Korean BBQ Salad with Ssamjang Vinaigrette

A couple years ago, I was working from home and had 30 minutes before my next meeting. In an attempt to assemble the fastest and happiest desk lunch possible, I created the first version of this deconstructed Korean BBQ salad.

As fun as it is to enjoy K-BBQ and everything else that entails — grilling at the table, conversing, wrapping the lettuce and herb-y perilla leaves into bundles of meat and ssamjang sauce — I needed something faster, more convenient.

With some leftover meat from the weekend and all the vegetables for the BBQ wrap aka “ssam” in my fridge, I started assembling this deconstructed salad bowl. The final piece of the puzzle was nailing the dressing to evoke the mouth watering ssamjang sauce that’s typically used in K-BBQ: a savory sweet combo of doenjang and gochujang — two of three holy grail sauces we use ubiquitously in Korean cooking.

After whisking in a few things here, a pinch of salt there, I scribbled down the rough ratios, rushed back upstairs to my office, and fawned over my meal off camera, on mute. Ever since then, I’d been waiting for the perfect opportunity to bring you this recipe. I sincerely hope you’ll give it a try! It’s zingy, satisfying, and crunchy. What more could I ask for?

Korean BBQ Salad with Ssamjang Vinaigrette (2 servings)

Ingredients

For the salad:

• 1 head of romaine lettuce, chopped and crisped in the fridge
• 2 cucumbers, peeled and sliced
• 2 carrots, peeled and sliced
• The green part of 3 scallions, sliced
• 5-6 perilla leaves, sliced into ribbons
• 6-8 slices of pork belly, between 1/2 and 3/4 lb of meat
• Cooked rice
• Sesame oil

For the vinaigrette:

• 2 TBSP rice vinegar
• 1 clove garlic
• 1 TBSP doenjang (Korean soybean paste)
• 1/2 TBSP gochujang (Korean red pepper paste)
• 1 tsp honey
• 1 tsp dijon mustard
• Several small glugs of olive oil, 1/4 cup
• Salt and pepper

Step 1. Prep all the vegetables and set aside. Most importantly, crisp the romaine by washing and spinning it dry and then storing it in the fridge for a couple hours (pro tip: storing your greens like this as soon as you come back from the grocery store will make them last for a long time). A shortcut option is to wash the sliced romaine in ice water, spin it dry, and store in the fridge until you’re done prepping.

Step 2. Add rice vinegar to a measuring cup or medium sized bowl. Using a microplane, grate the garlic into the vinegar and let it mellow out for 10 minutes. Add doenjang, gochujang, honey, and mustard and whisk to combine. Gradually whisk in olive oil. Adding it slowly will help the dressing emulsify. Season with a big pinch of salt and a few cracks of pepper.

Step 3. Cook pork belly until crispy and browned. A great vegetarian alternative is grilled mushrooms or tofu. Set aside on a paper towel lined plate.

Step 4. In a bowl, place small scoop of rice and drizzle with sesame oil. Please do not skip the sesame oil. It perfects the dish! Top with vegetables, dress with vinaigrette, and garnish with pork belly, sesame seeds, and more perilla ribbons on top. Enjoy immediately!

Ssamjang vinaigrette will keep in the fridge for up to 2-3 days. Feel free to make ahead and use throughout the week!