Somehow We Have Landed on Korean for Fathers' Day: Bo Ssäm Recreated #SundayFunday

This weekend I asked the Sunday Funday writers to: Share a favorite recipe for dad in your life - your dad, your father-in-law, or your husband. It can be something he loves to make or something you make that he loves.

The Fathers' Day Line-Up

• Fried Perch by A Day in the Life on the Farm

• Marmite Butter Mashed Potatoes by Food Lust People Love

• Milk Chocolate Mug Cake - Microwave by Sneha's Recipe

• Philly Cheesesteak Sloppy Joes by Amy's Cooking Adventures

• Roasted Yukon Gold Potato Wedges by Karen's Kitchen Stories

• Somehow We Have Landed on Korean for Fathers' Day: Bo Ssäm Recreated by Culinary Cam (you're here)

• Wisconsin Butter Burgers by Palatable Pastime

Fathers' Day

Just one day out of the year to celebrate all the fathers - and father figures - out there?! It seems a little dismissive, honestly. But here we are. So: Happy Father's Day to all the guys out here who have loved, nurtured, taught, and raised the next generation. Parenthood is the toughest, though I would also say most rewarding, job ever. The mantra that has served us well: patience and kindness, patience and kindness, patience and kindness. Happy day to Jake. And thanks for convincing me that we should have kids. I love you...and them... so much!

Now on to my offering for this event. Though we are very adventurous eaters, we have certain culinary traditions in our family. For birthday desserts, R always gets a Baked Alaska while D always get a Bûche De Noël and Jake gets Tiramisù. Crêpes were always a first day of school breakfast. My dad always asked for lasagna for their anniversary. And Arroz Caldo is in my bowl for New Year's.

Looking back through photos, I realized that Korean cuisine lands on our table for Fathers' Day often. And this year is no exception. So, I'm sharing two of our favorites and we will be going to the new all-you-can-eat Korean BBQ for tomorrow's dinner.

Bo Ssäm

I have been making this for years...ever since I watched David Chang make it on one of his cooking shows. This is my interpretation, but it's delicious. Note that the meat needs to be prepped and refrigerated overnight. Then it needs to roast for a little more than six hours. So, plan accordingly!

Ingredients

serves 8 to 10 people plus leftovers

Bo Ssäm

• one 8 to 10 pound bone-in pork butt

• 1 cup organic granulated sugar

• 1 cup plus coarse salt

• 7 Tablespoons organic dark brown sugar

• Also needed: a roasting pan with a rack

To Serve

• steamed rice (I used Jade rice which has a slightly greenish tint)

• organic lettuce to make cups (I used romaine)

• ssäm sauce (recipe below)

• pickled veggies (I used pickled radishes, pickled carrots, and smashed cucumber pickles)

• kimchi (I used a Napa cabbage kimchi similar to this recipe)

Ssäm Sauce makes 1 cup

• 1 to 2 Tablespoons ssämjang (fermented bean and chile paste), adjust to your palate

• 1 Tablespoon kochujang (chile paste)

• 1/2 cup vinegar (I used apple cider vinegar)

• 1/2 cup oil (I used canola oil)

Procedure

Ssäm Sauce

Combine all the ingredients in a medium mixing bowl. Stir until well-combined. Ssäm sauce will keep in the fridge for at least a week; I just mixed this up the day before.

Bo Ssäm

Place the pork butt in a medium mixing bowl. Add in the granulated sugar and salt. Massage the mixture into the meat, turning to coat the roast completely. Cover and refrigerate for at least 6 hours.

About eight hours before you want to serve, remove the rubbed roast from the refrigerator. Let it sit at room temperature while you preheat the oven.

Heat the oven to 300 degrees Fahrenheit. Remove the pork from the mixing bowl and place it on a rack in a roasting pan. Put the pan in the oven and roast for six hours. Baste with the rendered fat and pan juices every hour or so. The pork should be soft and offer almost no resistance to a fork.

At the end of the six hours, remove the pan from the oven and raise the heat to 500 degrees Fahrenheit. As the oven heats to the higher temperature, spoon the brown sugar over the top and smooth it into a nice layer.

Place the roast back in the oven for 12 to 15 minutes. The brown sugar will be melted into a crisp, sweet crust. Let the pork rest for 10 minutes before slicing.

Serve the bo ssäm hot, surrounded with the accompaniments including the rice, kimchi, and pickles. Traditionally this is served with raw oysters, but I'm fifty-fifty on whether I have a reaction to eating them, so I generally avoid.

Diners serve themselves with the tender pork chunks and all the sides.

I had initially planned to share my version of jap chae also, but I am out of time and need to publish this article. So, stay tuned, for my jap chae. I will post it soon! And the Sunday Funday writers will return next week we will be sharing recipes for Independence Day or any other country's national day. I am putting my thinking cap on.