[Food] Suyook (수육, Boiled Pork)

[Food]

[Food] Suyook (수육, Boiled Pork)

Chinese cabbage, radish kimchi and suyook (boiled pork)

My good friend, Hong, is a countryman from a little country town in Kyungbook province, Korea. His parents are rich farmers who always supply many raw cooking ingredients such as fresh vegetables, fruits and meats from the open fields, orchards, stables and pens.

On the last Lunar New Year’s Day, Hong's parents sent him a massive amount of beef and pork in vacuumed plastic bags, so he asked his friends to help him eat them all up. I have been assisting him to solve this 'meat' problem by making beef into bulgogi, doenjangjjigae, etc.

Pork belly, Koreans usually BBQ it on a grill

In the end, only one 1.2kg vacuum plastic bag of pork was left in Hong's freezer. Now, Hong was so sick of Korean BBQ and he wanted to cook these meats in new ways; something healthier, more simple and less oily.

Therefore I, as someone who loves to cook, advised him to steam or boil it...and that's why I cooked Suyook ('Boiled Meat' in Korean) for him.

Suyook (Boiled Pork) with roasted tofu and pickled vegetables

Boiling is a very ordinary and easy way of cooking meats that most global cuisines do. I think this is the healthiest way of eating any meat as it reduces fat and oil intake, and that's why I like to steam or boil meat.

Korean way of suyook (boiled pork) is a piece of cake.

1. Boil water in a pot with doenjang (Korean bean paste), an onion, green chili and a chopped leek to remove the pork's smell.

2. When the water is fully boiled, toss all the meat into the pot, and wait for the meat to be fully cooked.

When you cook it, it is important that you marinate them in rice wine for at least an hour to soften it and put ingredients into the water to remove the unique, foul pork odour.

Thinly sliced suyook

Koreans usually eat suyook with kimchi, raw oyster, fermented tiny shrimps and various vegetables

oasting is the most popular way of cooking meat in Korea but it creates a smoky smell and the hot oil splutters everywhere. But when you boil it you only have to worry about the hot water.

Anyway, we had three dishes filled with boiled pork which Hong was so happy to share with his friends :)

Bon Appétit!