Mountain Vegetables

By Robin Rhee

When I was a youngster, I spent a lot of time with my grandmother who was an avid gardener. She taught me the names of all of the plants in her expansive flower and vegetable garden. Every spring she let me pick dandelions which she cooked to serve with our main dinner course. She always reminded me to remove and discard the buds and flowers. My grandfather liked his sauteed with diced salted pork. My grandmother preferred hers boiled and dressed with cider vinegar.

Fast forward to my marriage to a man who was born and raised in Seoul. He introduced me to Korean food with its many side dishes. I could identify a number of them ― black beans, bean sprouts, various kinds of kimchi ― but I was clueless about the wilted greens which were often dressed with sesame oil and a hint of garlic. When I asked my husband what they were, he replied, "Those are mountain vegetables."

In my mind, I pictured individuals scaling Korea's mountains to collect those delicacies. Much later I realized that my city slicker husband could not identify a cucumber vine from poison ivy.

When we moved to Korea, where we lived for a number of years, I was hopeful that I could solve the mystery of mountain vegetables, but that was not the case. I often saw groups of women harvesting greens along rural roads, but could never find out the names of the greens they were picking.

Recently, while flipping through TV channels in search of something interesting to watch, I hit the jackpot. A cooking show was featuring a woman who lives in a suburban New York town, and has published a cookbook about edible weeds.

As she demonstrated how to prepare mugwort and mushroom soup, she talked about her edible weed journey. She had always collected greens for her family meals, and friends had invited her to help them identify the weeds in their private gardens.

Her cookbook has illustrations to help readers identify edible weeds, and recipes to incorporate them into family meals.

Her most exciting contact came from a New York City chef who asked if she could supply him with greens for his avant-garde diners. She agreed, so during the growing season she sets forth with collection bags and scissors to snip off the tenderest leaves. Then she makes a trip to the Big Apple to deliver her harvest.

Dandelion greens are still popular, but do not discard the buds and blossoms. Rather, dip them in hot oil. Their taste is similar to popcorn, she says.

Instead of stuffing dumplings, try stuffing lily blossoms.

She ended her presentation by giving three reasons to gather edible weeds:

1) They are said to be very nutritious.

2) They are a self-sustaining resource since weeds seem to flourish everywhere.

3) Best of all, they are free!

So whether you call them mountain vegetables or edible weeds, keep on foraging!

The writer is a former weekly columnist for The Korea Times and currently resides in Centerville, Ohio.