Malabar spinach or木耳菜, pronounced mù’ěr cài in Mandarin is commonly found in China but is still rare in the US and other western countries. Mù’ěr cài is translated directly as “wood ear vegetable” and is similar in consistency and texture to cooked okra. Malabar spinach tastes similar to spinach and is used often in soups and in hot pot, but like almost every vegetable on this list can be simply stir-fried with garlic, salt, and oil.
