The season for spring food has arrived. The following are some spring vegetables popular among residents of Haimen in Nantong, East China's Jiangsu province.

Arrowhead

Braised arrowhead in brown sauce. [Photo/WeChat account: jshmrb]

People often experience dry mouth in spring, and arrowhead can help alleviate dryness and produce saliva. The food is usually braised in brown sauce with diced pork. Soaked in sauce, arrowhead tastes even better than meat.

Indian aster

Chopped Indian aster in sauce. [Photo/WeChat account: jshmrb]

Indian aster is the tenderest around Qingming Festival, which falls on April 5 this year. The most common way to eat the dish is to dress it with sauce as a side dish.

Mud snail

Stir-fried mud snails. [Photo/WeChat account: jshmrb]

Located close to Huanghai Sea and the Yangtze River, Haimen abounds in mud snails. Mud snail season is signified by the flowering of peach blossoms and they usually go with drinks.

Red shrimps

Boiled red shrimps. [Photo/WeChat account: jshmrb]

Red shrimps are one of the most popular types of seafood in spring. Just fry them quickly in hot oil and wine and then cook them with chopped ginger and green onion.

Qingtuan

Qingtuan, or green sticky rice balls. [Photo/WeChat account: jshmrb]

Qingtuan, or green sticky rice balls usually with sweet fillings, is one of the most popular spring foods in South China. It is usually made from glutinous rice mixed with pounded mugwort, which is an edible wild herb that can prevent toxic insect bites.

Edible amaranth

Stir-fried edible amaranth. [Photo/WeChat account: jshmrb]

Edible amaranth is called a longevity vegetable in some places. It has a unique taste and some people like eating cooked rice with the soup produced from stir-frying it.