Namul is a Korean term meaning "vegetables" or "wild greens" dishes. Namul refers to a traditional Korean food that is made from slightly boiled or fried vegetables and wild greens mixed with salt, soy sauce, sesame salt, sesame oil, garlic, onions, and other spices.
Namul, vegetable or wild-greens dishes, is one of the most basic side dishes in the Korean diet. While namul refers to both raw and cooked vegetables and wild-greens, it usually means cooked ones these days. Almost all kinds of seasonal vegetables and wild-greens are used for namul dishes. Koreans often skewer and dry the ingredients so they can still enjoy them when they are not in season.
There are different ways to cook namul according to the type of its ingredients:
1. Vegetables with green leafs are parboiled and seasoned with combinations of salt, soy sauce, sesame seeds, sesame oil and garlic
2. Wild greens such as Chinese bellflowers are boiled and stir-fried with seasonings.
3. Fresh seasonal vegetables are not boiled, but tossed in a sweet and sour seasoning.