Momofuku Bossam (Korean Slow Cooked Pork Shoulder Roast)
Total Time
1 day and 10 minutes
Prep Time
10 minutes
Cook Time
5 hours
Rating
4.99 out of 5 stars
(51)
Ingredients
10 servings
- 3.5-4 kg/ 7-8 lb pork butt / shoulder (, bone in & skinless (Note 1)
- 1/2 cup (110g) white sugar
- 1/2 cup (115g) kosher or cooking salt (NOT table salt) (Note 2)
- 1 tbsp kosher or cooking salt (NOT table salt) (Note 2)
- 7 tbsp brown sugar (, light or normal (not dark)
- 2.5 cups scallions (, thinly sliced (both green and white parts, ~5-6 stems)
- 1/2 cup fresh ginger (, peeled and finely grated (Note 3)
- 1/3 cup canola oil (Note 4)
- 1.5 tsp light soy sauce (or all purpose, not dark soy sauce Note 5)
- 1 teaspoon sherry vinegar (Note 6)
- 1/2 tsp kosher or cooking salt (, to taste (Note 2)
- 2 tbsp ssamjang (Note 8)
- 1 tbsp gochujang (Note 8)
- 5 tsp sherry vinegar (Note 6)
- 2 tbsp canola oil (Note 4)
- 1 tbsp water
- 1 tsp white sugar
- 4 - 5 heads butter/bib lettuce (40 - 50+ leaves, Note 9)
- 3 cups cooked white rice
- 500g/1lb kimchi
- 12 + oysters (, raw, in shell (optional, Note 10)
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Preparation
Step 1
Bossam Slow Cooked Pork:
Step 2
Mix sugar and salt together. Pat pork dry. Coat pork in sugar salt mixture, getting it into all the crevices. Rub/pat well to adhere as best you can - discard excess salt unused/falls off (usually ~ 2-3 tbsp).
Step 3
Place in a glass dish (Note 13), cover loosely with cling wrap and refrigerated 24 - 36 hours (Note 11).
Step 4
Preheat oven to 150°C/300°F (all oven types) with rack in the middle of oven.
Step 5
Remove pork from fridge - surface will be wet. Either transfer pork to clean pan (metal, ceramic or glass) or drain off excess liquid / scrape out salt/sugar in same glass pan. Do not rinse pork.
Step 6
Roast 5 hours (Note 12), uncovered, spooning over pan juices once each hour, until you can easily pull the meat apart with 2 forks (check on side).
Step 7
Remove from oven, rest for 10 minutes (up to 1 hour is fine, loosely cover in foil).
Step 8
Turn oven up to 260°C/500°F (all oven types).
Step 9
Brown Sugar Crust:
Step 10
Mix brown sugar and salt.
Step 11
Spoon juices all over pork.
Step 12
Spoon sugar onto pork and use your hands to make it stick to the top and sides (not underneath). Make layer on top as even as you can (for even caramelisation).
Step 13
Place in oven for 10 minutes until surface is a deep golden crust, sugar is bubbling and caramelised (see VIDEO!). Keep a close eye on it from 5 minutes. If the highest points start getting black, cover with small piece of foil (just stick it on).
Step 14
Remove from oven and transfer to serving platter for serving. (Don't use pan juices, it will be salty from brine)
Step 15
Sauces:
Step 16
Ginger Shallot Sauce: Mix ingredients in bowl and stand for 20 minutes to let it soften.
Step 17
Ssam Sauce: Mix ingredients together. Oil will naturally separate over time if sauce is left to stand, just mix again to reincorporate.
Step 18
Serving:
Step 19
Place pork on serving platter with lettuce, oysters, kimchi, rice, Ginger Shallot Sauce and Ssam Sauce on the side.
Step 20
Attack the pork - it will shred easily. Shred as much or little as you want, let people do it themselves or you can do it for them. Prepare to fight over the epic crust.
Step 21
To eat, place lettuce in hand. Spoon in some rice, top with pulled pork, small piece of kimchi, oyster, some ginger shallot sauce then finally a little drizzle of spicy Ssam sauce.
Step 22
Bundle up, bite and enjoy!
Step 23
Save recipe for the next time?
