Transcribed by Jack Rieger, Ssam Bar Burrito
This recipe isn’t mine, but it surprisingly isn’t published anywhere. I saw it on S1 E3 of the show Mind of a Chef, which profiles Momofuku founder David Chang in its first season.
This burrito was a dish he tried to popularize at his second restaurant, Ssam Bar. He opened this restaurant in 2006 as a Korean-American burrito bar. Unfortunately, the concept didn’t really catch on. Ssam Bar came close to extinction before a change in overall concept revitalized the menu — but this burrito didn’t survive the cut.
I think it’s a great recipe. In the episode of the show, Chang talks about the concept being “a Korean equivalent for each ingredient in a typical burrito”.
Note: this recipe is made of other components that will need to be prepared beforehand.
Ingredients
- Flour tortilla
- Hoisin sauce
- Short grain white rice, cooked
- Shelled edamame, cooked
- Quick-pickled cucumbers*
- Braised, carnitas-style pork shoulder**
- Napa cabbage kimchi
Process
- Blend some kimchi until it turns into a salsa-like topping. (Personal note – If it’s too watery or not spicy enough, add some gochujang and blend again.)
- Assemble a burrito in the order of ingredients listed above, topping with the kimchi salsa you just blended.
* To make, toss some cucumber slices with salt and a bit of sugar and let sit for a few minutes.
** I think this could be good with any kind of shreddable, braised meat like short rib or chicken as well.
