young edible greens; rape seedlings; pinched-off vegetable seedlings
Refers to young, tender leaves or seedlings of vegetables (especially brassica rapa) that are harvested by pinching off. Often used in cooking contexts for lightly seasoned or pickled greens.
Young rape seedlings in early spring are delicious when quickly boiled and served as ohitashi.
I picked some young greens in the field and put them in miso soup.
間引き菜 are thinned-out seedlings removed to give space to others, whereas つまみ菜 are specifically pinched-off young greens, often from the same plant that will continue to grow.
Standard kanji spelling; 菜 clearly indicates a leafy vegetable.
Alternative spelling using 摘む (to pinch/pick), emphasizing the harvesting method.
Variant with okurigana; less common.
Rare variant using 撮む; not standard for this word.
Compound of つまみ (stem of 摘まむ 'to pinch, pick') + 菜 ('leafy vegetable, greens'). The word describes young vegetable leaves or seedlings harvested by pinching them off with the fingers.