In the bustling culinary landscape of New York City, a remarkable achievement stands out: a restaurant earning the coveted three Michelin Stars. As highlighted in the video above, Jungsik is one of only five establishments in the entire city to hold such an esteemed accolade, showcasing a pinnacle of contemporary Korean fine dining. This level of recognition is not merely bestowed; it is rigorously earned through unwavering dedication, meticulous technique, and a relentless pursuit of perfection. This deep dive explores the intricate daily operations and culinary artistry that define Jungsik, offering an exclusive look behind the scenes, particularly through the eyes of Sous Chef Klay Kim.
At Jungsik, the pressure to deliver excellence is palpable, a constant companion for a team serving between 60 to 80 covers every night. Klay Kim, a sous chef whose journey led him from owning a small takeout spot in New Jersey to the demanding kitchen of a three Michelin Star Korean restaurant, embodies this commitment. His role encompasses a vast array of responsibilities, ranging from the foundational tasks of making stocks and butchering fish to the crucial duty of training new line cooks. This environment, as Klay explains, is not just about cooking; it is about continuous growth and refinement, both as a chef and as an individual.
The Unseen Dedication: Behind Jungsik’s Michelin-Level Cuisine
Every dish that leaves Jungsik’s kitchen is the culmination of hours, sometimes days, of precise preparation. This painstaking process ensures that each plate meets the highest standards of quality and consistency, a non-negotiable aspect of operating a Michelin Star Korean restaurant. The journey begins long before service, with a detailed focus on base ingredients and complex foundations.
Crafting Flavor: The Art of Stocks and Reductions
One of the cornerstones of Jungsik’s distinctive flavor profiles lies in its masterful creation of stocks and reductions. These are not mere supporting elements but central components that elevate the entire dining experience, requiring both scientific understanding and culinary intuition.
The Science of Smoked Fish Stock
The smoked fish stock, an essential base for Jungsik’s second course featuring striped jack fish, exemplifies this dedication. The process begins with carefully preparing wood chips and fish for smoking. Only two types of wood chips are on hand: apple wood and hickory. Apple wood chips, with their subtle aroma, are specifically chosen for white meats like fish or chicken, ensuring a clean flavor profile. In contrast, hickory wood is reserved for heavier red meats such as beef or pork, where its robust smoky character complements richer flavors. A crucial preliminary step involves drying the apple wood chips in a deck oven, maximizing their efficiency and ease of burning during the smoking process.
The selection of cod for this stock is deliberate; its white, flaky texture contributes to a cleaner, more refined taste. Before smoking, the fish must be thoroughly dried. This critical step ensures that the smoke can penetrate the fish more effectively, as any residual moisture would act as a barrier. The fish is then smoked for approximately one hour, with constant attention paid to ensure an even burn of the wood chips and to prevent them from turning into ashes, which can impart an undesirable bitter flavor. The goal is a beautifully golden-brown fish, indicative of proper smoking. Once smoked, the fish, along with vegetables, white wine, and herbs like thyme and tarragon, undergoes a slow cooking process. After an hour and a half, the stock is meticulously strained twice—first through a perforated hotel pan to remove larger solids, then through a finer filter to achieve a perfectly smooth consistency. Finally, it is transferred to an ice bath to cool rapidly, preserving its freshness and preventing spoilage.
The Depth of Octo Reduction
Another labor-intensive preparation is the octo reduction, which forms the base of the restaurant’s octo aioli, a key accompaniment to their renowned octopus dish. This process begins by meticulously cleaning the octopus head, removing membranes that can trap moisture and lead to a “fishy” flavor upon cooking. The octopus is particularly delicate, and great care is taken to prevent the skin from tearing, which can result in a loss of tenderness and juiciness. One half of the octopus is prepared for reduction, while the other half is cooked for over an hour in a pot with radish, scallion, and kombu water, a technique similar to sous vide, to achieve ultimate tenderness. Tom, a skilled chef, has specifically mastered this intricate cooking of octopus, ensuring its perfect texture.
The reduction itself involves simmering the octopus liquid with a precise blend of vegetables, including onions, scallions, and garlic. Crucially, the “octobase” is added, a mixture of spicy flakes, soy sauce, and Yundu. Yundu, described as a vegetable extract akin to MSG but without actual monosodium glutamate, plays a vital role in amplifying the umami flavors. Dashi, made from kombu and dried fish, further enriches the liquid. This mixture is then slowly reduced for several hours until it transforms into a thick, flavorful paste. What begins as a substantial volume of liquid ultimately yields only about two cups of this concentrated reduction, a testament to the effort required to create such a profound and complex sauce for Jungsik’s signature octopus dish.
Korean Tradition Elevated: Mastering Kimchi Fermentation
While Jungsik embraces contemporary fine dining, it remains deeply rooted in traditional Korean culinary practices, especially in the art of kimchi fermentation. This ancient technique is not merely preserved but perfected, ensuring unique and deeply flavorful results for a Michelin Star Korean restaurant.
The Kimchi Journey: From Cabbage to Kimbap
The red kimchi, a signature component in Jungsik’s kimbap, undergoes a multi-day preparation process. It begins with Napa cabbage, which is soaked in a salt solution for two days. This crucial step softens the cabbage, making it flexible like rubber, and, more importantly, breaks down the cell walls. This cellular breakdown facilitates the penetration of lactic acid bacteria, initiating the vital fermentation process. Once soaked, the cabbage is thoroughly squeezed to remove excess water before the red pasting begins.
The red paste itself is a complex mixture prepared a day in advance to allow its own initial fermentation. It features a rice paste—made from rice and water cooked down until the starch converts to sugar—combined with spicy flakes, radish (moo), scallion, anchovy sauce, shrimp sauce, and salted shrimp. This rich base is then massaged into the cabbage. Once the cabbage is coated, it is carefully packed into containers, ensuring a tightly spaced arrangement to eliminate air bubbles. This anaerobic environment is essential for the proper growth of the lactic acid bacteria and successful fermentation. The kimchi is then allowed to ferment for one to two weeks, a period during which its sour and umami flavors intensify. This meticulous planning ensures a consistent supply of perfectly fermented kimchi for the restaurant’s dishes.
Kimchi’s Role in Signature Dishes
This meticulously prepared kimchi is central to Jungsik’s unique kimbap. This elevated version features seaweed fried with rice paste, rolled into a cylinder. Inside, seasoned truffle rice is combined with pickled radish (moo) and, of course, the signature red kimchi. This dish exemplifies how traditional Korean elements are reinterpreted and refined to create an unparalleled dining experience, showcasing the versatility and depth of carefully fermented ingredients.
Precision and Personalization: Catering to Every Guest
In a three Michelin Star Korean restaurant, hospitality extends beyond just exceptional food; it encompasses a profound attention to guest needs, particularly regarding dietary restrictions and allergies. This level of personalization is a non-negotiable aspect of fine dining.
Navigating Allergies in Fine Dining
Every morning, before service commences, Sous Chef Klay Kim meticulously reviews the day’s reservations for allergies and dietary restrictions with the host, Jia. This critical process involves checking a “dashboard” where specific requirements are logged for the line cooks to see. For example, a guest with a pineapple allergy (raw or cooked) will have their galbi dish expertly substituted with cod. Similarly, for guests with raw seafood allergies, prawn replaces the striped jack, and bulgogi kimbap is offered instead of the yellow kimbap. This proactive and precise approach ensures that every guest can enjoy their meal safely and without feeling like they are “missing out,” as substitutions are carefully crafted to mimic original textures and flavors as much as possible.
The Pass: Orchestrating the Culinary Symphony
As service approaches, Klay Kim transitions to his station at “the pass,” the nerve center of the kitchen where dishes are finalized and dispatched. This is where the orchestrated chaos of a busy kitchen culminates in beautifully plated dishes. As the chef expo “fires” a dish, the line cooks prepare their proteins, and Klay’s responsibility is to meticulously plate them as they arrive. One distinctive dish is the ink rice, mixed with the red kimchi prepared earlier, plated onto a cast iron pan to create a crispy, traditional Korean Nurungji texture.
The cast iron pans themselves receive special attention. After washing, any residual water is meticulously removed, and the pans are coated with oil to prevent rice from sticking and burning. This attention to detail underscores Jungsik’s “no shortcut” philosophy. The immense pressure that comes with holding three Michelin Stars means that every dish must be flawless, every plate presented exactly as envisioned. Guests from around the world visit Jungsik with high expectations, and the team’s unwavering commitment is to meet and exceed those expectations consistently. The journey from intricate stock preparation to the final polished pan illustrates the profound dedication required to maintain such a prestigious culinary standing.
Behind the Stars and On The Line: Your 3-Star Korean Q&A
What is Jungsik?
Jungsik is a restaurant in New York City that serves contemporary Korean fine dining. It is one of only five establishments in the city to have earned three Michelin Stars.
What does it mean for a restaurant to have ‘3 Michelin Stars’?
Earning three Michelin Stars is a very high honor in the culinary world. It signifies that a restaurant offers exceptional cuisine and a dining experience that is worth a special journey.
What kind of food does Jungsik specialize in?
Jungsik specializes in contemporary Korean fine dining. They take traditional Korean culinary practices, like kimchi fermentation, and elevate them with meticulous techniques.
How does Jungsik handle guests with allergies or dietary restrictions?
Before each service, the kitchen team meticulously reviews all reservations for allergies and dietary needs. They then prepare expert substitutions to ensure every guest can enjoy their meal safely and without compromise.