BBQHQThe world of cooking over fire

Sauces, rubs and seasonings

쌈장

Also: Ssamjang

The paste eaten with grilled meat in a leaf wrap at a Korean barbecue. The Korea Tourism Organization describes ssam as meat placed on lettuce or perilla with ssamjang added, eaten in one bite — so it is a condiment assembled at the table rather than a sauce for the grill.

What it is

Base
other
When it goes on
table sauce
Burn risk over the fire
low

Where it comes from

A documented association, qualified. BBQHQ records which source documents the link and does not make claims about authenticity.

What it goes with

Grouped by how the pairing is known rather than by how good it is. The first group is somebody else’s statement; the last is ours, and says so.

A source pairs them

A named source says this sauce or seasoning is used with this food. Follow the citation and you will find somebody stating it.

  • Pork belly slicesThe retrieved source describes ssamjang with samgyeopsal, which is pork belly, wrapped in a leaf at the table.

Structurally compatible

A structural fact rather than a cultural one: what the sauce is made of against what the cook does to it. Sugar burns over a long direct cook whoever is doing the cooking.

  • Halved romaine lettuceThe wrap is half the dish rather than a garnish. This is the leaf BBQHQ models; the pairing is structural — a table paste needs something to be eaten on.

What this rests on

  • Samgyeopsal, grilled pork belly, is described by the Korea Tourism Organization as the most popular Korean meat dish, and ssam — meat wrapped in lettuce or perilla with ssamjang and eaten in one bite — is described as a distinct part of the eating.

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