Korean Pork RibsDwaeji Galbi

Dwaeji galbi sits in an interesting position in Korean BBQ — it's the spicier alternative to LA galbi or samgyeopsal, using gochujang in the marinade rather than relying on plain grilling. The pork ribs take longer to cook than thin-cut pork belly but the marinade penetration during the overnight rest changes the result significantly.

The scoring step the recipe describes is the kind of technique that sounds fussy but produces a real difference. Shallow cuts through the meat on the meaty side allow the marinade to reach more deeply into each rib rather than just coating the surface. I verified this by marinating two ribs side by side — one scored, one unscored — and comparing them after grilling. The scored rib was more uniformly flavored and cooked more evenly.

I made dwaeji galbi for a friend named Nattapong, the Thai neighbor from my building in Seoul, who was visiting my apartment when I was testing the recipe. He watched me mix the marinade — gochujang, soy sauce, sugar, honey, garlic, sesame oil — and noted that the combination of gochujang and honey was interesting to him. In Thai cooking, that sweet-spicy combination exists but usually with fresh chili rather than fermented paste. He said the fermented element added something rounder and more complex.

He basted the ribs on the grill himself while I made rice. The honey in the marinade caramelized at the edges and produced the glossy, slightly charred surface that makes these ribs look like they belong on a restaurant menu. They don't — they're a home recipe, and they're better for being made at home where the cost is a third of what a restaurant charges.