Korean Beef BBQ aka Bulgogi

Korean Beef BBQ aka bulgogi is a signature Korean dish. Directly translated, it means “fire meat”. It has a unique flavor, yet mild enough that just about anyone could love. It’s become such a popular dish here, too. With just a few simple, basic ingredients, you can easily make this at home.

I grew up eating lots of bulgogi. My parents made it all the time, for special occasions and just every day meals with my extended immediate family. But getting this recipe written down wasn’t as easy as, Mom & Dad, can you send me the recipe for this dish? When I did ask, all I got was a list of ingredients and words like “some”, “a little”, “to taste” – haha. But thanks to years of watching my parents, grandma and aunt make this, I was actually able to put some measurements behind it, after some test runs and taste tests.

Unlike many Korean dishes, bulgogi is actually easy to make. It isn’t too time-consuming, aside from the marinate time. I’m excited to finally have an actual recipe for it. It will definitely make my life a little easier, too, as I’ve been making it like them – putting some of this with a little bit of that. But unlike theirs, mine didn’t always come out quite right!

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Korean Beef BBQ aka Bulgogi

Course Main Dish

Cuisine Korean

Keyword bbq, beef, Korean

Servings 4 servings

Ingredients

• 1 lb beef ribeye round thinly sliced
• 2 Tbsp brown sugar
• 2 green onions diced
• 3 cloves garlic minced
• 1/4 cup soy sauce
• 1/2 Tbsp roasted sesame seeds
• 1 tsp sesame oil
• 1/4 tsp black pepper

Instructions

1. Thinly slice beef ribeye round. If you stick it in the freezer for about 30 mins to an hour, it will be easier to slice thin. Or just by it pre-sliced, like I do (Korean grocery stores typically carry this or I’ve even asked the butcher at my local grocery store to do this for me).
2. Next make the marinade by mixing the remaining ingredients together.

3. Pour the sauce into the dish with the beef and mix into the layers well.

4. Let the beef marinate in the sauce in the fridge for at least an hour. I’ve also let it sit overnight.

There are many ways to cook this:

1. My favorite way is on the grill, on a layer of aluminum foil.
2. You can also bake/broil it in the oven layed flat on a lightly greased roasting pan or baking dish. In an oven, I usually broil it at 400 degrees for about 15-20 mins until its cooked through and edges browned. Be sure to keep an eye on is as ovens vary.
3. Or simply sauté it up in a couple batches on the stove in a pan with a little oil until cooked through.

Dice the green onions.

Make your marinade.

Pour sauce onto meat.

Mix sauce into meat well and let sit in fridge to marinate for at least 1 hour, or even overnight.

Broil the bulgogi in oven, saute in pan on the stove or cook on the grill. This is a terrible picture, lol, but it still tastes great!

Dig in and enjoy.

Bulgogi can simply be enjoyed as is with rice and some sides or in the traditional Korean way wrapped in some lettuce with rice and saamjang, as seen in this post.

A very popular way to eat bulgogi is in another signature Korean dish called Bibimbap. It’s a rice dish with lots of veggies and bulgogi mixed in with gochujang and an egg on top. Be sure to check out this amazing dish!

Bulgogi Wraps are a delicious way to enjoy any leftovers you have, if there are any leftovers! Don’t they look yummy?

Bulgogi freezes GREAT! My parents always bring some for us on their visits. After marinating the raw meat, my mom puts it in the freezer a few days before so it’ll keep in the cooler on their trip down. No ice necessary! It’s usually still a block of ice after their 6+ hour trip! We then let it thaw in the fridge for a day or two and and cook it up. But, no matter how much we eat, we still seem to have some left over. We then freeze the leftovers after to enjoy another day! Just thaw it in the fridge and re-heat it in a pan with a little water and it’s as good as new!

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Christine, aka happyvballgirl : )

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