Gondre facts for kids

Cirsium setidens, also known as gondre or Korean thistle, is a perennial plant. This means it's a plant that lives for more than two years. It belongs to the Cirsium group of plants, which are part of the Asteraceae family (like daisies and sunflowers).

This plant grows naturally in the mountains of the Korean peninsula. In Korea, its young leaves are often used to make a type of seasoned vegetable dish called namul. In the Korean language, it has a few names: goryeo-eongeongkwi (고려엉겅퀴), which means "Goryeo thistle", and gondeure (곤드레).

What Does Gondre Look Like?

Cirsium setidens is a perennial plant that can grow quite tall, reaching about 100 to 120 centimeters (around 3 to 4 feet) high.

Leaves and Stems

The leaves at the bottom of the plant and on the lower part of the stem (called cauline leaves) usually dry up and fall off when the flowers bloom. The leaves in the middle of the stem are arranged one after another (this is called alternately). They are shaped like an oval or a wide spearhead (lanceolate). These green leaves are about 15 to 35 centimeters long and have a pointy end. Their edges can be spiny or smooth. They also have a small stalk that connects them to the main stem, called a leafstalk.

The top side of the leaves is usually hairy, while the underside often looks whitish and doesn't have hair. The leaves higher up on the stem are smaller and more spearhead-shaped with pointy ends. They have shorter leafstalks and spiny edges. The roots of the plant grow straight down into the ground.

Flowers and Seeds

Beautiful purple flowers bloom on the gondre plant from July to October. The flower heads, which are like a cluster of many small flowers (called capitula), are quite large. They are about 3 to 4 centimeters wide. Each flower head grows at the tip of a branch or the main stem.

The protective leaves around the flower head (called involucres) are shaped like a bell. They are about 20 millimeters long and 20 to 30 millimeters wide. These protective leaves often have fine, spider-web-like hairs on them. Inside, there are smaller leaves (called involucels) that have pointy ends and feel sticky on the underside. These are arranged in seven rows. The petals of the flowers (called corollas) are purple and about 15 to 19 millimeters long.

After the flowers, the plant produces fruits that are small, dry seeds called achenes. Each achene is about 3.5 to 4 millimeters long. Attached to each seed is a feathery tuft called a pappus. These brown pappi are about 11 to 16 millimeters long and help the seeds float away in the wind, spreading the plant.

Gondre in Korean Food

Gondre is a popular ingredient in Korean cooking, especially in the Jeongseon area. A famous dish from there is gondeure-namul-bap. This dish is a type of namul made using dried gondre leaves. The dried gondre is seasoned with perilla oil and then served mixed with or on top of rice. It's a delicious and healthy way to enjoy this plant!

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  Dried gondre as banchan (side dish)

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  Gondeure-namul (seasoned gondre side dish)

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  Gondeure-namul-bap (gondre rice)