Namul is a general term for a Korean seasoned vegetable dish. The name of the dish may vary slightly depending on what vegetables are used and how they are prepared, but they will nonetheless still be a type of namul.

Virtually any type of vegetable, herb, or green can be used, and the dish include roots, leaves, stems, seeds, sprouts, petals, and fruits. They can be prepared as a single type of namul, or they can be mixed. Although most of the vegetables are blanched

Blanching

Blanching is a cooking process wherein the food substance, usually a vegetable or fruit, is plunged into boiling water, removed after a brief, timed interval, and finally plunged into iced water or placed under cold running water to halt the cooking process.The meaning of blanching is "to whiten",...

 before being seasoned, the method of preparation can also vary; they may be served fresh (raw), or boiled, fried, sautéed

Sautéing

Sautéing is a method of cooking food, that uses a small amount of fat in a shallow pan over relatively high heat. Ingredients are usually cut into pieces or thinly sliced to facilitate fast cooking. The primary mode of heat transfer during sautéing is conduction between the pan and the food being...

, fermented, dried, or steamed. Seasonings can also vary. Namul can be seasoned with salt, vinegar, sesame oil

Sesame oil

Sesame oil is an edible vegetable oil derived from sesame seeds. Besides being used as a cooking oil in South India, it is often used as a flavor enhancer in Chinese, Japanese, Korean, and to a lesser extent Southeast Asian cuisine.The oil from the nutrient rich seed is popular in alternative...

, and even gochujang

Gochujang

Gochujang is a savory and pungent fermented Korean condiment. Traditionally, it has been naturally fermented over years in large earthen pots outdoors, more often on an elevated stone platform, called jangdokdae in the backyard...

(Korean red pepper paste). Namul are typically served as banchan

Banchan

Banchan refers to small dishes of food served along with cooked rice in Korean cuisine. This word is used both in the singular and plural....

(a side dish accompanying the main course). It is possible to have more than one type of namul served as a banchan at a single meal.

A few examples of namul include chwinamul

Chwinamul

Chwinamul is a Korean leaf vegetable. It consists of the leaves of various species of wild flowering plants, including Aster scaber. There are approximately 24 edible varieties in Korea of which most are found on mountains...

(wild leafy plants), hobak namul (made from hobak, a Korean squash with green skin and orange flesh), shigeumchi (spinach), and kongnamul

Kongnamul

Kongnamul, an example of Korean cuisine, refers to a seasoned banchan made from soybean sprouts, as well as being a term for the sprouts themselves in the Korean language...

(soybean sprouts).

Varieties

Name	Korean name	Description
Kongnamul Kongnamul Kongnamul, an example of Korean cuisine, refers to a seasoned banchan made from soybean sprouts, as well as being a term for the sprouts themselves in the Korean language...	콩나물	Cold boiled soybean sprouts with sesame oil, spring onions, garlic and sesame seeds
Sukjunamul Sukjunamul Sukjunamul refers to a seasoned banchan made from mung bean sprouts in Korean cuisine. However, the sprouts themselves are also called sukjunamul in the Korean language...	숙주나물	Cold boiled mungbean sprouts with sesame oil, spring onions, garlic and sesame seeds
Sigeumchi namul	시금치나물	Lightly blanched Blanching Blanching is a cooking process wherein the food substance, usually a vegetable or fruit, is plunged into boiling water, removed after a brief, timed interval, and finally plunged into iced water or placed under cold running water to halt the cooking process.The meaning of blanching is "to whiten",...  spinach dressed with spring onions, garlic and sesame seeds
Miyeok muchim	미역무침	Miyeok (wakame Wakame , Undaria pinnatifida, or Miyeok in Korean, is a sea vegetable, or edible seaweed. It has a subtly sweet flavour and is most often served in soups and salads.... , a seaweed) with sweet vinegar and salt
Musaengchae/Muchae	무생채/무채	Julienned Julienning Julienne is a culinary knife cut in which the food item is cut into long thin strips, not unlike matchsticks. Sometimes called 'shoe string', e.g. 'shoestring fries'...  white radish in a sweet vinegar sauce, sometimes with ground dried chili pepper
Gosari namul	고사리나물	Stir-fried bracken fern Fern A fern is any one of a group of about 12,000 species of plants belonging to the botanical group known as Pteridophyta. Unlike mosses, they have xylem and phloem . They have stems, leaves, and roots like other vascular plants...  shoots that have been softened and seasoned
Chwinamul Chwinamul Chwinamul is a Korean leaf vegetable. It consists of the leaves of various species of wild flowering plants, including Aster scaber. There are approximately 24 edible varieties in Korea of which most are found on mountains...	취나물	Stir-fried and seasoned Aster Scaber
Bireum namul	비름나물	Blanched Blanching Blanching is a cooking process wherein the food substance, usually a vegetable or fruit, is plunged into boiling water, removed after a brief, timed interval, and finally plunged into iced water or placed under cold running water to halt the cooking process.The meaning of blanching is "to whiten",...  and seasoned amaranthus, usually with gochujang Gochujang Gochujang is a savory and pungent fermented Korean condiment. Traditionally, it has been naturally fermented over years in large earthen pots outdoors, more often on an elevated stone platform, called jangdokdae in the backyard...
Naengi namul	냉이나물	Blanched Blanching Blanching is a cooking process wherein the food substance, usually a vegetable or fruit, is plunged into boiling water, removed after a brief, timed interval, and finally plunged into iced water or placed under cold running water to halt the cooking process.The meaning of blanching is "to whiten",...  and seasoned shepherd's purse Shepherd's Purse Capsella bursa-pastoris, known by its common name shepherd's-purse because of its triangular, purse-like pods, is a small annual and ruderal species, and a member of the Brassicaceae or mustard family...
Dolnamul	돌나물	Raw sedum Sedum Sedum is a large genus of flowering plants in the family Crassulaceae, members of which are commonly known as stonecrops. It contains around 400 species of leaf succulents that are found throughout the Northern Hemisphere, varying from annual and creeping herbs to shrubs. The plants have...  with pepper sauce dressing
Gogumasun namul	고구마순나물	Boiled/seasoned sweet potato Sweet potato The sweet potato is a dicotyledonous plant that belongs to the family Convolvulaceae. Its large, starchy, sweet-tasting, tuberous roots are an important root vegetable. The young leaves and shoots are sometimes eaten as greens. Of the approximately 50 genera and more than 1,000 species of...  shoot Shoot Shoots are new plant growth, they can include stems, flowering stems with flower buds, and leaves. The new growth from seed germination that grows upward is a shoot where leaves will develop... s
Gaji namul	가지나물	Steamed eggplant
Doraji namul	도라지나물	Boiled balloon flower root Root In vascular plants, the root is the organ of a plant that typically lies below the surface of the soil. This is not always the case, however, since a root can also be aerial or aerating . Furthermore, a stem normally occurring below ground is not exceptional either... s

See also

• Korean cuisine
• Banchan
  Banchan
  Banchan refers to small dishes of food served along with cooked rice in Korean cuisine. This word is used both in the singular and plural....
  
  
• Bibimbap
  Bibimbap
  Bibimbap is a signature Korean dish. The word literally means "mixed meal." Bibimbap is served as a bowl of warm white rice topped with namul and gochujang . A raw or fried egg and sliced meat are common additions. The ingredients are stirred together thoroughly just before eating...
  
  
• Anju
  Anju (food)
  Anju is a general term for a Korean side dish consumed with alcohol . Some of these side dishes can also be ordered as an appetizer or a main dish. These side dishes are different from the banchan side dishes served with a regular Korean meal...
  
  
• List of Korea-related topics

External links

• Life in Korea: Korean seasoned vegetables