How to distinguish Vietnamese and Chinese vegetables and fruits

Below are tips to distinguish Chinese and Vietnamese vegetables. Please take note to buy homemade food to ensure safety.

How to distinguish Vietnamese garlic and Chinese garlic

There are many types of Vietnamese garlic, but the bulbs are usually small and the sizes of the bulbs are not uniform. When the stem is removed, the cloves are small and clustered together, difficult to peel, the aroma is very characteristic, and not too spicy. Ly Son garlic has small bulbs with white skin, while Da Lat garlic has a purple-brown outer skin...
In contrast, Chinese garlic is usually large and round, the bulb size is quite uniform, the outer skin is white with a slight yellow tinge, shiny. The garlic cloves are large, shiny white and spread out, the skin is thin, very easy to peel, has a pungent, spicy taste but not fragrant.

View from the outside

- Chinese garlic: Very large bulbs, slightly yellowish white skin, easy to peel.
- Vietnamese garlic: Small bulbs, white or purple-brown outer skin, difficult to peel.

When peeling off the stem

- Chinese Garlic: Garlic cloves spread out
- Vietnamese garlic: Clustered garlic cloves.
Taste
- Chinese garlic: Pungent, pungent taste, no aroma
- Vietnamese garlic: Spicy, pleasant aroma, characteristic spicy taste.

Onion

• Chinese onions are usually green in appearance. When cut, you can easily see that the onion layer structure is not clear.

• Most of our country's onions come from Da Lat. Onions are yellow, purple or white, round and shiny.

Vietnamese dried onions usually have about 2 to 3 small to medium sized branches, while Chinese onions only have 1 large, round bulb.

Ginger

• Chinese ginger has a smooth, juicy, slightly yellow skin, and is easy to cut across the grain because it has little fiber. Another noticeable feature is that Chinese ginger is usually very large.

• Vietnamese ginger is usually a bit dark in color, the root is small and looks ugly, not as beautiful as Chinese ginger. In particular, Vietnamese ginger is very fragrant, you can smell the ginger without having to cut it.

Broccoli

Broccoli grown in Vietnam and broccoli originating from China have many different external characteristics. If observed carefully, consumers can completely distinguish between the two types.

• Chinese broccoli is dark green, smaller than Vietnamese broccoli and usually has only one flower per plant.

• Vietnamese broccoli is usually long and big. Each plant is divided into many small flowers and is light green in color.

Cabbage

• Chinese cabbage is stored in a mesh bag, round in shape and small, about the size of two fists. The leaves are more curly and darker green than regular cabbage.

• Vietnamese cabbage is large and white. The cabbage leaves are stacked tightly together to form a large mass.

Chinese cabbage

• Vietnamese bok choy is small, can be bundled, and does not spoil quickly.

• Chinese bok choy is large (often twice the weight of domestic bok choy), cannot be bunched and spoils quickly.

Carrot

• Chinese carrots often have no stems due to long-term frozen storage, the stems have rotted and must be cut off. Chinese carrots have a shiny appearance, no stripes, and are all the same size. Usually, they have no stems or blackened tips.

• Carrots are small, deep orange and have clear veins. The stems are still green and intact.

Tomato

• Chinese tomatoes rarely have stems. Although harder to distinguish, Chinese tomatoes are always much larger, stemless, and shiny. Even though they are dark red, they still feel hard to the touch.

• Vietnamese tomatoes come in all shapes and sizes. The red ones are usually a bit soft and always have their stems still attached.

Potato

• Chinese potatoes also come in many varieties, but you can tell that the skin is slightly green. When cut, the flesh is not yellow but pale white. When cooked, the potatoes are not soft and smooth, but often hard.

• Vietnamese potatoes usually have dark-colored fruit, characteristic yellow flesh, small eyes, thin and easily peeled skin. When ripe, the potatoes are smooth and delicious.

Strawberry

• Chinese strawberries have large, uniform fruits. The fruit is firm, smooth, and has a beautiful dark red color. In addition, the long part of the Chinese strawberry (covering the stem) is darker red, without white interspersed. The fruit has no aroma, feels crumbly when eaten, and has no sour taste. In addition, consumers also find that Chinese strawberries can be stored longer than Moc Chau strawberries.

• Moc Chau strawberries are of different sizes, usually large at the stem and tapering towards the tip. 90% of strawberries grown in Moc Chau are Japanese varieties, weighing from 10gr to 30gr. Moc Chau strawberries are medium sized, not too large, and are usually large when entering the main season. The fruit is moderately firm, with a bright red color. Moc Chau Japanese strawberries have a rich sweet taste but still have a slight sour taste. Moc Chau strawberries have light red flesh, mixed with white.

Mango

• Chinese mangoes are usually larger, have green or translucent yellow skin, and black spots on the stem.

• Vietnamese mangoes are smaller, bright yellow, not bruised, have smooth skin, and the top of the ripe mango is yellow and hard.

Pear

• Chinese pears are larger, usually yellow-green in color, with a smooth, beautiful skin.

• Vietnamese pears are smaller, have rougher skin and are darker in color.

  According to VTC News