Momofuku’s Bo Ssam

Recipe from David Chang and Peter Meehan

Adapted by Sam Sifton

Updated July 27, 2022

Momofuku’s Bo Ssam
Marcus Nilsson for The New York Times. Food stylist: Brian Preston-Campbell. Prop stylist: PJ Mehaffey.
Total Time
7 hours, plus 6 hours’ seasoning
Rating
5(10,419)
Comments
Read comments

This is a recipe to win the dinner party sweepstakes, and at very low stakes: slow-roasted pork shoulder served with lettuce, rice and a raft of condiments. The chef David Chang serves the dish, known by its Korean name, bo ssam, at his Momofuku restaurant in the East Village and elsewhere. He shared the recipe with The Times in 2012. Mr. Chang is known as a kitchen innovator, but his bo ssam is a remarkably straightforward way to achieve high-level excellence with little more than ingredients and time. Simply cure the pork overnight beneath a shower of salt and some sugar, then roast it in a low oven until it collapses. Apply some brown sugar and a little more salt, then roast the skin a while longer until it takes on the quality of glistening bark. Meanwhile, make condiments – hot sauces and kimchi, rice, some oysters if you wish. Then tear meat off the bone and wrap it in lettuce, and keep at that until everything’s gone. —Sam Sifton

Featured in: The Bo Ssam Miracle

  • or to save this recipe.

  • Subscriber benefit: Give recipes to anyone

    As a subscriber, you have 10 gift recipes to give each month. Anyone can view them - even nonsubscribers. Learn more.

    Subscribe

  • Share this recipe

  • Print this recipe

Advertisement

Ingredients

Yield:6 to 10 servings

    Pork Butt

    • 1whole bone-in pork butt or picnic ham (8 to 10 pounds)
    • 1cup white sugar
    • 1cup plus 1 tablespoon kosher salt
    • 7tablespoons brown sugar

    Ginger-scallion Sauce

    • 2½cups thinly sliced scallions, both green and white parts
    • ½cup peeled, minced fresh ginger
    • ¼cup neutral oil (like grapeseed)
    • 1½teaspoons light soy sauce
    • 1scant teaspoon sherry vinegar
    • ½teaspoon kosher salt, or to taste

    Ssam Sauce

    • 2tablespoons fermented bean-and-chili paste (ssamjang, available in many Asian markets, and online)
    • 1tablespoon chili paste (kochujang, available in many Asian markets, and online)
    • ½cup sherry vinegar
    • ½cup neutral oil (like grapeseed)

    Accompaniments

    • 2cups plain white rice, cooked
    • 3heads bibb lettuce, leaves separated, washed and dried
    • 1dozen or more fresh oysters (optional)
    • Kimchi (available in many Asian markets, and online)
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (8 servings)

1176 calories; 71 grams fat; 19 grams saturated fat; 1 gram trans fat; 34 grams monounsaturated fat; 13 grams polyunsaturated fat; 54 grams carbohydrates; 2 grams dietary fiber; 34 grams sugars; 78 grams protein; 1858 milligrams sodium

Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

Powered by

Preparation

  1. Step 1

    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.

  2. Step 2

    When you’re ready to cook, heat oven to 300. Remove pork from refrigerator, brush any excess sugar mixture off the fat cap 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.) At this point, you may remove the meat from the oven and allow it to rest for up to an hour.

  3. Step 3

    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.

  4. Step 4

    Make the ssam sauce. In a medium bowl, combine the chili pastes with the vinegar and oil, and mix well.

  5. Step 5

    Prepare rice, wash lettuce and, if using, shuck the oysters. Put kimchi and sauces into serving bowls.

  6. Step 6

    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.

Private Notes

Leave a Private Comment on this recipe and see it here.

Ratings

5 out of 5
10,419 user ratings
Your rating

or to rate this recipe.

Have you cooked this?

or to mark this recipe as cooked.

Comments

Ben Cripps

I have made this numerous times. Everyone loves it.

I found that the salt/sugar mixture at the final stage, tended to fall off of the roast. Basically I would have small patches of sugar with the rest ending up on the bottom of the roasting pan.

I experimented a bit and now I add a small amount of cider vinegar to the salt/sugar combo. It forms a nice paste that stays in place and forms a nice lacquer. I also used water and various liquors but landed on the vinegar as the best.

RK

The one cup of white sugar and one cup of kosher salt that you cure the meat with for 6 hours, do you leave it on the meat or wipe it off before baking at 300 degrees?

Randall

I prepared thanksgiving for the Girlfriends family. All twenty-three of them. Yes there was turkey and the green bean casserole, I couldn't help but throw this in the mix along with crab Rangoon. They like me now.

Mo

I see all different experiences and am baffled. Is it 6 hours at 300 or 12 hours at 300? If you look at cooking times suggested on other sites they are leaning toward 12. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

Barbara

I haven't found that the last step is necessary. I live at altitude and the roast just gets too dry if I do the high temperature finish. I use a huge piece of heritage pork and turn the oven down to 275 for the last 90 minutes or so and then turn off the oven and tent with foil. I'd rather have it moist than crispy on the outside... and the outside is already lacquered and very tasty! This is our new Christmas Eve dinner...so so easy. Thanks so much for the recipe!

Clara L.

"Approximately" really needs to include a range of expected cook times. My 7lb pork butt roast ended up taking 9.5 hours to cook instead of 6. I had an oven thermometer confirm our temperature was fine. We had to pivot dinner plans due to hosting guests and have the pork for dinner the next day

Private comments are only visible to you.

Credits

Adapted from “Momofuku,” by David Chang and Peter Meehan.

Recipe Tags

or to save this recipe.