Yes.
Before you ask, one of 2023’s resolutions is to do more than just one volume of Seoul food in 12 months…
Have a go at the below recipe for delicious kimchi fried rice, pork belly, and chive mayonnaise, soundtracked by lovely sounds from a couple of Korean artists.
Shopping list (serves 4)
Kimchi fried rice:
Kimchi x 300g
Spring onion (diced) x 150g
Large garlic cloves (finely chopped) x 5
Cooked white rice x 600g
Rapeseed oil
Sesame oil
Crispy pork belly:
Pork belly x 800g
Fresh ginger (grated) x 1 tbsp
Garlic cloves (minced) x 2
Soy sauce x 4 tbsp
Mirin x 4 tbsp
Honey x 1 tsp
Salt x 1/2 tbsp
Black pepper x 1/2tbsp
Chive mayo:
Chives x 60g
White wine vinegar x 35ml
Rapeseed oil x 500ml
Egg yolks x 2
Pinch of salt
Toasted sesame seeds to serve
Start the day before by combining all the ingredients for pork belly, and leave refrigerated to marinate overnight, preferably in a tightly sealed sandwich bag.
You can make the mayonnaise ahead of time as well. Blitz together the chives and rapeseed oil on a high speed, for five minutes. Leave to stand, and then use a muslin cloth and sieve to strain the oil into a clean vessel. You should have around 400ml of bright green chive oil.
Using a standing mixer, whisk together the yolks, salt and vinegar. Once mixed together, add all of the chive oil very slowly, whisking at a medium speed. Gradually increase the speed of the whisk as you go, until you have a thick mayonnaise.
Transfer to a glass jar or bottle and keep chilled.
Turn your oven to 180°C and cover the marinaded pork belly tightly, in a roasting tray. Cook the pork for two hours, before removing. Place something heavy on top of the pork whilst it comes down to room temperature.
You can now place the pork in the fridge, until needed.
When the time arrives, make sure the pork is back up to room temperature, before roughly cubing and roasting again just for 10 minutes in an oven at 220°C. Once the meat is cooked through and the fat has crisped up, you can remove and leave to rest for five minutes.
At the same time, begin making the fried rice by heating up the two types of oil in a large frying pan or wok. Add the the spring onion and garlic, and fry over a very high heat for five minutes. Add the cooked rice with another drizzle of sesame oil, a pinch of salt, and mix well.
You can now add the kimchi and continue to mix over a high heat. Leave the rice without stirring, for just under 10 minutes, or until the bottom is just starting to caramelise. Turn off the heat and leave for five minutes.
Serve the kimchi fried rice with chunks of pork belly, topped with the chive mayo and toasted sesame seeds. Drizzle over some hot sauce as well, if that’s your thing.
Enjoy!x
Food and Tunes 