Mushroom dolsotbap

For the onion cheong, mix together the onions and most of the sugar, then pack the mixture tightly into a sterilised 1 litre Kilner jar (or something similar)

Cover with the remaining sugar and leave to macerate/ferment for at least 1 month and ideally 6 months. You want the room temperature to be between 18 and 30°C. The warmer the room, the faster it will be ready. To prevent mould forming, the onions must be fully submerged in the syrup that forms the whole time – use a weight to keep them submerged if necessary

When ready, strain the liquid through a fine sieve, discarding onions

For the mushroom stock, first remove the stems from the fresh mushrooms and place them into a medium saucepan, keeping the mushroom tops to one side

Slice the ginger as thinly as possible (wash it first if it’s dirty, but there’s no need to peel it)

Add the ginger, shiitake, dashima and 750ml water to the pan with the mushroom stems

Heat the stock over a low heat. Just before the water comes to a simmer remove the dashima and reserve

Simmer the stock for 45 minutes, then remove it from the heat

Put the reserved dashima back into the stock and allow it to infuse while cooling

Once completely cooled, strain the stock through a muslin cloth, discarding the solids and reserving the liquid

Measure out 350 ml of stock for the dolsotbap and keep the remainder for another use

Whisk together all the ingredients for the perilla seed oil yangnyeom with 10g of the onion cheong until emulsified

Wash the rice thoroughly until the water runs clear, then drain in a fine-mesh sieve for at least 30 minutes

Combine the rice, stock, soju, soy sauce, salt and diced beef fat in the ttukbaegi. Soak the rice for 30 minutes

Meanwhile, prepare the garnish. Slice the spring onions very finely with a sharp knife, then soak in iced water for 15 minutes and drain

Toast the gim sheets in a dry frying pan until fragrant, then tear into approx. 2 cm pieces

If you’re using fresh shiitake mushrooms then cut them into 1 cm thick slices. Break up any other large mushrooms into bite-sized pieces

Place the rice over a high heat and bring to a boil. Cover with a lid and cook for 10 minutes or until nearly all the liquid has been absorbed

Add the mushrooms to the rice, cover again and cook for 3 more minutes until mushrooms are wilted and the nurungji (crispy stuck rice) has started to form on the base of the pot

Garnish with egg yolks, toasted gim and spring onions. Season to taste with perilla seed oil yangnyeom and mix together with a spoon, making sure to scrape the crispy nurungji off the bottom of the pot