Beef Bulgogi
Beef bulgogi is the most recognized Korean dish to the Westerner's eyes and is considered one of the most popular in Korea. When you eat a a Korean BBQ restaurant and order Bulgogi, it is either being brought to you all ready prepared or you can grill it yourself at a table side grill. Bulgogi is traditionally beef, usually thinly sliced ribeye. You can also use NY strip or top sirloin as well. If you can't find razor thin sliced beef, you can definitely slice it yourself. If using ny strip or top sirloin, make sure the fat cap is removed from the top of the meat. Partially freeze the meat to make slicing a little easier. The meat should be consistently sliced, less that an 1/8th". When cooking the meat, use either a sauté pan, grill pan, or a griddle. Make sure that the pan is really hot. This is meant to cook very fast, hence why the meat is sliced thin. Do not overcrowd the pan when cooking. It will make the meat braise in it's own juices instead of browning it. Using 1.5lbs of meat, I cooked this in 3 batches on a griddle.What really stands out to me in flavor is the use of Asian pear. It adds a nice sweetness to the meat, as well as being a natural tenderizer. If you can't find asian pears, you can substitute an apple. I've seen recipes that use pineapple juice or mashed kiwi. Thai all have the same enzyme that is used in tenderizing meatBulgogi is traditionally served with rice. It is also great in a lettuce wrap with a little bit of soybean paste. I think I'm going to enjoy a wrap made with the devil's lettuce right about now.
Servings: 4
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 lbs ribeye, ny strip, or top sirloin sliced 1/8" or thinner
- 1/4 cup shallots diced
- 1/4 cup carrots julienne
- 2 tbsp vegetable or canola oil
Bulgogi Marinade
- 5 tbsp light soy sauce
- 3 tbsp suger
- 2 tbsp rice wine
- 1 tbsp garlic minced
- 1 tsp ginger grated
- 1 tbsp sesame oil
- 1/2 asian pear grated
- 2 tsp sesame seeds
- 1/4 tsp black pepper
Garnish
- green onions finely diced
- sesame seeds
Instructions
- Mix all marinade ingredients together.
- For this recipe, I am using sliced NY strip that I purchased from my local Asian market. You can use ribeye or top sirloin as well.
- Add the meat to the marinade. Marinate for 6-8 hours, preferably overnight.
- Before you are about to cook the meat, add the julienne carrots and diced shallots.
- Preheat a sautée pan, stove top grill, or griddle over high heating add the cooking oil. Start adding the meat to the pan. Make sure to not overcrowd the pan. You don't want the meat to braise in it's juices. Cook for no more than a minute on one side.
- Flip meat to the other side and cook for another minute.
- Garnish with green onion and more sesame seeds.
- Beef Bulgogi is also is great in lettuce wraps!
