Bo Ssam

Publix was having a sale on pork butt, and Nashville was calling for six inches of snow. Banking on a snow day and wanting to experiment in the kitchen, I adapted this recipe using a slow cooker for the cooking, then the broiler for the charring. Worked liked a champ. Turns out I'm one degree of separation from David Chang since he is friends with my Matt. Maybe one day I'll tell him.

PORK BUTT:

1 whole bone-in pork butt or picnic ham (8 to 10 pounds)

1 cup white sugar

1 cup plus 1 tablespoon kosher salt

7 tablespoons brown sugar

GINGER-SCALLION SAUCE:

2 ½ cups thinly sliced scallions, both green and white parts

½ cup peeled, minced fresh ginger

¼ cup neutral oil (like grapeseed)

1 ½ teaspoons light soy sauce

1 scant teaspoon sherry vinegar

½ teaspoon kosher salt, or to taste

~ Place the pork in a large, shallow bowl. Mix the white sugar and 1 cup of the salt together in another bowl, then rub the mixture all over the meat. Cover it with plastic wrap and place in the refrigerator for at least 6 hours, or overnight.

~ When you're ready to cook, heat oven to 300. Remove pork from refrigerator and discard any juices. Place the pork in a roasting pan and set in the oven and cook for approximately 6 hours, or until it collapses, yielding easily to the tines of a fork. (After the first hour, baste hourly with pan juices.)

OR

~ Rinse meat then place in crock pot with 1 cup of beer and 2 T of soy sauce. Place on high for 5 hours.

~ At this point, you may remove the meat from the oven or crockpot and allow it to rest for up to an hour.

~ Meanwhile, make the ginger-scallion sauce. In a large bowl, combine the scallions with the rest of the ingredients. Mix well and taste, adding salt if needed.

~ Make the ssam sauce. In a medium bowl, combine the chili pastes with the vinegar and oil, and mix well. (Or use gochujang.)

~Prepare rice, wash lettuce, and put kimchi and sauces into serving bowls.

~ When your accompaniments are prepared and you are ready to serve the food, turn oven to 500. In a small bowl, stir together the remaining tablespoon of salt with the brown sugar. Rub this mixture all over the cooked pork. Place in oven for approximately 10 to 15 minutes, or until a dark caramel crust has developed on the meat. Serve hot, with the accompaniments.