Dioscorea japonica


Dioscorea japonica, known as East Asian mountain yam, yamaimo, or Japanese mountain yam, is a type of yam native to Japan, Korea, China, Taiwan, and Assam.
Dioscorea japonica is used for food. Jinenjo, also called the wild yam, is a related variety of Japanese yam that is used as an ingredient in soba noodles.
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Names

In Japanese, it is known as.
is another kind of Dioscorea japonica, which is native to fields and mountains in Japan.
In Chinese it is known as Yěshān yào which translates to English as wild mountain medicine. Another name is rìběnshǔyù
In Korean it is known as cham ma 참마, as well as dang ma 당마.

Chemistry

Dioscorea japonica contains the antimutagenic compounds eudesmol and paeonol.

Varieties

Several formal botanical varieties have been proposed. Four are accepted:
  1. Dioscorea japonica var. japonica - Japan, Korea, Ryukyu, Bonin, Anhui, Fujian, Guangdong, Guangxi, Guizhou, Hubei, Hunan, Jiangsu, Jiangxi, Sichuan, Taiwan, Zhejiang
  2. Dioscorea japonica var. nagarum Prain & Burkill - Assam
  3. Dioscorea japonica var. oldhamii R.Knuth - Guangdong, Guangxi, Taiwan
  4. Dioscorea japonica var. pilifera C.T.Ting & M.C.Chang - Anhui, Fujian, Guangxi, Guizhou, Hubei, Hunan, Jiangsu, Jiangxi, Zhejiang

    Uses

In Japanese cuisine, both the Japanese yam and the introduced Chinese yam are used interchangeably in dishes and recipes.