Wiktionary
n. (context chiefly in the plural English) The edible shoot of either of several species of bamboo (especially of the genera (taxlink Dendrocalamus genus noshow=1) and ''Phyllostachys'') cooked and eaten as a vegetable in Chinese and similar cuisine
WordNet
n. edible young shoots of bamboo
Wikipedia
Bamboo shoots or bamboo sprouts are the edible shoots (new bamboo culms that come out of the ground) of many bamboo species including Bambusa vulgaris and Phyllostachys edulis. They are used in numerous Asian dishes and broths. They are sold in various processed shapes, and are available in fresh, dried, and canned versions.
Raw bamboo shoots contain cyanogenic glycosides, natural toxins also contained in cassava. The toxins must be destroyed by thorough cooking and for this reason fresh bamboo shoots are often boiled before being used in other ways. The toxins are also destroyed in the canning process.
Usage examples of "bamboo shoot".
The whiskers were poisonous: one ground up in tiger meat would kill a man, while a whole one placed inside a tender bamboo shoot would give those who ate it cysts, leading to a slower death.
It was deflected by a bamboo shoot, and missed, but it spooked the ape.
Not meeting my gaze, she lay on her back and indolently ate a bamboo shoot, looking at the ceiling as she chewed.
Army accuses the Viet Cong of fighting dirty when they rub a pointed bamboo shoot in infected shit and use it as a land mine.
I once saw a bamboo shoot growing at naked-eye speeds: nano is directed, and faster than that.
A black-and-white panda chomped a bamboo shoot, a gorilla pounded his chest, a leopard lolled on a tree branch.