Tongyeong Bibimbap (Tongyeong Mixed Rice)

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •Rice cooker or heavy 2-quart pot with lid
• •Medium pot for broth and blanching
• •Wide skillet
• •Fine strainer
• •Four wide rice bowls

Instructions

1. 1

   Cook the rice

   Cook the rinsed rice with 2 1/4 cups water in a rice cooker or heavy pot. When it is done, let it rest 10 minutes before opening, then fluff it gently. Bibimbap needs warm rice with separate grains, not wet rice, because the namul and seafood will bring their own moisture.

2. 2

   Make the broth

   Put 4 cups water, the kelp, and the cleaned anchovies in a pot over medium heat. Pull the kelp out as soon as the water reaches a simmer, because kelp left too long turns the broth slick and bitter. Simmer the anchovies 10 minutes more, strain, and season with 1/2 teaspoon salt. Keep 1 tablespoon for the sauce and serve the rest warm on the side.

   Remove the dark guts from the anchovies. A clean broth is especially important here because it has nowhere to hide.
3. 3

   Blanch the seafood

   Bring 3 cups water and 1 tablespoon rice wine to a gentle boil. Blanch the clams or cockles until they open, 2 to 4 minutes, then lift them out and remove the meat. Blanch the squid 45 to 60 seconds, only until it turns opaque and curls. If using oysters, lower the heat and poach them 30 to 45 seconds, just until the edges firm. Cool the seafood on a plate and discard any clams that do not open.

4. 4

   Season the sprouts

   Put the soybean sprouts in a pot with 1/2 cup water. Cover, bring to a boil, and cook 6 minutes without lifting the lid. Drain, then season in its own bowl with 1/2 teaspoon minced garlic, 1 teaspoon soup soy sauce, 1 teaspoon sesame oil, 1 teaspoon sesame seeds, and a small pinch of salt. Taste one sprout. It should be nutty and clean, with the crunch still there.

5. 5

   Blanch the spinach

   Blanch the spinach in boiling water for 20 to 30 seconds, then rinse cold and squeeze firmly. Cut into short lengths. Season in its own bowl with 1/2 teaspoon minced garlic, 1 teaspoon soup soy sauce, 1 teaspoon sesame oil, and 1 teaspoon sesame seeds. Spinach collapses quickly, so squeeze it well or it will water down the rice.

6. 6

   Cook the vegetables

   Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a skillet. Cook the zucchini with a pinch of salt for 1 to 2 minutes, just until flexible, then move it to its own bowl and season with 1/2 teaspoon sesame oil. Add 1/2 tablespoon oil and cook the carrot 2 minutes with a pinch of salt, keeping it bright and slightly firm. These two are not side dishes by themselves here; they are color, sweetness, and texture for the mixed bowl.

7. 7

   Cook mushrooms and gosari

   Add 1/2 tablespoon oil to the skillet and cook the shiitake with 1 teaspoon soup soy sauce until glossy and tender, about 3 minutes. Move them aside. Add the last 1 tablespoon oil, the gosari, 1 teaspoon minced garlic, and 1 tablespoon soup soy sauce, and cook 4 to 5 minutes until the fernbrake tastes seasoned through. Gosari needs more soy than the tender greens, which is why it gets its own pan time.

8. 8

   Mix the sauce

   Stir together the gochujang, rice vinegar, maesil-cheong or sugar, 1 tablespoon reserved broth, and 1 teaspoon sesame oil. This is cho-gochujang, a bright vinegared chili paste. Serve it on the side. Start each bowl with 1 tablespoon, then add more only after tasting, because the seafood should still read as itself.

9. 9

   Fry the eggs

   Fry the eggs sunny-side up or over easy. Keep the yolks soft if your table likes them that way, because the yolk rounds the sauce and helps the rice mix. For a firmer weeknight bowl, cook them through; the dish will still stand.

10. 10

    Assemble the bowls

    Divide the warm rice among 4 wide bowls. Arrange the soybean sprouts, spinach, zucchini, carrot, shiitake, gosari, and seafood in separate small piles over the rice. Set an egg in the center, scatter gim and scallion over the top, and serve the cho-gochujang and warm clear broth beside each bowl. Mix at the table, gently at first, so the seafood does not break.

Chef Tips

• •Use the seafood your market has in good condition. In winter, oysters belong. In spring, a little sea squirt is very Tongyeong, but only if you enjoy its strong sea flavor. Clams and squid make the most dependable home version year-round.
• •The safe corner to cut is the number of namul. Use three well-seasoned vegetables instead of six if it is a weeknight. The corner not to cut is seasoning them separately, because that is what keeps the bowl clear.
• •Do not drown this in gochujang. Tongyeong's bowl is coastal, and the seafood should come forward. Put the sauce beside the rice, not on top, and let each person measure their own heat.

Advance Preparation

• •The anchovy-kelp broth can be made up to 3 days ahead and refrigerated. Warm it gently before serving, and season again only after it is hot.
• •The namul can be prepared up to 1 day ahead and refrigerated separately. Bring them close to room temperature before assembling so they do not chill the rice.
• •Blanch the seafood the day you serve it. Shellfish loses its clean sweetness when it sits too long, and this bowl depends on that freshness.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 590g)