Bossam

Bossam (보쌈) — Boiled Pork Belly Wraps with Radish Salad

A classic Korean sharing dish: whole pork belly simmered until tender, sliced, and wrapped in salted napa cabbage leaves along with a spicy radish salad, salted shrimp, raw garlic and ssamjang. Traditionally eaten with soju or makgeolli around the table.

Prep

35 min

Cook

90 min

Total

125 min

Serves

6

Difficulty

Medium

Recipe ingredients

• •1.2 kg (2 lb 12 oz) pork belly, skin on, single slab with rind, ideally 3–4 cm / ~1.5 in thick
• •1 whole large napa cabbage, for wraps and for making bossam kimchi style salted leaves
• •300 g (10½ oz) Korean radish (mu), daikon works
• •2 tbsp gochugaru (Korean red pepper flakes)
• •1 tbsp salted shrimp (saeu-jeot), Korean fermented tiny shrimp; chop roughly
• •6 cloves garlic, plus 1 whole head, separated, for serving raw
• •1 piece fresh ginger, ~40 g, smashed
• •2 stalks leek, white and green parts, smashed
• •2 tbsp soy sauce, for boiling broth
• •1 tbsp rice wine (cheongju or mirin)
• •1 tsp whole black peppercorns
• •1 sheet dried kelp (dashima), ~10 cm, wiped, not washed
• •2 tbsp rice vinegar, for the radish
• •1 tsp sugar
• •120 g (water or doenjang-broth base) salt, for brining the cabbage leaves
• •200 g (7 oz) ssamjang, for serving; mix 4 tbsp doenjang + 1 tbsp gochujang + 1 tbsp sesame oil + 1 tsp sugar if unavailable
• •2 tbsp toasted sesame oil, for brushing sliced pork
• •1 tsp toasted sesame seeds

Steps

1. 1 Salt the cabbage: separate 18–20 large outer leaves from the napa cabbage, keeping them whole. Dissolve 60 g (about 3 tbsp coarse) salt in 1 L (4 cups) water and soak the leaves for 30 minutes, weighted so they stay submerged. Drain and pat dry; they should taste subtly salted and be pliable.
2. 2 Prepare the radish salad: peel the radish and cut into 4 cm × 0.5 cm matchsticks (about 300 g). Toss with 1 tsp salt, rest 10 minutes, then squeeze out liquid. Combine with 2 tbsp gochugaru, 1 tbsp salted shrimp (reserve the rest for serving), 1 tbsp rice vinegar, 1 tsp sugar, 1 finely grated garlic clove and 1 tsp toasted sesame seeds. Set aside.
3. 3 Rinse the pork belly, then place in a heavy pot and cover with cold water. Bring to a boil, blanch 5 minutes, then discard the water and rinse the pork and the pot to remove scum.
4. 4 Return pork to the pot with 2 L (8 cups) fresh water, the smashed ginger, smashed leek, peppercorns, kelp, 2 tbsp soy sauce and 1 tbsp rice wine. Bring to a gentle simmer — do not boil hard or the meat will be dry.
5. 5 Simmer uncovered for 60–75 minutes, turning the pork once or twice, until a chop goes in easily and the internal temperature reads at least 85 °C (185 °F) on an instant-read thermometer in the thickest part. The rind should be tender when pressed.
6. 6 Transfer pork to a tray, cover loosely with foil, and rest 15 minutes. While resting, brush or rub the surface with 1 tbsp toasted sesame oil; this keeps the skin supple and glossy when sliced.
7. 7 Slice the pork across the grain into roughly 1 cm (½ in) thick pieces — through the layers of fat and meat, with the rind attached to each slice.
8. 8 Assemble: on each salted cabbage leaf, lay a slice of pork, a small spoonful of radish salad, a dab of ssamjang, a sliver of raw garlic and a tiny bit of the reserved salted shrimp. Fold the leaf into a parcel and eat by hand.
9. 9 Safety note: pork belly must reach 85 °C / 185 °F internal for medium-well tenderness and safe consumption; whole cuts are safe once the juices run clear and the texture is fork-tender. If using store-bought salted shrimp straight from the tub, it is fully fermented and ready to eat; do not feed raw garlic in large quantities to children under 5.