Several years ago I went to Korea to study traditional cuisine, and while there had a chance to talk with the host of a cooking show. I mentioned that Korean fusion foods were increasingly popular in America, and wondered if there were any California-Korean hybrids in Seoul. She considered my question for a moment and eventually responded, “We do not see a need to fuse Korean food with other cuisines, because it is already perfect.”
Many Koreans are still certain that their cuisine is the healthiest and best balanced that could be invented. Even so, in recent years some restaurateurs have started adopting foreign ideas and flavors. Those hybrid dining experiences are making their way to our side of the Pacific, and one of the most interesting may be experienced at Torrance’s Palsaik Korean BBQ.
Palsaik looks like other restaurants featuring tabletop cooking: grills at every table and hoods overhead, diners enjoying an array of side dishes while servers bring out trays of meat and vegetables. The difference is that instead of the wide selection of meats and seafood that are usually offered, Palsaik serves almost exclusively pork, and their specialty combo allows you to sample it in eight different ways. The name Palsaik means “eight colors,” and it works whether you take that literally or as a metaphor for an artist’s palette.
After looking at the other selections for a few moments, (a pair of beef dishes or some a la carte items), my brother and I decided to do what everyone around us was doing and order the pork belly combination. Our server explained that she would be cooking at our table rather than us doing it ourselves, and went to get the ingredients of our meal. The usual small plates of pickles and salads began the process, and we snacked as she began frying a variety of mushrooms in butter along with kimchi, bean sprouts, and onions. She was a bit shy at first but opened up when she realized that we were really interested in the ideas behind what is served here. Some of the nine flavors, she explained, were based on traditional Korean medicine: the ginseng, garlic, mixed herb, and gochujang (soybean and red pepper paste). Others, such as the wine-marinated pork, curry, and yellow soybean paste have a debt to foreign cuisines, and there was also some unmarinated pork that was the culinary equivalent of a research study’s control group, something you could compare with all the modified versions.
Before the pork hit the grill we had our first hot dish, a seafood and tofu soup with onions, cabbage, and other vegetables. This arrived boiling vigorously, and while we waited for it to cool we sampled the aged kimchi I had requested as a side dish. Kimchi is included with every meal, but the version served automatically is a modern style that is only briefly fermented. The flavors of nappa cabbage are fresh and spicy, but it is less complex than the traditional style. The longer pickling and slightly different recipe give this a deeper, musky, funky flavor with a citrusy contrast, all overlaid with rich red pepper notes. I like it but some people find it too assertive, and when I ordered it our server asked if we were sure we wanted it. She seemed slightly surprised when we finished every bit.
The pork belly had arrived in long, thick slices aboard a tray that had each marinade labeled in English, Japanese, Chinese, and Korean, and we sampled different styles enthusiastically. The wine-marinated and herb were both mild compared to most Korean spicings, the former delicately sweet and fragrant, the latter almost reminiscent of some Middle Eastern kebab seasonings. The garlic pork and gochujang were traditional in nature, sharp flavors that balanced nicely with the naturally fatty pork, and the yellow miso was something of a surprise. Yellow miso is often used with ginger as a Japanese marinade for fish, where it chars into a delicious slightly sweet crust. I hadn’t known that it is also traditionally used as a tenderizer for meat, but now that I intend to experiment with it, because this was amazingly tender and delicious.
We had expected the curry to be a novelty item, but it worked every bit as well as the rest of the marinades. The sauce was about halfway between the Japanese mild yellow curry and the more virulent Thai style, and as we ate it we mused over the fact that none of the marinades had been particularly laden with red pepper. Other flavors take center stage here, assertive but not overwhelming. The spiciest item was probably the kimchi fried with sprouts, onions, and mushrooms, a side dish we kept returning to. We had some of that with the plain fried pork, which had the virtue of simplicity and acted as a palate cleanser after some of the more unusual variations.
To finish there was a pan of rice mixed with the leftover seafood stew broth and fried in a shallow pan, then topped with mozzarella cheese, an innovation that has recently become a craze in overseas Korean communities. The soup cooks into the rice to make a kind of pilaf with a crisp bottom layer, and it’s almost like a seafood-flavored pizza. We had enjoyed a very full meal already and could only eat half the pan, and we left the remainder behind with some sadness because it was delicious.
As we left, my brother mused, “I shouldn’t feel this refreshed, because I probably ate a pound of bacon for dinner.” He was exaggerating, because the total weight of the pork was just over half that before cooking, but it was still surprising that we weren’t feeling stuffed. Our meal had satisfied two hungry people but might have been enough for three. It had been a delight, an exploration of flavors on a background of fried pork.
Those who already enjoy Korean food will find Palsaik an interesting variation, while those who haven’t experienced this cuisine before may enjoy a meal with an interesting concept and a familiar main ingredient. You need to have at least two people to order this way, but if you do it’s a guided tour of the flavors of pork, modern Korean style.
Palsaik is at 22757 Hawthorne Boulevard in Torrance. Open daily at 11 a.m., close 11 p.m. Su-Thu, midnight Fr-Sa. Parking lot, wine, beer, and soju served, wheelchair access OK. Menu at palsaikbbq.com, phone 310-791-0300. ER
