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You are here: Home / Ingredients / Vegetables / Burdock – Gobo

Burdock – Gobo

September 17, 2009 by Benjamin and Koshiki 3 Comments

burdock

Burdock is a root vegetable that is easily  found in the wild  and is a cultivated vegetable in Japan.  Besides  its culinary uses, it is also used in traditional Chinese medicine, and it’s sticky seeds became  an inspiration for a new, breakthrough technology – Velcro.

The roots of  young burdock plants are used in cooking , since it becomes overly fibrous when grown too large. Look for burdock roots that are firm and are between 18 – 24 inches in length and about 3/4 to 1 inch in diameter. The burdock pictured above was grown organically from a small producer, Harmony Valley, in Wisconsin.

Burdock has a crunchy texture and an earthy, nutty flavor. Its thin skin can be removed with a light scrubbing or scraping.  It is rich in phenolic (anti-oxidants) compounds and will easily  turn grayish-brown when sliced.  To prevent this,  place freshly cut burcok in cold water with a little vinegar or lemon juice.

Burdock is most famously used in Kinpira – a dish of sliced carrots and burdcok simmered in dashi, soy sauce and mirin. It also found in soups, braised dishes (e.g. chicken and vegetables) and mixed with rice.

Filed Under: Vegetables Tagged With: Ingredients

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Comments

  1. ferdinand guanzon

    July 12, 2010 at 7:23 am

    i already eat Burdock, harvest from China, is this kind of Burdock really nutritious?

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    • benjamin

      July 14, 2010 at 4:53 pm

      Not sure where you live, but burdock is quite easy to grow in the midwest (you can even forage for it). I find this burdock to be better than the stuff imported from china, that stuff doesn’t seem to fresh.

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A food blog brought to by Koshiki Yonemura. After almost two decades of running a restaurant in St. Paul with my husband, I now operate a boutique travel company, teach cooking classes and share recipes on this blog. Please leave a comment or send a message. I'd love to hear from you!

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