Perilla frutescens

Along with other plants in the genus Perilla, the plant is commonly called "perilla". It is also referred to as Korean perilla, due to its extensive cultivation in Korea and use in Korean cuisine.

In the United States, where the plant has become a weed, the plant is known by many names, such as perilla mint, beefsteak plant, purple perilla, Chinese basil, wild basil, blueweed, Joseph's coat, wild coleus and rattlesnake weed.[6]

Perilla frutescens has three known varieties.[13]

• P. frutescens (var. frutescens) – called Korean perilla or deulkkae.
• P. frutescens var. crispa – also called shiso or tía tô.
• P. frutescens var. hirtella – also called lemon perilla.

Contact dermatitis may occur in people handling the leaves or oil.[5] Consumption of large amounts of seeds has resulted in anaphylaxis.[5]

In Manchu cuisine, perilla leaves are used to make efen, ("steamed bun").[17] The perilla buns are made with glutinous sorghum or glutinous rice flour dough filled with red bean paste and wrapped with perilla leaves.[17] The dish is related to Food Exhaustion Day, a traditional Manchu holiday celebrated on every 26th day of the 8th month of the lunisolar calendar.

In India, perilla seeds are roasted and ground with salt, chilis, and tomatoes to make a savoury side dish or chutney. In Kumaon, the seeds of cultivated perilla are eaten raw, the seed oil is used for cooking purposes, and the oil cake is consumed raw or fed to cattle. The roasted seeds are also ground to prepare a spicy chutney. The seeds and leaves of perilla are also used for flavoring curries in north east India. Manipuri cuisine uses the ground roasted seed in a salad. Its seeds are used in salads and meat dishes by the Khasis and the Assamese, Bodos and Nagas are also well aware of its uses.

In the Tōhoku regions of northeastern Japan, it was believed to add ten years to a person's lifespan. A local preparation in Fukushima Prefecture, consists of half-pounded non-glutinous rice patties, which are skewered, smeared with miso, blended with roasted and ground jūnen seeds, and roasted over charcoal.

Oil pressed from the seeds was historically used to in lamps. The warlord Saitō Dōsan (1494–1556) was said to have been originally a seller of egoma seed oil.

In Korean cuisine, perilla leaves are widely used as a herb and a vegetable. Perilla can be used fresh as a ssam vegetable, fresh or blanched as a namul vegetable, or pickled in soy sauce or soybean paste to make pickle or kimchi.

Deulkkae, the perilla seeds, are either toasted and ground into powder, or toasted and pressed to make perilla oil. Toasted deulkkae powder is used as a spice and a condiment for soup, seasoned vegetable dishes, noodle dishes, kimchi, and fishcake. It is also used as a coating or topping for desserts: Yeot and several rice cake varieties can be coated with toasted perilla powder. Perilla oil made from toasted perilla seeds is used as a cooking oil and as a condiment.

In Korean-style western food, perilla leaves are sometimes used to substitute basil, and the seed powder and oil is used in salad dressings as well as in dipping sauces. A Michelin-starred restaurant in Seoul serves nutty vanilla ice cream whose ingredient is perilla oil.[18]

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  Perilla leaves as a wrap vegetable
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  Stir-fried in perilla oil
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  Pan-fried perilla leaves
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  Deep-fried perilla leaves
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  Pickled perilla leaves
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  Perilla leaf kimchi
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  Perilla seeds
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  loach soup served with Zanthoxylum piperitum and perilla seed powder
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  Potato dough soup boiled with perilla powder
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  Sweet potato stems seasoned with perilla powder)
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  Perilla granita

In Nepal, perilla seeds are roasted and ground with salt, chilis, and tomatoes to make a savoury dip/side dish or chutney.