Makchang-bokkeum (Daegu Spicy Pork Tripe)

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •Large mixing bowl for washing
• •Heavy pot for simmering
• •12-inch cast-iron skillet or wide wok
• •Tongs or long wooden spoon

Instructions

1. 1

   Scrub the makchang

   Put the makchang in a bowl with the flour, coarse salt, and rice vinegar. Rub it firmly for 3 minutes, turning and squeezing the pieces so the flour pulls away surface fat and odor. Rinse under cold running water until the water runs clear, then drain well. This is not ceremony. This is the first place the smell is won or lost.

   If your makchang is sold already parboiled and very clean, still rub it with 1 tablespoon flour and rinse. The shortcut is buying well, not skipping the wash.
2. 2

   Simmer with soju

   Put 6 cups water, soju, sliced ginger, smashed garlic, the onion half, and doenjang in a pot and bring it to a boil. Add the makchang and simmer uncovered for 35 to 40 minutes, until a chopstick passes through with some resistance. The soju and ginger clear the smell; the doenjang adds savor and helps tame the fat. Do not boil it violently, or the outside tightens before the inside softens.

3. 3

   Drain and dry

   Lift out the makchang, discard the simmering liquid and aromatics, and rinse the pieces briefly under warm water. Drain, then pat very dry. Cut into 1/2-inch rings or bite-size pieces. Wet makchang steams in the pan; dry makchang browns and gives you the chewy edge Daegu tables expect.

4. 4

   Mix the sauce

   Stir together the gochugaru, gochujang, soy sauce, mat-sul, maesil-cheong, rice syrup, minced garlic, minced ginger, and black pepper. Taste it now. It should be spicy, salty, and only lightly sweet. Gochujang is here for body, not for drowning the dish, so keep it to one tablespoon.

5. 5

   Render the fat

   Heat a wide cast-iron skillet or wok over medium-high heat until hot, then add the oil and the dried makchang. Spread it in one layer and cook 6 to 8 minutes, turning only now and then, until the edges brown and some fat has rendered into the pan. If liquid collects, raise the heat and let it cook off before moving on. This dish needs high heat so the fat renders, not steams.

6. 6

   Add onion

   Add the sliced onion and stir-fry for 3 minutes, scraping the browned bits from the pan as the onion softens. The onion should bend but not collapse. It gives sweetness without asking the sugar bowl to do all the work.

7. 7

   Coat with sauce

   Lower the heat to medium and add the sauce. Stir-fry 2 to 3 minutes, tossing constantly, until the sauce darkens slightly and clings to the makchang and onion. If it looks dry before it coats, add 1 tablespoon water, no more. A glossy coating is the aim; a puddle at the bottom means the sauce has not finished its work.

8. 8

   Finish sharp

   Add the cheongyang chilies, red chili if using, scallions, and garlic chives. Toss for 45 to 60 seconds, just until the greens turn bright and the chilies release their bite. Turn off the heat and finish with the sesame oil and sesame seeds. Serve at once with rice, perilla leaves, lettuce, raw garlic, and ssamjang.

Chef Tips

• •Ask for makchang that has been split, cleaned, and trimmed. It should smell clean and faintly meaty, not sour or sharp. My teacher would have sent a bad batch back without a word, and she would have been right.
• •Use a wide pan. A small pan traps moisture and gives you gray, chewy pieces with no browned edge. If your pan is less than 12 inches wide, cook the makchang in two batches before adding everything together with the sauce.
• •Cheongyang chili matters because its heat is clean and sharp against the fat. If you cannot find it, use a small serrano, but start with one. The dish should bite back, not punish the table.
• •This is date-night food in the Korean sense: close table, wrapped bites, garlic, soju if you drink. Serve it with something plain beside it, kongnamul-muchim (seasoned soybean sprouts) or oi-muchim (seasoned cucumber), so the palate has somewhere clean to go.

Advance Preparation

• •The makchang can be scrubbed, simmered, drained, dried, and cut up to 1 day ahead. Keep it covered in the refrigerator, then pat it dry again before stir-frying.
• •The sauce can be mixed up to 3 days ahead and refrigerated. Stir before using, because the gochugaru will thicken it as it sits.
• •Do not fully stir-fry the dish ahead for serving later. The onion collapses, the sauce dulls, and the makchang loses the edge you worked for.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 360g)