Cilantro vs culantro

Is anybody growing culantro? I grow cilantro during the winter, but have never tried growing culantro, or even seen it for sale locally.

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We definitely can get it around here (N. Cali.) All the Vietnamese Stores carry it.

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I have a pot of culantro growing from leaves (with roots) bought at an Asian market. Just tucked them into the soil, and they did pretty well in a pot in the shade during autumn. I brought them indoors to overwinter, and they stayed healthy with new leaves in a dim corner. Now that I’ve put the pot outside, it is okay, I tried to put it under the sun, but it didn’t seem to like it. Now it was back to shade, grows extremely slowly, I don’t see a big spring start like other herbs, I will add some fertilizer to see how it goes. Still learning…

It’s handy to have the leaves in a pho at home, but I need more.

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I have wanted to grow it. I have tried to grow it from pieces I got in the produce section of a local Asian market without success. Given @naf 's success, I will try again. Seeds I’ve seen online (Etsy? ) seemed expensive.

I found this WorldCrops link with information including other names interesting. I think it was labled ngò gai in my ( NorCal) market.

I remember it being described somewhere as “the herb with a thousand names” or something like that, but I can’t find the source. Here’s a link to a link with names in 31 languages!

This looks useful for growing

I mostly use it for green seasoning, which I make batches of and freeze in ice cube trays.

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Yep.
Sometimes at the Asian Farmer’s I see it with the Root still attached.

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I’ve seen it at Vietnamese markets too, and it’s definitely part of the herb mix for certain Vietnamese dishes in the restaurant. It’s hit or miss though at the bigger, pan-Asian markets we have. We have a decent sized Vietnamese population locally, so you can easily find a lot of Vietnamese ingredients, but this herb seems spotty for availability unless you go to the specialty store.

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I’ve tried culantro from a local store, and it was good, but the price was a little high, so Is tick with my back yard cilantro. Just what i do.

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I’ve assumed it must be a bit seasonal. This package from last summer reads rau gaī

These packages seems to also include something different but I can’t quite make it out. Rau dip kah? “Fish mint”.

More tips

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NAY on the fish mint… :scream: :no_good_woman:
Not a fan…

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Great link, thanks!

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Rau ram is Vietnamese coriander. No idea what fish mint Rau diep ca is.

Once I was adventurous, and picked up some unknown herbs in Asian market, thinking it would probably be good for some Vietnamese dishes. Well, never in my life I tasted a leaf so bitter! It was neem leaves (goi sau dau)! They ended up cooked in water and used as an insecticide" for my plants instead. :rofl:

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Ah! I see!

rau ram
Persicaria odorata; not culantro

https://ucanr.edu/site/uc-master-gardeners-santa-clara-county/vietnamese-coriander#:~:text=Persicaria%20odorata%20goes%20by%20several,dishes%2C%20and%20soups%20and%20stews.

vs rau gaī
Eryngium foetidum

I see a difference in the leaves; what I call culantro has a “sawtooth” edge.

My pot of Cây Rau Ngò Gai or culantro, also called Thai parsley or Mexican coriander.

It has much more leaves in winter when indoor, I made several bowls of pho noodles and cut at least some 15+ leaves…

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Nice! Can you describe your indoor setup? Is it under lights?

Nothing special, no lights, it was next to a glass door with other tropical plants, but outside was in the shade. The room was about 17ÂşC and I watered every 14 days.

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