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Korea, Camping · Samgyeopsal (Korean Grilled Pork Belly)

Jeju-Style Thick-Cut Pork Belly with Anchovy Dip

Salted 2.5 cm pork belly slabs, rendered fat-side first until crisp outside and juicy inside, served with a bubbling Jeju anchovy dip and a tangy scallion salad.

ServingsServes 2
Total cooking time50 min
Salting+ 30 min
DifficultyHard

Method

  1. Pat the pork dry and score the fat side in a shallow 1 cm crosshatch (about 5 mm deep). Rub coarse salt and pepper all over and leave uncovered in the cooler or fridge for 30 minutes. The salt draws moisture from the surface so it crisps better, and seasons the meat right through.

    Add in this stepPork belly slab, 2.5 cm thick 500 gCoarse sea salt 1 tspFreshly ground black pepper 2 pinch

  2. Cut the green onion into 6 cm lengths, shred lengthways as finely as you can and soak in cold water for 10 minutes to tame the bite, then squeeze dry. Mix the chili flakes, vinegar, sugar, soy sauce, sesame oil and sesame seeds separately and toss only just before eating. For the dip, mix the fish sauce, water, garlic, sliced chili and chili flakes in a small heatproof dish (a foil cup or a small enamel dish).

    Add in this stepLarge green onion or slim leek (mainly the white part) 1Korean chili flakes (for the salad) 1 tspRice vinegar 2 tspSugar 1 tspSoy sauce 1 tspToasted sesame oil 1 tspToasted sesame seeds 1 tspAnchovy fish sauce 2 tbspWater (for the dip) 2 tbspMinced garlic (for the dip) 1 tspHot green chili 1Korean chili flakes (for the dip) ½ tsp

  3. Heat a 28 cm griddle over medium-high heat for , until a drop of water skates and vanishes. On charcoal, bank the coals thickly on one side to make a hot zone and a gentle zone.

    medium-high heat

  4. Stand the pork fat-side down and cook over medium heat for . Wait until the fat is deep golden and plenty of it has melted out; spoon off the pooled fat or tilt the griddle to collect it. On charcoal, do this over the gentle zone so the fat does not catch fire.

    medium heat

  5. Lay the pork flat and sear over medium-high heat for , turning every 2 minutes, until every side is golden. It is done when a skewer in the thickest part brings out clear juices, or the centre reads 70°C or more.

    medium-high heat

  6. Move the pork to a board or the edge of the griddle and rest for , so the juices settle and stay in when you slice. Then cut into 1.5 cm slices.

  7. Return the slices cut-side down with the sour kimchi, whole garlic, halved shiitake and the dish of anchovy dip, and cook over medium-high heat for . It is ready when the cut faces are golden and the dip is bubbling. Boiling the dip drives off the fishy edge and deepens its savoury flavour.

    Add in this stepLong-fermented (sour) kimchi 200 gWhole garlic cloves 6Shiitake mushrooms 2

    medium-high heat

  8. Toss the shredded onion with its dressing. Dunk the pork in the hot anchovy dip, lay it on a perilla leaf, top with the onion salad, grilled kimchi and garlic, and wrap.

    Add in this stepPerilla leaves 8

Cook's tip

Thick pork on high heat alone burns outside before the middle cooks. Render the fat on medium first, sear, then rest. Ask your butcher for pork belly cut 2.5 cm thick for grilling.

Cooking it at camp

This version tastes best over charcoal. Bank the coals to make two zones: render the fat on the gentle side and sear on the hot side. With a burner and cast-iron griddle, follow the steps as written and set the dip dish in a corner of the griddle. You can salt the pork the night before and pack it in the cooler.