1.157

11 (Fri) June 2010

Bossam (WHAT)

2.0

at Bomeh Pin Garden  (WHERE)

-Oksu, Seongdong, Seoul, Korea-

with MtG

The Garden (garden) that Bloomed (pin) in Spring (bom).  With a few cosmetic alterations to an expansive basement space that once served as a bathhouse/spa, this restaurant was born.  What were previously steam rooms have been converted into private dining rooms, which seems kinda gross, now that I think about it.

Bossam (보쌈) is a Korean dish.  At its simplest, it’s made by boiling a chunk of pork, slicing the into thin pieces, then serving them with kimchi.  Pork belly is the most popular cut, but anything will do, preferably something with fat.  The meat may be steamed instead of boiled, sometimes finished with a pan-fry just prior to serving to give it a slight crisp, as here.  Sauces may be involved, such as shrimp paste or soy sauce or chili paste.  Veggies for wrapping may be involved, such as parboiled cabbage or perilla leaves or sliced garlic.  Both at home or out, it’s one of the most common methods for eating pork where barbecue isn’t involved.

Here, the pork is served with fresh garlic chives (buchu), which are presented, along with the meat, on a nifty steamer that kept the meat warm but also wilted the chives after a couple minutes.  The pork itself was kinda bland.