Fuki is known in Latin as Petasites japonicus and in English as butterbur, giant butterbur, or great butterbur (it seems to prefer the latter). Fukinotou (蕗の薹 － cool kanji! Memorize it to impress your Japanese friends as it’s usually in hiragana, ふきのとう) is the flower of the plant and a local delicacy.
Spring sees the hardy, wide-spreading plant send up shoots which, if harvested before they blossom, are commonly prepared as tempura. During this season, my wife and I scour the neighborhood for them. As the plant contains alkaloids, it is quite bitter, but some (me!) love the taste. It is said to contain antioxidant compounds. Below are photos of the plant, the flower before blossoming, and the tempura my wife prepared. - William