Sinseollo

Ingredients

• 400g beef brisket, in one piece
• 2 litres cold water
• 1 onion, halved
• 4 spring onions
• 300g Korean radish (mu), peeled
• 200g beef top round or sirloin, sliced paper-thin
• 150g skinless white fish fillet such as cod or pollock
• 150g lean beef mince
• 80g firm tofu
• 4 dried shiitake mushrooms
• 40g dried wood ear mushrooms
• 1 medium carrot
• 4 eggs
• 4 tbsp plain flour
• 4 tbsp soy sauce
• 1 tbsp toasted sesame oil
• 2 tsp caster sugar
• 4 garlic cloves, minced
• 20 ginkgo nuts
• 2 tbsp pine nuts
• 12 walnut halves
• 1 tsp fine salt
• 1/2 tsp ground black pepper
• 4 tbsp neutral oil for frying

Before you cook

• Soak the brisket in cold water for 30 minutes to draw out blood, changing the water once, then drain.
• Soak the dried shiitake and wood ear in warm water for 30 minutes, then squeeze dry and slice the shiitake thinly and tear the wood ear into strips.
• Cut the radish and carrot into batons roughly 5cm long, 1cm wide and 3mm thick.
• Slice the top round into thin strips and season it with 1 tablespoon soy sauce, 1 teaspoon sesame oil, 1 teaspoon sugar, half the garlic and the black pepper.
• Wrap the tofu in a cloth and wring it dry, then knead it with the mince, the remaining garlic, 1/2 teaspoon salt and a pinch of pepper, and roll walnut-sized balls.
• Cut the fish into slices about 4cm by 3cm and season them lightly with salt.
• Separate three eggs, keeping the yolks and whites in different bowls, and beat the fourth egg whole for coating the fish.

Steps

1. Put the drained brisket, 2 litres of cold water, the halved onion and two whole spring onions into a large pot and bring it to the boil over high heat.
2. Skim off the grey foam that rises to the surface, lower the heat and simmer gently for 1 hour.
3. Lift the brisket onto a board to cool and strain the broth through a fine sieve into a clean pan.
4. Drop the radish batons into the strained broth, simmer them for 4 minutes, then lift them out and set them aside.
5. Season the broth with 3 tablespoons of soy sauce and 1/2 teaspoon of salt, then keep it hot over the lowest heat.
6. Slice the cooled brisket across the grain into thin bite-sized pieces.
7. Wipe a non-stick pan with oil, set it over low heat, pour in the beaten yolks in a thin sheet and cook for 2 minutes until just set.
8. Slide the yolk sheet out, cook the whites the same way, then cut both sheets into strips 5cm long and 1cm wide.
9. Pat the fish dry, dust each slice in flour, dip it in the beaten whole egg and fry in oil over medium heat for 90 seconds a side until pale gold.
10. Fry the meatballs in the same pan for 4 minutes, rolling them so they colour all over, then lift them out.
11. Raise the heat and stir-fry the seasoned beef strips for 2 minutes until no pink remains.
12. Stir-fry the carrot with a pinch of salt for 2 minutes, then the shiitake and wood ear for 2 minutes more, keeping each one separate.
13. Line the base of the sinseollo pot, or a wide shallow casserole, with the sliced brisket and the cooked radish.
14. Stand the coloured strips upright around the chimney in solid blocks, working around the circle with carrot, egg yolk, mushroom, egg white and beef, so the surface reads as neat wedges of colour.
15. Scatter the fish jeon, the meatballs, the ginkgo nuts, the walnuts and the pine nuts over the top.
16. Pour in enough hot broth to come just below the rim of the ingredients.
17. Light the charcoal in the chimney, or set the pot over a portable table burner, and bring it to a bare simmer in front of your guests.
18. Serve straight from the bubbling pot, ladling broth over each portion and topping up with more hot broth as the level drops.