Daechang-bokkeum (Spicy Pork Large Intestine Stir-Fry)

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •Large bowl and colander for cleaning
• •4 to 5 quart pot for simmering
• •12-inch cast-iron skillet or wok
• •Tongs and splatter screen
• •Instant-read thermometer

Instructions

1. 1

   Scrub the intestine

   Put the pork large intestine in a large bowl and rinse it under cold running water. Rub it with the coarse salt for 2 minutes, then add the flour and knead it through for 3 minutes. The flour grabs the slickness and the salt scours without perfume. Rinse until the water runs clear, then soak it in cold water with the rice vinegar for 10 minutes and rinse once more.

   If it smells sour, rotten, or sharply chemical after rinsing, do not cook it. Good pork intestine smells meaty and clean once washed. A butcher you trust matters more here than any sauce.
2. 2

   Simmer until tender

   Bring the 8 cups water to a boil in a large pot with the 2 tablespoons doenjang, soju or mirin, onion half, crushed garlic, ginger slices, and halved scallions. Add the cleaned intestine, lower to a steady simmer, and cook 45 to 55 minutes, skimming the gray foam during the first 10 minutes. It is ready when a skewer slips in with a little resistance and the thickest piece reaches at least 160 degrees F. Drain and discard the simmering liquid and aromatics.

   The doenjang and soju are not there to cover bad meat. They soften the strong edge of good offal. Cleaning comes first, then simmering, then seasoning.
3. 3

   Mix the sauce

   Stir together the gochugaru, gochujang, soy sauce, rice wine, maesil-cheong or sugar, 1 teaspoon doenjang, minced garlic, grated ginger, black pepper, and 2 tablespoons water. Let it stand 10 minutes while the intestine cools. This wakes up the chili flakes and gives you a sauce that clings instead of streaking the pan.

4. 4

   Cut and dry

   When the intestine is cool enough to handle, cut it into 1-inch pieces. Pat every piece dry with a clean towel, then spread them on a tray for 10 minutes. Notebook 31 says dry twice, once after the pot and once before the pan. Wet intestine boils. Dry intestine browns.

5. 5

   Render hard

   Heat a 12-inch cast-iron skillet or wok over high heat until a drop of water jumps and disappears. Add the intestine in a single layer, using the teaspoon of neutral oil only if the pan is dry. Cook 5 to 7 minutes, turning often, until the edges are browned and the fat has gathered in the pan. Spoon off all but 2 tablespoons of fat. This dish wants richness in the bite, not a lake under it.

   If your pan is smaller than 12 inches, brown the intestine in two batches. Crowding is how good daechang becomes boiled and heavy.
6. 6

   Stir-fry vegetables

   Keep the heat high. Add the sliced garlic, onion, cabbage, green chilies, and red chili if using. Toss 2 to 3 minutes, just until the cabbage edges gloss and the onion starts to bend. The vegetables should still have bite because they are there to cut the fat, not melt into it.

7. 7

   Coat with sauce

   Lower the heat to medium-high and scrape in the sauce. Toss hard for 90 seconds to 2 minutes, until the raw chili smell is gone and the sauce is glossy on every piece. Add the scallions and perilla leaves for the last 30 seconds. Turn off the heat and fold in the sesame oil. Perilla leaves should wilt, not disappear.

8. 8

   Finish and serve

   Pile the daechang-bokkeum onto a shallow platter and scatter with toasted sesame seeds. Serve at once with hot rice, crisp lettuce or extra perilla leaves, and a sharp banchan like kkakdugi (cubed radish kimchi) or oi-muchim (seasoned cucumber). Eat it while the browned edges still hold. That is when the work shows.

Chef Tips

• •Ask clearly for dwaeji-daechang, pork large intestine, cleaned but not stripped of all its fat. If the butcher offers beef daechang, that is a different cut with a different fat load and cooking time.
• •Drying is not a small detail. If you have 30 extra minutes, spread the simmered, cut pieces uncovered in the refrigerator before stir-frying. Cold dry surfaces brown faster.
• •Use gochugaru for heat and gochujang for body. More gochujang makes the sauce heavy and sweet before the intestine has a chance to taste like itself.
• •Keep a bowl near the stove for excess rendered fat. Pouring off the extra fat is not removing flavor; it is making room for the sauce to cling.
• •Serve it with sharp, clean sides: kkakdugi, cucumber muchim, raw perilla leaves, or lettuce for wrapping. For the glass, cold soju, a light lager, or a chilled off-dry Riesling all handle the chili and fat.

Advance Preparation

• •The intestine can be cleaned, simmered, cut, and refrigerated up to 24 hours ahead. Cool it quickly, spread it uncovered for 20 minutes to dry, then cover and keep cold.
• •The sauce can be mixed up to 3 days ahead and refrigerated. Stir before using, because the gochugaru thickens as it sits.
• •Slice the vegetables up to 6 hours ahead and keep them covered in the refrigerator. Stir-fry only right before serving; reheated daechang-bokkeum loses its browned edges.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 380g)