The biggest charm of Korean cuisine is 'seasonal food' made with the freshest ingredients of the month. K-snapp dives deep into one seasonal ingredient every month and shares modern recipes you can try right now.
With rising global interest in all things K-culture beyond K-pop and K-movies, how about getting to know K-snacks a little better?
What’s in season in May?
As warm spring kicks in, May brings a bounty of mountain greens like dureup and chwinamul, plus seafood such as pen shell clams, sea squirts, freshwater snails, bluefin tuna, conch, and eel.
Today, we’re spotlighting 'dureup'.
Dureup (Aralia elata shoots; also called fatsia/aralia sprouts) refers to the tender shoots of the Aralia elata tree, a prized wild green. It’s tricky to cultivate and harvest, so farmers put in extra care—making it a coveted seasonal delicacy. The picking window is very short, which is why you can’t miss it in April and May.
Blanch it or pair it—both are winners!
1. Before cooking, remove the small thorns on the dureup stems. Lightly score with a knife to peel them off. Trim the ends and rinse in cold water.
2. Want the pure taste of dureup? Lightly blanch and dip in chojang (vinegared gochujang). That’s it!
3. You can also make meat-wrapped dureup rolls. The sauce ratio is key: mix 4 parts soy sauce, 2 parts mirin, 1 part sesame oil, 2 parts oligosaccharide syrup (or corn syrup), 1 part sugar, and a pinch of pepper.
4. Brush the meat with the sauce, then blanch the dureup while the marinade soaks in.
5. Pat the blanched dureup as dry as possible with paper towels, wrap with the meat, and pan-sear in a lightly oiled skillet.
6. Finish with the remaining sauce for an extra boost of flavor.