Korean Cuisine

Unmarinated pork belly (7-8 mm thick) grilled on a built-in tabletop grill or cast-iron plate at 200°C. Cut with scissors at the table. Guests wrap meat in kkaennip or lettuce with ssamjang, a raw garlic slice and fried kimchi. Side dishes cooked directly on the hot plate: kimchi-bokkeum and pa-muchim (spring onion salad).

Universal technique for banchan. Four methods: (1) Blanch + dress (spinach, kongnamul), (2) Stir-fry in sesame oil (courgette, aubergine), (3) Raw brine + dress (cucumber, radish), (4) Steam + dress (aubergine, broccoli). Base dressing: soy sauce, sesame oil, garlic, sesame seeds. Variation with gochugaru for a spicy version.

Batter of flour, eggs and water (1:1:1.5 ratio). Fillings: kimchi (kimchi-jeon), seafood + spring onion (haemul-pajeon) or courgette (hobak-jeon). Fry in a generous layer of neutral oil at 160°C. Crispy outside, soft inside. Thickness: 0.8-1 cm. Dipping sauce: soy sauce + rice vinegar + gochugaru.

Base: myeolchi stock + gochujang (3 tbsp) + gochugaru (1 tbsp) + sugar (2 tbsp) + ganjang (1 tbsp). Bring to a boil, add tteok (rice cakes), simmer until sauce thickens and tteok are cooked through (8-10 min). The sauce should coat the tteok with a glossy glaze. Variations: hard-boiled egg, eomuk (fish cake), cheese or mozzarella.

Base: myeolchi stock or dashi water. Dissolve 2 tbsp doenjang in warm stock: do not stir, let it dissolve naturally. Add aehobak (courgette), tofu, pyogo and prawns or clams. Cook without a lid so sharp fermentation gases can escape. Serve in an earthenware ttukbaegi straight from the heat.

Five components in one bowl: (1) Cooked rice as base, (2) Five colourful namul (spinach green, kongnamul white, carrot banchan orange, pyogo brown, courgette yellow), (3) Grilled meat or yukke (raw beef tartare), (4) Raw egg yolk on top, (5) Gochujang sauce on the side. Serve in a searing hot stone bowl (dolsot) for crispy nurungji (scorched rice crust). Mix well before eating.

Base: anchovy or seafood stock. Fry garlic in sesame oil, add gochugaru for an oil-red base (30 sec). Add stock, then mussels, prawns or minced pork. Spoon in sundubu (soft tofu) piece by piece. Crack a raw egg over the hot jjigae just before serving. Cook and serve in a ttukbaegi.

Cook dangmyeon separately (6-8 min), oil and set aside. Stir-fry each vegetable component (carrots, spinach, bell pepper, shiitake, spring onion) individually on high heat and set aside. Marinate and cook beef separately. Combine all components with dressing (soy sauce, sugar, sesame oil). Sesame seeds and sesame oil as finishing.

Soak short ribs in cold water for 1 hour (blood removal). Blanch 5 min in boiling water. Marinade: ganjang, grated pear, garlic, ginger, sugar, doenjang. Marinate 4 hours. Braise in marinade + water + dried jujubes and chestnuts on low heat for 1.5-2 hours. Serve in a ttukbaegi, garnish with egg ornament (jidan).

Lightly season rice with sesame oil and sea salt. Place gim (nori) on bamboo mat. Spread rice layer (0.5 cm) leaving 2 cm from the top edge. Filling in the centre: fried egg, imitation crab or beef, cucumber, carrots, spinach namul, danmuji (yellow pickled radish). Roll tightly. Rub outside with sesame oil. Cut with a wet sharp knife into 1.5 cm pieces.

Poach pork belly in aromatic liquid (doenjang, ginger, garlic, green onion, peppercorns, orange peel, 2 hours). Rest 10 min, slice thinly. Serve with fresh ssam wraps (lettuce, kkaennip), raw oysters, dongchimi (water kimchi) and ssamjang. The fat renders away during slow poaching.

Filling: minced pork, tofu (squeezed dry), glass noodles (cooked, chopped), kimchi (squeezed dry), garlic, ginger, sesame oil. Wrapper: thinly rolled dough from flour + hot water, or store-bought. Folding technique: half-moon with double-crimped edge. Boiled (mandu-guk), steamed (jjin-mandu) or pan-fried (gun-mandu). Dipping sauce: ganjang + rice vinegar + gochugaru.

Stuff a small whole chicken (400-500g) with glutinous rice, dried jujubes, garlic cloves, chestnuts and ginseng root. Tie closed, place in cold water (do not blanch first). Simmer on low heat for 90 minutes. Serve in individual earthenware pots with sea salt and gochugaru on the side.

Cut chicken thighs into bite-size pieces and marinate (gochujang, gochugaru, soy sauce, mirim, sesame oil, garlic, ginger: 2 hours). Heat cast-iron plate at the table. Grill chicken, then halfway through add sliced goguma (sweet potato), cabbage and spring onion. Stir-fry until caramelised. Finish: add tteok or fried rice (bokkeumbap) using the fond from the plate.

Two varieties: (1) Mul-naengmyeon: buckwheat noodles in cold beef broth with ice, cucumber, pear, kimchi and hard-boiled egg. (2) Bibim-naengmyeon: same noodles served dry with spicy gochujang dressing. Cook noodles (3-4 min), rinse immediately in ice water, shake dry thoroughly. Serve ice-cold.

Beat eggs with myeolchi stock (1 egg per 80 ml stock), not water. Add spring onion, prawns and sea salt. Pour into earthenware ttukbaegi. Steam over gently simmering water (not a rolling boil) until the custard is set but still gently trembles in the centre.

Pork collar or belly in thin slices (3-4 mm). Marinade: gochujang, gochugaru, ganjang, sugar, sesame oil, garlic, ginger. Minimum 30 min. Stir-fry on high heat with onion and cabbage. Serve directly over rice or in lettuce wraps. Popular student dish and cafeteria standard in Korea.

Day-old cold rice (warm rice sticks: worse result). Kimchi-bokkeumbap: squeeze and chop kimchi, fry in pork fat or sesame oil. Add rice, gochugaru, ganjang. High heat, do not stir but let it sear for nurungji (scorched crust). Finish with a fried egg and nori strips.

Clean squid: remove skin, cross-hatch score (prevents curling), cut into pieces. Marinade: gochujang, gochugaru, sugar, garlic. Wok at maximum heat. Never cook squid for more than 90 seconds. Stir-fry vegetables (courgette, onion, bell pepper) separately and combine.

Cook soybean sprouts with the lid on in lightly salted water (never without lid: ammonia smell). 5-6 minutes until cooked but still with some bite. Drain, do not rinse. Toss while warm with soy sauce, sesame oil, garlic, sesame seeds. Let cool. Serve cold as banchan.

Tofu in 1.5 cm slices, patted dry. Fry in oil at 170°C until golden on both sides. Sauce: ganjang, gochugaru, sesame oil, garlic, spring onion, sugar, water. Spoon sauce over fried tofu and simmer 3 min until sauce has reduced and glazed.