A simple, light Korean meal of Ssamjang, lettuce, and rice.

Ssamjang is a delicious spicy Korean dipping sauce, traditionally eaten with rice and a combination of BBQ meats and/or salad wrapped in a lettuce leaf – made just the right size to eat in one mouthful! A great shared starter plate.

Sauce:
3 tbsp doenjang (fermented soybean paste)
1 tbsp gochujang (hot pepper paste)
1 spring onion minced
1 clove of minced garlic (or 1/2 tsp minced garlic in jar)
1/2 onion chopped very finely
1 tbsp honey
1 tbsp toasted sesame seeds
1 tbsp sesame oil

Serving plate:
Lettuce leaves – separated, washed and left whole
1 bowl of cooked rice with spoon to serve
1 cucumber cut into 1 inch sticks
1 carrot peeled and cut into 1 inch sticks, or grated
1 or 2 small radish sliced thinly
2 stalks of celery cut into 1 inch sticks
1 long red chilli sliced thinly

Combine all sauce ingredients in a small bowl.

Arrange the serving plate and add the bowl of Ssamjang sauce. Pieces of BBQ beef or pork can also be added to the serving plate.

To eat, add some rice to the middle of a lettuce leaf, add a spoon of Ssamjang and any other salad/meat ingredients. Wrap the lettuce leaf tightly around the filling to make a nice small parcel and pop it into your mouth!

We sometimes have this sauce with just a mix of basic salad ingredients wrapped in whole lettuce leaves for a quick filling tasty lunch.