Your Guide to Spring Greens from a Beloved Japanese Family Farm
Step into the greenhouse with Janet Nagamine of Hikari Farms, for the delicious rundown on shoots and greens.
Swinging through the door at Bi-Rite Markets is always a sensory experience, but especially in spring. This time of year, the produce bins overflow with soft greens, baby roots, and fragrant herbs. As the weather grows warmer and the days longer, our farmer friends pull in exceptionally sweet and tender veggies. “It’s ‘everything’s-on-steroids’ time,” jokes Janet Nagamine of Hikari Farms. “It’s a beautiful time. It looks very alive, and happening, and happening quickly.”
You might be better acquainted with their mustard spinach or cute turnips, but Hikari Farms also has an extraordinary story rooted in California. Akira and Hideko Nagamine originally came from Kagoshima, Japan, and immigrated to Watsonville in 1956. Akira only had twenty dollars in his pocket and plans to pick strawberries. He founded his own flower farm in 1967, then once that market moved overseas, eventually grew Japanese vegetables.
Akira and Hideko Nagamine | Hikari Farms Janet Nagamine | Becky Duffett
Their daughter Janet Nagamine became a doctor, as well as taking over the family farm in 2014. It was never quite the plan, but she felt compelled to continue her parents’ legacy. Akira passed away on the farm at 98 years old in 2023, while Hideko is now 104 years old, and still making boxes and labels. “It’s preventative medicine, right?” Janet says. She absolutely attributes her parents’ long and healthy lives to the power of organic vegetables, and the Japanese approach to putting them on the plate first, and making meat an accent. “I do believe it has a lot to do with diet, for sure.”
Today, her family’s legacy whispers through about 13 acres of greenhouses illuminated with soft light and 8 acres of apple orchards bobbing with white blossoms. In addition to sharing their produce with Bi-Rite, some gets snapped up by star restaurants across the Bay Area, including Rintaro, State Bird, Ramen Shop, and Chez Panisse. It also feeds four school districts in the Central Coast, thanks to a state program getting organic fruits and veggies into schools. Janet also loves hosting tours for kids, chefs, locals with Japanese heritage, and visitors from Japan, both sides seeking a sense of connection to this Japanese farming tradition. “It’s honoring a legacy, but it’s also cultural preservation.”
Ready for a taste? Step into the greenhouse with Janet for the delicious rundown on shoots and greens. Here’s what’s lush in heritage vegetables this spring.
Komatsuna (mustard spinach)
Komatsuna has round green leaves, which kind of look like bok choy, but with slim stems and much more tender texture. Part of the brassica family, just like cabbage and broccoli, it has a mildly peppery flavor. You could add handfuls to soups or stir-fries, and Janet loves chasing it around a pan with meaty shiitake mushrooms.
Mizuna (mustard greens)
You might spot it in a salad mix, but it’s rare to find a big beautiful bunch of mizuna, with its slender and jagged leaves. Light, crisp, and delicate, it’s a little bit spicy, but we’re not talking arugula level. Janet leaves mizuna fresh and tosses it into salads with miso vinaigrette. You can find mizuna at our Divisadero location.
Negi (green onions)
Somewhere between scallions, spring onions, and green garlic, long and skinny negi are “super intense green onions” that pack a pungent punch. Janet thinly slices and scatters them over soups, stir-fries, and nearly everything. Negi do grow year round, but they get a bump in spring.
Tokyo turnips
They’re Janet’s favorite vegetable. They’re on the menu at Chez Panisse. Round, white, and chubby as a ping pong ball, Tokyo turnips need no introduction — to know them is to love them. Janet rolls the bulbs around with butter, miso, and a drizzle of agave syrup, to tease out the sweetness. Don’t you dare toss the tops, they’re a delight in miso soup or fried rice.
Japanese cucumbers
Many cukes are best in summer, but not these Japanese stunners, which thrive in the greenhouse in spring. Long and slender, they have a thin skin, crisp bite, and almost melon aroma. “You can smell it, even popping open a box,” Janet says. Her mom makes sunomono, thinly slicing on a mandoline, then marinating in good rice vinegar with a pinch of sugar.
Becky Duffett is a food writer living and eating in San Francisco. Follow her on Instagram at @beckyduffett.
