Water Pepper, Japanese 'Rubra'

A spicy leaf, delicious in salads and very popular in Japanese cuisine. Water pepper is from the knotweed family and originally grows in damp places in the subtropics. The annual plant self-seeds in our climate and then germinates the following year after some raking through the soil. Water pepper likes moisture and light shade.

Eat young shoots at the beginning of the flowering season, and germinated seeds in salads. The leaves can also be dried. Although the plant is very healthy, it should not be eaten raw in large quantities, so keep it as a seasoning! After stir-frying, however, larger quantities can be eaten. Water pepper contains a lot of vitamin C, iron, calcium, phosphorus, magnesium, and rutin. The taste is quite peppery.