Naengi-namul (Seasoned Shepherd's Purse)

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •Large bowl for repeated washing
• •Small paring knife
• •Medium pot for blanching
• •Spider strainer or tongs
• •Mixing bowl

Instructions

1. 1

   Trim the roots

   Sort through the naengi and pull away yellow leaves, tough stems, and any blackened pieces. Keep the slender white roots, but scrape them lightly with the edge of a small knife and pinch off wiry root hairs. The roots carry the deep spring flavor, so don't cut them away just to save time.

   If the roots are thick, split them lengthwise with the tip of the knife so they blanch at the same speed as the leaves.
2. 2

   Wash until clear

   Put the naengi in a large bowl of cold water and swish it hard with your fingers, loosening dirt from the root crowns. Lift the greens out, pour away the sandy water, and repeat 3 to 5 times, until no grit settles at the bottom of the bowl. Do not drain by tipping the bowl over the greens, or you pour the sand right back onto them.

3. 3

   Blanch briefly

   Bring 8 cups water to a full boil and add 1 tablespoon coarse sea salt. Drop in the naengi root ends first, then press the leaves under. Blanch 45 seconds for tender young naengi, or up to 75 seconds if the roots are thicker. The stems should bend and the leaves should turn a deeper green, but the plant should not collapse into a soft tangle.

4. 4

   Cool and squeeze

   Lift the naengi into cold water and swish once to stop the cooking. Gather it in both hands and squeeze gently but firmly until it is damp, not dripping. Too much water thins the doenjang seasoning; too hard a squeeze bruises the leaves and makes the namul dull. Cut into 2-inch lengths if the stems are long.

5. 5

   Mix the seasoning

   In a mixing bowl, mash together the doenjang, soup soy sauce, sesame oil, crushed sesame seeds, garlic, scallion, and gochujang if using. Taste the seasoning before the greens go in. It should be salty and nutty, because the naengi will soften it, but it should not taste sweet or heavy.

6. 6

   Season by hand

   Add the squeezed naengi to the bowl and loosen the clump with your fingers. Rub the seasoning through the roots and leaves until every strand is lightly coated. Taste one root and one leaf. If it tastes flat, add 1/4 teaspoon more soup soy sauce; if it tastes harsh, add another 1/2 teaspoon sesame oil. Stop there. Naengi should taste like spring earth, not like a spoonful of paste.

7. 7

   Rest and serve

   Let the seasoned naengi sit 10 minutes at room temperature, then taste once more. The doenjang settles into the root during this short rest. Serve in a small banchan dish with rice, soup, and one or two other vegetables, not buried under a crowded plate.

Chef Tips

• •Buy naengi with roots still attached and leaves that look lively, not slimy or yellow. If the roots have been cut away, you can still make namul, but it loses the part that makes this green itself.
• •Doenjang varies wildly in salt. Start with 1 tablespoon for 250g cleaned greens, then adjust with soup soy sauce in 1/4 teaspoon amounts. Write down the final number for your brand or your home jar.
• •The gochujang is optional and should stay small. Some homes use a little for warmth, but too much turns this into a red seasoning dish and hides the naengi.
• •Out of season, don't use tired naengi from the back of a refrigerator case. Make sigeumchi-namul (spinach namul) in winter, minari-muchim (seasoned water dropwort) in late spring, or chwinamul when mountain greens are good.

Advance Preparation

• •Naengi can be trimmed and washed up to 1 day ahead. Wrap it in a barely damp towel and refrigerate in a container, but do not blanch until the day you serve it.
• •The seasoned namul keeps 2 days refrigerated in a covered container. Let it sit at room temperature 10 minutes before serving, because refrigerator-cold sesame oil tastes muted.
• •Do not freeze this dish. The leaves turn limp and the roots lose the clean bite that makes the work worthwhile.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 55g)