Skip to content
Soul of Herbs
← Back to herbs

Perilla frutescens

Perilla

Generally recognised as safe

Other names: Beefsteak plant

Shiso / egoma—widely in Japanese cuisine and cultivation.

Square stem; often crisped aromatic leaves.

Family
Lamiaceae
Plant type
Annual / perennial herb
What the safety levels mean (expand legend)
  • Generally recognised as safe. Often a common herb with reasonable harvest and use; still read the specific warnings on the card.
  • Information. Primarily informational — details in the text and warnings below matter most.
  • Caution. Needs extra care (dose, duration, sensitive groups, interactions).
  • Risky. Significant risks — verify sources, contraindications and professional guidance.
  • Not for home experimentation. Not suitable to experiment with at home without knowledge and certainty.
  • High risk for internal use. Particular risk with internal use (e.g. alkaloids); avoid prolonged or irresponsible dosing.
  • Not specified. Level not filled in yet — rely on individual warnings and links below.
Perilla — plant habitus (Wikimedia Commons).

Photograph on Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 3.0).

Plant habit

Quick overview

A practical summary; details are in the sections below.

Safety grade
Generally recognised as safe details
Scientific sources on the card
Yes — sources are listed with claims Science section
When and what to harvest
  • Leaf — June–September
  • Fruit — October–November
Full harvest section
Processing methods

Herbal vinegar, Culinary use, Herbal oil

All methods and recipes on the card
Topics and symptoms

Common cold — overall comfort, Seasonal allergies

Topics section, Symptoms overview

Identification and mix-ups

Spicate inflorescence; leaf colours vary by form.

Possible mix-ups and risks

Basil and mints by scent and habit.

Similar herbs

  • Sweet basil

    Both mint-family plants of similar habit; shiso has broader, toothed, crinkled leaves with a scent between mint, basil and cinnamon. Basil is smooth and aniseed-like.

Topics and symptoms

More topics are in the symptoms and topics overview.

Geographic occurrence

  • Japan

    Common (expected wild occurrence in the region)

Harvest

  • LeafJune–September

    léto

    Region: Japan

    Notes: Leaves are picked from early summer until flowering; green shiso (aojiso) as a herb, red (akajiso) mainly for pickling umeboshi in June and July. Flower spikes (hojiso) are cut just after opening.

  • FruitOctober–November

    podzim

    Region: Japan

    Notes: Seeds (egoma) are harvested in autumn as the spikes brown; they are dried and pressed for oil or roasted and ground into sauces.

Storage

  • Refrigeration(Leaf)

    Fresh leaves keep 3–5 days in the fridge with stalks in water under a bag; otherwise they wilt within a day.

    Moisture:
    Wet leaves blacken.
  • Airtight storage(Fruit)

    Seed oil (egoma-abura) is rich in alpha-linolenic acid and turns rancid fast: refrigerate once opened and use within 1–2 months, never heat it.

    Light:
    Dark bottle, out of light.
    Safety:
    Discard rancid oil (fishy smell).

Processing methods on this herb card

  • Herbal vinegar(Leaf)Suitability: High suitability

    Maceration or extraction in vinegar; acidity changes flavour and extraction.

    Full method description (from the catalogue)

    Herbal vinegar uses acetic acid as part of the solvent. You get different flavours and sometimes different stability than with alcohol or water. Vinegars are used culinarily and as bases for traditional oxymels per recipe.

    Vinegar quality (food grade, known origin) matters; metal vessels can react — prefer glass or stainless steel.

    Traditional context for this method: yes·Scientific context for this method: no

    Red shiso syrup (shiso juice)

    About 20 minBeginnerScience profile

    Open recipe →

  • Culinary use(Leaf)Suitability: High suitability

    Cooking, baking, seasoning as food — general category without therapeutic claims.

    Full method description (from the catalogue)

    Culinary use covers herbs as ingredients in dishes, drinks, or spice mixes. This overview does not evaluate medicinal effects — only reminds you about species intent, allergies, and heat treatment where needed (e.g. some fruits or plant parts).

    Combining with alcohol, sugar, or long cooking changes outcomes; verify culinary sources.

    Traditional context for this method: yes·Scientific context for this method: no

  • Herbal oil(Fruit)Suitability: Medium suitability

    Macerating herbs in a vegetable oil (cold or with gentle heat).

    Full method description (from the catalogue)

    Herbal oil is made by steeping dried or fresh material in oil (e.g. olive, sunflower) over time, sometimes with gentle warming. The result is not steam-distilled essential oil — it is a different extract type and usage (often topical or culinary per recipe).

    Temperature, light, and material moisture affect shelf life; rancid oil must be discarded.

    Traditional context for this method: yes·Scientific context for this method: no

    Pressed seed oil (egoma) only cold and for salads; heating and rancidity break down the omega-3 acids.

Traditional / spiritual use

Kept separate from science — entries are cultural or symbolic, not medical advice.

  • Zi su — 'the purple leaf that revives'

    General

    Historical mentionHerbal loreMythology

    The Chinese name zi su (紫蘇, Japanese shiso) means 'purple revival': legend has the physician Hua Tuo (2nd–3rd century) save a youth poisoned by crabs with a decoction of purple leaves, whence the custom of serving shiso with raw fish and crab that continues in Japan today. A historical tale, not evidence of effect.

    Form:
    list k syrové rybě, legenda o názvu
    Claim strength:
    Historical mention
    Source note:
    Chinese medical legend of Hua Tuo; Japanese culinary tradition (shiso with sashimi).

Scientific notes

Each claim lists a study type and a source (URL or DOI) where available. Dose notes from the literature are informational only.

How to read evidence strength and study type labels

Labels summarise how the catalogue entry is tagged — they are not a medical verdict on efficacy. For every row, read the summary, limitations and source link.

Evidence strength

Evidence level not specified
The author did not grade the record; judge from the summary, limitations and source link.
Narrative / orientational literature
Descriptive or expert literature without controlled group comparison — context rather than proof of effect.
Weak evidence
Study or conclusion with major methodological limits; treat only as a pointer for further reading.
Preliminary findings
First or smaller studies — interesting direction, not the final word on efficacy or safety.
Moderate strength of evidence
Moderate strength by study design; sample and context limits still apply.
Stronger evidence
Stronger design or consistency of results within the study's stated limits.
Review article
A review summarises multiple sources; quality depends on review method and field.

Study type

Narrative / expert text
Expert text or overview without a classical study design.
In vitro study
Cell culture or test-tube experiment — does not show an effect in the body.
Animal study
Animal model — transfer to humans is not automatic.
Observational study
Observing groups without random treatment assignment; confounding is possible.
Clinical trial
Human clinical trial; sample size and control group matter.
Randomised controlled trial
Randomised controlled trials are among the stronger designs when well conducted.
Review study
A review aggregates multiple papers — quality depends on selection rules.
Systematic review
Systematic review with explicit search and selection methodology.
Meta-analysis
Statistical pooling of studies; outcome depends on input data and heterogeneity.
Regulatory assessment / monograph (EMA, WHO…)
Regulatory body summary for a herbal product — different context from a single RCT; often about products, not home tea.
Expert monograph (herbal preparations)
Structured literature summary for a plant or drug — quality depends on author and edition year.

  • The review summarises the traditional use of perilla in Chinese, Japanese and Korean medicine (colds, cough, allergy, seafood 'poisoning') and laboratory studies of anti-allergic, anti-inflammatory and antioxidant actions of leaf extracts and of the alpha-linolenic-acid-rich seed oil.

    Narrative / orientational literatureReview studyYear: 2018

    Limitations: Mostly in vitro and animal studies; human clinical data are scarce and small. It does not support treatment of allergy.

    Ahmed HM — Molecules

    Ethnomedicinal, Phytochemical and Pharmacological Investigations of Perilla frutescens (L.) Britt.

    DOI: 10.3390/molecules24010102

Images

The main photo is in the card header. More images will appear here when available.

Safety

What the warning types mean

The type on each warning helps group themes — it does not replace the separate severity badge.

Internal use
Risks from swallowing, extracts, duration of use or concentration for internal use.
Interactions / medicines
Possible effect on medicines or concurrent treatment — check sources and a professional.
Raw plant parts
Raw, unripe or poorly prepared plant parts can be dangerous.
Toxins and regulation
Toxic constituents or regulated compounds (e.g. in distillates).
Contact with the plant
Skin or mucosa irritation from contact with fresh plant or sap.
Allergy
Allergic reactions, often linked to family sensitisation.
Harvesting and contamination
Contamination, species mix-ups or harvesting from unsuitable places.

No structured safety records yet.