noun
udo; Aralia cordata
A perennial plant native to Japan, related to ginseng. Its young shoots are eaten as a spring vegetable, and the root is used in traditional medicine. Often encountered in cooking and health contexts.
春になると、ウドの天ぷらが食べたくなる。
When spring comes, I crave udo tempura.
ウドは山菜としてよく知られている。
Udo is well known as a wild mountain vegetable.
Kanji form is rare and mainly encountered in botanical or traditional contexts; the reading うど is not obvious from the characters.
Both are popular spring mountain vegetables, but タラの芽 comes from the Aralia elata tree, while ウド is a different species (Aralia cordata) with a milder flavor and thicker stalks.
The Japanese name ウド is of uncertain origin. The kanji 独活 are ateji (characters used for their sounds rather than meaning) and do not reflect the word's derivation.