Shepherd’s purse. The seeds, leaves, and root of shepherd's purse are edible. It is a rather scraggy plant which grows wild. In Greece it is used to bulk up dishes in the absence of other greens. In Korea the roots may be used in the traditional vegetable dish of namul. In Japan it is included as one of those early spring vegetables in a symbolic special festival called nanakusa-no-sekku. And it is routinely used stir fried with rice cakes or as an ingredient in wontons in the Jiangnan region of China.
Namul are a class of classic dish of seasoned vegetable side dishes. Namul may have fresh leafy greens and wild greens seasoned with spices or be based on squash, spinach or beansprouts. It may be raw or cooked and seasoned with spices and vinegar. It seems really to be a term which indicates some sort of accompanying vegetable.
