My favorite mountain veggie

I'm convinced that there's not much better in life than having great neighbors. We are super fortunate to have some lovely ones who share their produce (and their local knowledge!) with us, and yesterday one of my neighbors dropped off a bag of kogomi, also known as ostrich fern in English. They are one of my favorite mountain veggies, or sansai, and there are quite a few ways you can prepare it!

Not only is it versatile, but it has such a cute, curly appearance!

One way we really like it is lightly blanched and then served with a "sauce" made of sugar, soy sauce, and sesame seeds. It's a nice veggie side dish! It also works great in stir fries with meat, and I know that some people also like to make it into tempura.

If you happen to see kogomi at your local supermarket or farmer's market for a reasonable price, I would encourage you to give it a try, especially if you enjoy experimenting with cooking!