Burdock

Burdock — gobo in Japanese, ueong in Korean — is the long, slender taproot of Arctium lappa, a tall biennial thistle of the daisy family (Asteraceae). Dug as a slim, earth-brown rod that can run a metre into the ground, it has crisp ivory flesh whose flavour is earthy and faintly sweet with an artichoke-like, mineral, woody edge. A staple of Japanese, Korean and Chinese kitchens, it is scrubbed, julienned and soaked to tame its astringency, then stir-fried and simmered into dishes such as kinpira gobo, where its fibrous bite and savoury depth shine.