Bo Ssam in Times of COVID-19

HendersonTRKing

Had 2 couples over last night for a socially-distanced-let’s-pretend-it’s-all-normal outdoor BBQ. 

The evening went really late and we got deep into the drinks — first Honey Deuces in honor of the US Open (thanks Novak Djokavich!), then white sangria, then wine, then white port, then home-barrel aged rum. Great food, friends and fun after way too long with not enough social interaction. 

My thought was to introduce our friends to Bo Ssam.  9lb butt went on at 1 am Saturday morning at 225 and came off around 3 pm Sunday to rest in a cooler til pulling time. When I peeped at it around 11:45 (3rd pic) looked terrible — pale and sitting in so much rendered fat and pork juice (which I had neglected to drain out), I was thinking I was sunk. So I applied some brown sugar to try to re-crust the surface and used a baster to suck out 3 full 12 oz cans of liquid out of the bottom of the aluminum pan. Fingers crossed. 

All that worry proved unnecessary — that was one forgiving butt. By 2 it was probing like buttah and the crust was back. Or back enough. Another 12 oz can of rendered fat reverse basted out and another hour to firm up the surface and that was enough. 

For service and distancing purposes, I made separate bowls of all the goodies for each couple:  sushi rice (made), kimchee (bought at a local Korean grocery), pickled daikon and carrot (same), ginger scallion sauce (made), sweet hot jalapeños (jarred), Ssam sauce (made), butter lettuce leaves, and of course the pork. Lots of little bowls for each couple and a great way to serve it up. And everyone took home leftovers in their paper bowls. 

Moving slowly today, but really happy to see people and eat some good chow. No plated or lettuce wrapped pix. But it was great as a pick me up this morning in street taco sized tortillas!

Happy Labor Day, all!  57 days til election — get your ballots or go in person, but make a plan to vote November 3rd!

YukonRon

I love your cooks. Always top results, and always looking delicious.

Very cool your friends took some home!

StillH2OEgger

That looks wonderful, and sounds like an even better evening with drinks and friends. Bravo.

JohnInCarolina

Nice!  I think this is my new favorite way to make and eat pulled pork.  Something about the way all those flavors come together - the pork with the bo ssam sauce - so much goodness in every bite!

GregW

Looks great and now I'm interested in giving this a trial cook.
I do have a few questions, I plan to cook the butt on the pellet smoker, what wood type should I use? I have hickory, apple, mesquite. 
Not knowing much about this type of recipe, I'm thinking that it needs a milder smoke than traditional BBQ. 

Having the large smoker has made it easy to cook butts, perhaps too easy, I have become somewhat burned out on traditional butts and ribs. I need something new to cook, hopefully my Bo Ssam will turn out as nice as @HendersonTRKing cook did.

caliking

Stupendous!! Great execution, from every aspect. 

johnmitchell

Fantastic spread

dmchicago

Am I reading right?

1 AM Saturday till 3 PM Sunday?

38 hours?

buzd504

Wow, kick ass!

JRWhitee

Excellent cook, looks fantastic.

The Cen-Tex Smoker

dmchicago said:

Am I reading right?

1 AM Saturday till 3 PM Sunday?

38 hours?

Did you see all the cocktails they had? He’s lucky to get any of this written down. I’m sure it was 1am Sunday (Late Saturday night) to 3pm Sunday. 

Awesome cook! Such a fun way to take a simple protein with simple ingredients and turn it into something special. 

HendersonTRKing

Thx looking and for the kind comments.

@YukonRon, I’m standing on the shoulders of forum giants and grateful for all the tips and learning I’ve gotten over the years out here. I literally never would have heard of or thought to cook bo ssam on the egg if not for this place, and that’s not the first time I’ve had that sentiment. 

@dmchicago and @The Cen-Tex Smoker, correct — not 38 hours, but 1am to 3pm SUNDAY. Evidently, more than the daikon and carrots got pickled for this cook!  Between the Saturday-Sunday late night prep with cigars and that home barreled rum and the late night hang out Sunday, I put myself into bed last night at 9 for some much needed rest!

@GregW, last time I used a little apple and cherry for smoke, but this time I used no smoking wood at all. Either way is good, but I preferred none over a little — there is so much flavor in every element of this cook/meal that the smoke can easily overpower it. I’m not someone known for restraint or subtlety, but am glad I held back this time. 

HendersonTRKing

Bo Ssam street tacos with some of the lucky leftovers. Paired nicely with Golden Road Mango Cart and a Tajin rim. 

(This was not the only plate consumed and I barely got it to hold still for the picture.)

Legume

Outstanding and I’m stealing your beer glass rim idea.  Thank you.

caliking

The awesomeness continues. 

I'd like to see some Korean-style bo ssam nachos happen.

JohnInCarolina

caliking said:

The awesomeness continues. 

I'd like to see some Korean-style bo ssam nachos happen.

My wife suggested Bo-Ssam egg rolls.  Did I mention she’s the smart one?

GATraveller

What a great idea! It's cooks like this that keep me coming back to this forum.
Thanks for sharing.