Tatsoi is a tasty and beautiful oriental salad leaf vegetable that has quickly become one of the stars of the 52-week salad challenge.

Week 21

One of the best things about the salad challenge is that it really has pushed me to find out about salad leaves that I would never have bothered to grow. Before I started this challenge to have at least one large bowl of leaves to eat every week of the year (and believe me, I’m growing enough for more than just one large bowl of leaves), I could probably count the names of the leaves that I grew on my fingers. Now I’ve run out of fingers and toes to count all the new leaves (and petals) that I’ve discovered.

One of the best so far is tatsoi. I’ve grown this in a homemade box made from an old pallet that we picked up from a local DIY store. It has the most gorgeous purple-tinged deep green round leaves which grow in a neat rosette. If you’re putting together a potager, then this salad plant is an absolute must.

Like the komatsuna that it grows next to, tatsoi is a juicy, crisp leaf. It isn’t as crunchy as the former, though, but I’d probably choose it based on looks alone. I’ve planted tons more of this wonderful plant out on my balcony.

Find our more about the 52-week salad challenge here. Don’t forget to follow others taking part in the salad challenge on twitter using the hashtag #saladchat. And if you don’t have your own blog but want to write a post about your own experience of the challenge, then use our Your Blogs section