Research: All you ever wanted to know about Jokbal and other Korean Street Foods
From Wikipedia
The hair is removed from pigs' feet and they are thoroughly washed. Leeks, garlic, ginger, cheongju (rice wine) and water are brought to a boil. The pigs' feet are added, brought back to a boil and then simmered until tender. Then additional water, sugar and soy sauce are poured into the pot and the contents are slowly stirred. Once the jokbal is fully cooked, bones are removed, and the meat is cut into thick slices. It is then served with fermented shrimp sauce called saeujeot (새우젓).
As the preparation of jokbal is quite painstaking and requires a great deal of time, jokbal is usually ordered for delivery or purchased from a jokbal shop. Jangchungdong district, Jung-gu, Seoul is very well known for featuring a large number of such shops.
And from Trifood
Jokbal is a very popular pork dish to many Koreans worldwide. In translation, it means pig’s trotters or legs (boneless) which have been seasoned and steamed. It may sound strange and unappealing to foreigners, but anyone who has once tried jokbal will get into the charm of this delicate dish. The pork is spiced with black taffy, soybean sauce and ginger which give its irresistible taste of the meat, soft fat and chewy skin.
The secret of its popularity is the broth in which the jokbal is cooked as it is seasoned and simmered for about 2 to 3 hours. The steam rises from the pot until the mouth-watering meat is cooked to perfection. The secret of the delicious meaty flavor lies in the rich broth, and to this day, every restaurant’s broth recipe is considered top secret.
Doesn't it sound delicious? So the secret is in the broth. I wonder what are some of the ingredients in Jokbal. Here's what I've learned. Most of the recipes are secret. I'm learning that molasses and ginger are definitely there. It has a mixture of soy sauces: dark and light. It can also have cinnamon and other oriental medicinal herbs. I bet you it might have some ginseng or deoksal in there. It apparently has to do with the steaming process. You steam it the first time and then pour out the juices and add more broth to add more flavor to it.
In the end you'll end up with delightful layers of textures: the chewy skin, the soft meat, and the gelatinous fat.
Soondae: The Korean Blood Sausage
Here is the definition from trifood.
Soondae is a pork sausage, filled with mixed with sweet rice and sweet potato vermicelli noodles. It is a traditional Korean sausage and popular snack food sold by various restaurants as well as street vendors. Unlike meaty American or European sausages, soondae is lightly spicy in taste and steamed to a moist, soft roll which is then cut into oval slices. It has great texture and guaranteed to melt in one’s mouth. A mixture of salt, ground pepper and kochukaru (red chili pepper flakes) is served along side this dish for flavoring. Soondae is usually served with kimchi like cubed radish, kaktugi, along with a warm miso type soup.
From Wikipedia:
The most common type of sundae is made of pig's intestines stuffed with cellophane noodles (dangmyeon), barley, and pork blood, although some variants also contain perilla leaves, scallions (pa), fermented soybean paste (doenjang), glutinous rice, kimchi, and soybean sprouts. It is a popular street food in South Korea. In fact, there is a neighborhood called Sundae Town in Sillim-dong that has many restaurants dedicated to sundae.
Here are some ingredients for one recipe I found from chow.com
Soondae is often served with steamed liver and lung. It also comes with a seasoned salt or salted shrimp (saewoojat).
Dan
