Food Finds - Super H Mart Korean barbecue

The Korean megachain sells an impressive assortment of premarinated meats you can cook at home

Photo by James Camp
Photo credit: James Camp
Super H Mart Korean barbecue

There’s something so soul-satisfying about Korean barbecue when you’ve got that I-want-meat-now craving. Trekking to Buford Highway or Duluth at the end of a treacherous workday? Not so satisfying.

However, transforming your home into your very own Korean restaurant is not as difficult as you may think. The Korean megachain Super H Mart (www.hmart.com) sells an impressive assortment of premarinated meats you can cook at home. Choices include pork marinated in a bright-red spicy sauce, chicken marinated in the same spicy sauce if swine isn’t your thing, and thinly sliced, slightly sweet bulgogi beef redolent with sesame oil and soy. While most Korean barbecue is done on a tabletop grill/griddle - which they do sell at Super H - I suggest cooking the meats on your charcoal grill in some sort of metal basket so the meat doesn’t fall through the grates. A cast-iron pan or wok is another easy option that renders the meat nice and caramelized. Just don’t let it cook too long or you’ll end up with Korean shoe leather.

Super H also stocks a plethora of customary side dishes - or banchan - near the meats to add to your dinner table as a foil to all that protein. The kimchi cabbage is a must, as is the seasoned dry radish. Add some steamed rice, sliced garlic, Korean peppers (or jalapeños), and lettuce leaves for wrapping for a (relatively) healthy and easy meal your family and friends are bound to beg for again and again.