Meat & BBQ
Suyuk (Korean Boiled Beef or Pork Slices)
Prep
15 min
Cook
60 min
Servings
4
Steps
- 1
Place the meat in a pot with onion, garlic, ginger, green onion, doenjang, and peppercorns.
- 2
Add water to fully cover the meat and bring to a boil.
- 3
Skim off any foam, then reduce to a simmer and cook 50-60 minutes, until fork-tender.
- 4
Remove the meat and let it cool slightly, then wrap tightly and chill in the fridge for at least an hour.
- 5
Slice the chilled meat thinly against the grain.
- 6
Serve with dipping sauce and lettuce or perilla leaves for wrapping.
Did you know — Korean culture
Suyuk's plainness is the point, not a limitation. Because the meat is boiled rather than seasoned with a marinade or sauce, it was traditionally considered a dish fit for honored guests and ancestral rites — the quality of the meat itself, not a heavy sauce, was what was on display. That same simplicity is why it's still served at family gatherings and jesa (ancestral memorial) tables today.
The doenjang and aromatics go straight into the boiling water, not onto the meat afterward — they're there to season the broth the meat cooks in and to round out any strong gamey notes, not to create a sauce. What you're building is a clean-tasting piece of meat, not a braise.
Chilling the meat before slicing is the step people skip and regret. Warm, just-cooked meat is soft and falls apart under a knife, while meat that's been chilled firms up enough to slice into thin, clean pieces that hold together on the plate.
Because suyuk relies on the meat's own quality rather than a sauce or marinade to carry the dish, it's traditionally been served at ancestral memorial tables (jesa) and other formal family occasions in Korea, where a plain, well-made cut of meat was historically the more respectful choice than a heavily seasoned one.
Troubleshooting
Meat falling apart when sliced? It wasn't chilled enough first — give it at least an hour in the fridge, wrapped tightly, before slicing.
Meat tasting bland? The dipping sauce carries most of the seasoning here, so don't skip it — a vinegar-soy or ssamjang dip is what makes the plain meat work.
Broth smelling too strong or gamey? Add a bit more ginger and green onion, and make sure to skim the foam thoroughly in the first few minutes of boiling.