Ssamjang (쌈장)

What is Ssamjang?

Ssamjang (쌈장) is the thick dipping paste for lettuce wraps — doenjang (fermented soybean paste) and gochujang blended with garlic, sesame oil, and often a little sweetness. It is not eaten alone: it exists to season ssam (wraps) and raw vegetables at the barbecue table, where a dab ties meat, leaf, and rice into one bite.

How to eat it

1. A dab, not a spread. Put a chickpea-sized dot on your meat or wrap — ssamjang is concentrated and salty; more is not better.
2. Dip whole vegetables in it. Cucumber spears, chili peppers, and cabbage at the barbecue table are for dragging through ssamjang.
3. Don't double-dip in the shared pot. Spoon some onto your plate or wrap; the communal dish stays clean.

Cooking it at home

1. Mix 2 parts doenjang to 1 part gochujang.
2. Add minced garlic, chopped scallion, sesame oil, toasted sesame seeds, and a little honey or sugar.
3. Optional upgrades: minced onion for freshness, chopped nuts for texture; rest 10 minutes for the flavors to marry.

Good to know

• Contains soy and usually wheat (in the pastes); it is among the saltiest items on the table — sodium-conscious eaters should keep to small dabs.
• Commercial tubs vary widely in sweetness; taste before committing a whole wrap.

Every barbecue restaurant serves it automatically with the lettuce basket — you never need to order it.

Related foods

삼겹살 · SamgyeopsalOften eaten together Thick-cut grilled pork belly — Korea's default BBQ night. 불고기 · BulgogiOften eaten together Thin-sliced beef in a sweet soy marinade, grilled or pan-cooked. 족발 · JokbalOften eaten together Soy-braised pig's trotters, sliced and wrapped in lettuce. 배추김치 · KimchiSame family · Kimchi & Banchan Fermented napa cabbage — the one dish on every Korean table. 깍두기 · KkakdugiSame family · Kimchi & Banchan Cubed radish kimchi — crunchy, juicy, born for gukbap.