Wild Harvest Life - Winter Family in PNW

Wild bracken fern harvested in Washington became gosari namul and a comforting bowl of Korean bibimbap. I have loved gosari for as long as I can remember—probably since I was old enough to chew it. Gosari is the Korean name commonly used for prepared young bracken fern. Its flavor is mild, but its pleasantly firm and chewy texture is unlike most other vegetables. Sometimes it almost feels as if I am chewing a very tender piece of meat. That texture is exactly why I have always loved it. In Korea, gosari appears in many familiar dishes. It is one of the classic vegetables used in bibimbap, and it is an essential ingredient in yukgaejang, a spicy Korean beef soup. A similar soup made with chicken is called dakgaejang. I also enjoy adding gosari to japchae and other dishes at home, even when it is not part of the most standard recipe. If I have prepared gosari available, I can usually find a place for it. Today, I am sharing how I turn the wild bracken fern I harvested in Washington into ...

  (Gosari is the Korean name for bracken fern, especially the young edible shoots used in Korean cooking.) A Spring Treasure in Southwest Washington Young bracken fern shoots, known as gosari in Korean, growing in the mountains of Southwest Washington.        Every spring, from early April to early June, bracken fern begins to appear around our mountain home in Southwest Washington. We live at about 1,800 feet elevation, and this area seems to be a perfect place for gosari to grow. I am Korean, married to an American husband, and I have lived in the United States for more than 17 years. I grew up in Seoul as a city girl, so even though gosari is one of Korea’s most beloved wild vegetables, I had never harvested it myself. About five years after moving to the United States, a Korean friend visited our home and said, “You have so much gosari here. Why aren’t you picking it?” She showed me what to harvest, when to harvest it, how to prepare it, and how to preserve ...