Korean Pork Belly Lettuce Wraps

Total Time: 30 minutes active; 90 minutes total

Servings: 3-4

Grilled pork belly wrap is a popular dish in Korea because the dish is customizable and served table side making it a fun interactive dinner. The lettuce acts as the binder bringing unrelated items together creating a relationship between the food and the social interaction.

Ingredients

  • 2-3 pounds of pork belly sliced like thick bacon (grilled tofu can be substituted)
  • 1 teaspoon of salt
  • 1 teaspoon of pepper
  • 2 teaspoons of sesame oil

    Dipping Sauce
  •  1/4 cup of yellow miso paste
  • 1 green onion chopped
  • 2 garlic cloves grated
  • 2 tablespoons of Korean hot pepper paste gochujang
  • 2 teaspoons of honey
  • 1 teaspoon of sesame seeds
  • 1 tablespoon of sesame oil

    Wrap and Toppings
  • 4 bunches of green onions thinly sliced
  • 1 bunch of lettuce, washed and drained
  • 1 English cucumber cut into bite size sticks
  • 1/2 cup of carrot sticks
  • 3-4 sliced jalapenos
  • 1 head of garlic, peeled, cloves cut in half
  • 1 Watermelon radish thinly sliced rounds
  • Prepared Kimchi
  • Steamed rice

Preparation

  1. Prepare the vegetables and toppings for the warp. Towel dry the lettuce making sure there is no moisture left.  Cut the green onions into very thin strips and soak in cold ice water for about 10 mins, then drain on a paper towel. Cut the rest of the vegetables and arrange everything on a tray with the prepared Kimchi.
  2. Prepare the sauce by mixing together miso paste, chopped green onions, grated garlic, gochujang, honey, sesame seeds, and sesame oil in a small bowl. (Dipping sauce keeps for about 3-4 days in fridge)
  3. Season the pork belly or tofu with salt and pepper and brush with sesame oil.
  4. Scoop a bowl of steamed rice for everyone.
  5. Heat up grill or electric griddle table side to medium. Everyone at the table should grill their own pork belly or tofu about 2-4 minutes per side depending on grill.
  6. Place the pork belly or tofu with a little bit of rice on a piece of lettuce. Now comes the fun part. Everyone can decide what toppings they want to add from the vegetable tray. Use the carrot or cucumber stick to smear the thick sauce onto the lettuce warp,  place the stick in the center, roll it up, and enjoy!

Serving Suggestion

This dish is perfect when hosting a dinner party for everyone to mingle and get involved in the process of creating the meal. Everyone can personalize their lettuce wrap however they like.  The pork belly can be easily substituted with grilled tofu making it vegan friendly.

 

RecipeGuest Userkorean, food