Bo Ssam Deliciousness

I made this tasty Korean slow-roasted pork last weekend, but I haven't had the time to post the recipe until now.  Boy, is this one heck of a dinner.  David Chang sells Bo Ssam at his Momofuku restaurant in NYC for $200.  But you can easily make it at home for less than $20.  (Plus you'll have enough leftovers for almost a week's worth of meals.)  Warm, tender pork wrapped in lettuce leaves with brown rice and a spicy-sweet red chili sauce.  Mmmm ...

This isn't the type of recipe that you can whip up after work.  (I'm infamous for getting home, pulling out the recipe that I had planned for that night and screeching, "Marinate for TWO HOURS?! What?!")  Not only do you dry brine the pork overnight, but you also cook it for about six hours.  That being said, it's insanely easy.  I mean, Loren could probably cook it.  And look at him.

This is after he pulled the top of the pineapple out of the kitchen garbage.

Momofuku Bo Ssam (Serves 8)

For the pork:
-1 pork shoulder
-1/2 cup sugar
-1/2 cup salt
-1/4 cup brown sugar

For the red chili sauce:
-2 T fermented bean and chili paste (It's called ssamjang, and it's available at most Asian grocery stores)
-1 T red chili paste (Called kochujang.  Also readily available at most Asian grocery stores)
-1/2 cup sherry vinegar
-1/2 cup grapeseed oil

Accompaniments:
-lettuce leaves
-cooked brown rice
-kimchi
-shredded carrot

Raw meat ... not the most appetizing thing in the world

Place the pork butt in a large bowl or pan.  Rub the salt and sugar all over the meat, and then cover it with aluminum foil or saran wrap.  Refrigerate the meat for at least six hours, preferably overnight.

Preheat your oven to 300 degrees.  Remove the meat from the fridge and rub off any excess salt or sugar.  Place the pork in a roasting pan and in the oven.  Cook for six hours.

After the first hour of cooking

By the time the pork is finished, it should easily fall apart.  We're talking seriously tender meat here.  Blast your oven up to 500 degrees.  Rub brown sugar all over the roast and place it back in the oven for  10 to 15 minutes.  A nice caramel crust should form all over the roast.

After you take the roast out of the oven, allow it to rest for up to one hour.  In the meantime, prepare the  rest of the meal.

This stuff is AMAZING.  I want to put it on everything now.

Mix together the ssamjang, kochujang, sherry vinegar and oil in a small bowl.  Rinse your lettuce leaves, set out some kimchi and shred your carrots.

For some reason, Okinawan carrots are HUGE

When you're ready to eat, place your meat, lettuce, red pepper sauce, carrots, kimchi, brown rice, etc. on the table.  Each person shreds a little bit of pork off the roast and creates his/her own lettuce wrap.  Not only is it delicious, but it's also a lot of fun.  :)

The best part?  You'll have leftover pork for days.  I made a pork and sweet potato hash the next day, and we ate pulled pork potato latkes later that week.  And I STILL have some frozen pork stashed in the freezer.  Awesome.

Well, Typhoon Bolaven continues to rage outside my window.  The wind has picked up a bit, and the storm is getting a lot noisier.  We still have power, though, and there aren't any rogue trampolines or cars in our backyard yet.  Two more hours until we reach the brunt of the storm ...

Oh hai, Typhoon Bolaven