Some say that bacon is "the gateway meat," but we think it's pork belly. This unctuous piece of meat is unapologetically fatty and full of flavor. One bit and you'll lick your collagen-coated lips with glee and perhaps just a small amount of guilt. But it's so worth every.luscious.bite.
When buying pork belly, splurge and get a heritage breed (ask your butcher or check your farmer's market) as the fatty quality is much better (and better for you) as well as tastier than one from a conventionally raised pig. We love this bossam recipe (a Korean dish where pork plays the main role) from Chef Judy Joo, host of Cooking Channel's Korean Food Made Simple. First, the pork belly is stewed in a flavorful broth of Korean spices, garlic, fresh ginger, and onion then roasted under a blanket of sweet and spicy glaze. When ready to eat, pieces of pork belly are placed in a lettuce leaf along with some rice, a bit of bossam sauce (Korean spices, fresh ginger, sesame oil and grated onion), and some pickled radish then rolled up into a nice little hand-held package. You are so going to love this!
Be sure to check out Chef Joo's Soft Tofu and Vegetable Stew (Jiggae) here.
Korean Roasted Pork Belly Bossam with Pickled Radish
Yield: 4 to 6 servings
“Sharing is a common theme underlying all of Korean food. Bossam embodies this convivial sentiment - everyone sharing from the same plate, yet creating a small little bespoke parcel for their own consumption. I have many memories eating this dish while a student in New York. A large group of us would order it and literally pig out. The lettuce leaves and pickles cut the fat nicely and bring a welcomed freshness to the dish. Tip: Buy the best quality pork belly you can afford. If your pork belly comes with the ribs on, slice them off and slather with the rub (make extra). Roast until cooked through and caramelized and you’ll have the tastiest ribs ever. “ ~Judy Joo
Ingredients:
3.3 pounds (1.5 kilograms) pork belly, skin on, boneless
Cooking Liquid:
8 cloves of garlic, crushed
7 spring onions or scallions, roughly chopped, roots on
4½ x 1½ inch piece (75 grams) ginger, skin on, roughly sliced
1 onion, peeled and cut into eighths
2 tablespoons dwengjang paste
Glaze:
2 tablespoons Korean soy bean paste (dwengjang)
2 tablespoons honey
1½ tablespoons grated ginger
1 teaspoon Korean chili paste (gochujang)
Bossam Sauce:
2 tablespoons Korean soybean paste (dwengjang)
2 teaspoons grated onion
2 teaspoons roasted sesame oil
2 teaspoons roasted sesame seeds
1 teaspoon grated ginger
In a heavy pot, place the pork belly in and all of the ingredients for the cooking liquid and add water to cover. Bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce heat and simmer until pork is fully cooked through, and very soft, for 2 hours. Remove the pork belly and place on a baking tray lined with foil to let cool. Discard the poaching liquid. Once cooled enough to handle, carefully cut off the skin of the pork and discard. Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit/180 degrees Celsius.
Mix all of the rub ingredients together into a smooth paste and smear generously all over the top of the skin-side of belly. Place the pork in the oven, rub side up, and roast the pork until the top is nicely caramelized, about 30 minutes. Additionally you can place the pork under the broiler briefly for a little more char. Meanwhile, make the bossam sauce by mixing all of the ingredients together well in a small bowl. Set aside. Once the pork belly is nicely caramelized on top, let rest for 15 minutes in a warm place. Then transfer the pork to a cutting board and thinly slice into two-bite pieces.
Serve the pork with the rice, lettuce leaves, bossam sauce, and pickled radish (recipe follows). Try eating the pork in this way: Place a lettuce leaf in your hand. Scoop in a spoonful of rice, top with smear of sauce, piece of pork, and finish with some pickled radish. Wrap it all up together and take a bite. You’ll love it.
Pickled Radish (Moo Sang Che)
Yield: 4 to 6 servings
Ingredients:
6 ounces (175 grams) white radish, mouli or daikon, julienned into long strips
4½ teaspoons Korean apple vinegar or rice wine vinegar
1½ tablespoon white granulated sugar
1½ teaspoons Korean chili flakes (gochugaru), or to taste
1 small clove garlic, grated
1 teaspoon salt, or to taste
In a medium sized bowl, mix all of the above ingredients together and stir to coat the radish well. Cover and chill for 1 hour before serving.
About Judy Joo
Chef, restaurateur and TV personality Judy Joo spent years as a successful analyst at Morgan Stanley before deciding to pursue her true passion and enroll at the French Culinary Institute. Judy honed her skills, earned the title of valedictorian, and went on to work as a Recipe Developer at Saveur Magazine. After an across-the-pond move to London two years working in the Ramsay empire, Judy competed for and won the UK version of ‘Iron Chef,’ becoming one of four chefs to hold this title there.
As host of Cooking Channel’s Korean Food Made Simple (currently running its second season), Judy has become a culinary ambassador for Korean cuisine, bringing the robust flavors of her native country into home kitchens each week. In 2014, Judy opened her first London restaurant, Jinjuu (Korean for “Pearl”), which offers both traditional and contemporary fare inspired by her Korean-American heritage, and in December 2015, she opened a second Jinjuu outpost in Hong Kong.
Tune-in to Korean Food Made Simple on Saturdays at 9:00am EST on Cooking Channel .
Recipes copyright, 2014, Judy Joo, All rights reserved. Published with permission by Judy Joo.
