Bracken Fern (Gosari): The Spring Wild Food That Started My Foraging Life
(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 ...