韭菜
English: Chinese Chives
Bahasa Indonesia: Kucai (韭菜)
Tagalog: Kuchay / Chinese Chives (韭菜)

Name in Cantonese (Jyutping): gau2 coi3

What is it?

Chinese chives have narrow, flat, solid dark-green leaves, unlike the hollow tubular leaves of spring onions.

How to identify it

Look for strap-like flat blades and fibrous white bases, not hollow tubular leaves.

Common confusion

This item

Chinese Chives

Chinese chives form bunches of flat, solid, narrow dark-green leaves.
Look for strap-like flat blades and fibrous white bases, not hollow tubular leaves.
Chinese chives are dark green; yellow chives are pale yellow from blanching.

Compare

Spring Onion / Scallion

Spring onions have slender white bases and long hollow tubular green leaves.
Look for cylindrical white-to-pale-green sheaths, hollow dark-green leaves and only a small undeveloped bulb.
Spring onion leaves are hollow tubes; Chinese chive leaves are flat and solid.

Compare

Yellow Chives / Blanched Chives

Yellow chives are blanched Chinese chives with flat pale-yellow strap-like leaves.
Look for uniformly cream-to-pale-yellow flat blades and white bases; the colour should not look rotten or patchy.
Yellow chives are pale flat blades; Chinese chives are green, while spring onions are hollow tubes.

How to identify it

Chinese chives are dark green; yellow chives are pale yellow from blanching.

Common Hong Kong household uses

Use in a recipe that specifically names this vegetable; this page identifies the market item only.

Choosing & preparing

Wash thoroughly under clean running water before cooking; do not use soap, special detergent or produce wash.

Storage

Wash only immediately before cooking or eating; if pre-washing is necessary, dry thoroughly and follow the label or supplier storage directions.

Helper tip

Use the Hong Kong name and check the physical features or original label when buying. Look for strap-like flat blades and fibrous white bases, not hollow tubular leaves.

What Ma’am or Sir may say

唔該要韭菜，俾我睇清楚先。

The employer wants Chinese Chives and asks for it to be checked before purchase.

Useful market phrase

唔該要韭菜，俾我睇清楚先。

Meaning: Chinese Chives, please. Let me look at it carefully first.

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Last reviewed: 2026-08-24

Sources (5)