Boiled Pork Wraps~ Bossam 보쌈

I cook Bossam as main dish for his birthday meal since we both love this dish. Bossam is a Korean boiled pork dish where the meat is eaten with veggie wrap (ssam). The boiled pork is called Suyuk 수육. While the ssam normally consist of lettuce, perilla leaves, salted napa cabbage, radish salad, salted fermented shrimp, raw oyster or anything that up to your preference.

Ingredients:

Pork belly in whole & wide cut - 1kg

Yellow onion - 1/2 pc

Green onion white parts - 2 stalks

Garlic cloves - 8 pcs

Ginger slice - 2 pcs

Black peppers - few dash

Dwenjang - 1-1/2 tablespoon

Brewed coffee* - 1/2 cup

Water - 8 to 10 cups

*Brewed coffee is use here to make the meat color looks darker. It can be omit or substitute with 1 teaspoon of instant coffee powder

How to cook:

Step 1. 

In a pot, put in all the ingredients (except pork belly), let it boil over medium heat for about 5 minutes. 

Step 2.
Add the whole pork belly, continue to let it boil for 20 minutes without cover under medium high heat.

Step 3. 

After 20 mins, reduce the heat to medium low, continue to let it boil with cover this time for another 20 mins. Boil until the meat is very tender then it is done. 

Step 4. 

Remove the pork belly from the pot, thinly slice the meat and serve with ssam ingredients. 

Normally the veggies that goes along to make ssam will be lettuce, perilla leaves, slice onions, slice garlics, slice chilli peppers, ssamjang, musaengchae (radish salad) and kimchi. Recipe of Musaengchae will be share later in another recipe. 

My second time cooking a Korean Birthday Meal 두번째 생일 식사 만들기~

Since I took a career break (from last year), I have been cooking a lot of Korean dish daily. Today is my second time challenge myself cooking a a simple Korean birthday meal for my Korean husband. Still, took me nearly 4 hours to complete - from preparation to cooking done; and it is not including groceries shopping, dish washing and cleaning later. It's tiring (to be honest), but nothing beats when you see a happy and surprise face upon seeing the birthday meal on the table.

Bossam (boiled pork belly) is the main dish today since it's our favourite. Bossam is eaten with ssam (veggie wrap), therefore I also prepared lettuce, perilla leaves, mat-kimchi, mul-saengchae (marinated shredded radish), chili, onions, garlic slices and ssamjang. Seogogi Miyeok-guk (seaweed soup with beef brisket) which is a must for Korean birthday. And a seafood pajeon as addition dish with dipping sauce made of soy sauce, sesame oil, sesame seed, gochugaru, and chopped spring onion. I will blog about how to cook Bossam later to keep record for my Korean Kitchen.