Braised kimchi with pork belly (Kimchi-jjim)

1. Leave the kimchi in whole quarters, just cutting off the hard end of the stem; keep the juice. Cut the pork belly into thick 4-5 cm pieces.

2. Put the onion cut into half-moons in the bottom of a wide pan, place the pork on top and lay the kimchi quarters over the meat.

3. Mix the water with 100 ml of kimchi juice, the gochugaru, grated garlic and sugar, and pour it into the pan.

4. Bring to the boil, then cover and braise over low heat for 50-60 minutes, until the kimchi is completely soft and translucent and the meat is tender; meanwhile cook the rice with the 600 ml of water, covered, for 15 minutes and leave to rest for 10 minutes.

5. Finally drizzle with sesame oil and scatter over the spring onion.

6. At the table, snip the kimchi and pork into bite-sized pieces with scissors and serve with rice.

Tip: This dish needs really old, very sour kimchi – the long braising takes away its sharpness and gives it a deep, sweetish flavour. If your kimchi is still young, add a tablespoon of rice vinegar.