Korean Beef Bowl
by Chungah
This post may contain affiliate links. Please see our privacy policy for details.
Tastes like Korean BBQ (bulgogi) and is on your dinner table in just 15 min! Quick, easy, budget-friendly, and a hit with the entire family!
Featured Comment
Please welcome our favorited Korean beef bowls, one of our most popular recipes on Damn Delicious. This recipe is a special twist on the traditional Korean dish, bulgogi, but as a cheater version, we are swapping out thin slices of sirloin with ground beef.
Why You’ll Love This Korean Beef Bowl
- Weeknight hero. With a short ingredient list, these beef bowls come together incredibly fast. The cooking process itself takes just about 10-15 minutes, and if you have some leftover cooked rice lying around, dinner will be on the table in 20 minutes or less. It’s a budget-friendly alternative to traditional bulgogi while still capturing authentic Korean BBQ flavors.
- Budget-friendly. Using pantry staples, ground beef and rice, this dish can easily feed a family of four without breaking the bank.
- Flexible recipe. Throw in any lingering veggies (ex. chopped bell peppers, carrots or broccoli florets) for an easy clean-out-the-fridge meal.
What is the difference between bulgogi and Korean beef bowls?
Bulgogi uses marinated sliced beef, grilled or pan-fried, while Korean beef bowls use ground beef for a faster, budget-friendly weeknight version. Bulgogi is also marinated overnight to enhance its flavors and tenderness but with this quick ground beef version, you can have the same flavors in lightning speed time.
How to make korean beef bowls
- Prep the sauce. Combine the brown sugar, soy sauce, sesame oil, red pepper flakes, and ginger. To make the bowls more spicy, swap out the red pepper flakes for gochujang (Korean red chili paste).
- Crumble the ground beef. Sauté the garlic first in a large cast iron skillet, then crumble the ground beef (or desired meat), draining the excess fat.
- Add the sauce and simmer. Add the sauce, simmering until heated through, about 2 minutes. This would be a great time to add in any leafy greens (baby spinach or kale) for those picky eaters!
- Serve. Serve warm over rice, topped with a fried egg for additional protein.
What to Serve with Korean Beef Bowls
Tools For This Recipe
Large cast iron skillet
Korean Beef Bowl: Frequently Asked Questions
Not at all! Use ground pork, chicken or turkey, tofu or plant based ground beef in place of the ground beef.
Add a fried egg on top (sunny side or over easy), breaking the runny yolk into a rich, velvety sauce to mix with the rice.
Yes! Swap out the soy sauce for gluten-free tamari.
Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for 2-3 days.
Absolutely! Here are detailed instructions on how to meal prep this for the week.
100%! This is one of our favorite crockpot recipes, perfect for those chilly months.
Yes! You can freeze the leftovers in individual freezer bags, thaw overnight, and reheat on the stovetop (adding a tablespoon of water as needed).
Korean Beef Bowl
Video
Ingredients
- ¼ cup brown sugar, packed
- ¼ cup reduced sodium soy sauce
- 2 teaspoons sesame oil
- ½ teaspoon crushed red-pepper flakes, or more to taste
- ¼ teaspoon ground ginger
- 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 pound ground beef
- 2 green onions, thinly sliced
- ¼ teaspoon sesame seeds
Instructions
- In a small bowl, whisk together brown sugar, soy sauce, sesame oil, red pepper flakes and ginger.
- Heat vegetable oil in a large cast iron skillet over medium high heat. Add garlic and cook, stirring constantly, until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add ground beef and cook until browned, about 3-5 minutes, making sure to crumble the beef as it cooks; drain excess fat.
- Stir in soy sauce mixture and green onions until well combined, allowing to simmer until heated through, about 2 minutes.
- Serve immediately, garnished with green onion and sesame seeds, if desired.
Equipment
Notes
- Use reduced sodium soy sauce. Reduced sodium has less sodium and less salt without compromising flavor.
- Pick your favorite protein. Ground beef, pork, chicken or turkey, tofu or plant based ground beef will all work very well here. In need of more protein? Top your bowl with a sunny side up fried egg.
- Add vegetables. Mushrooms, carrots, bell peppers or snow peas can be added for a more heartier meal, perfect for picky eaters and grown ups!
- Double the sauce. Need extra sauce for sopping with rice? The sauce portion can easily be doubled or tripled for those saucy folks!
- Serve with your favorite grains. White rice, brown rice, cauliflower rice, quinoa or farro are all solid options.
- Meal prep as needed. Perfect for on-the-go, these Korean beef bowls can be conveniently meal prepped for the week ahead.
Did you make this recipe?
Tag @damn_delicious on Instagram and hashtag it #damndelicious!
Great recipe! My husband and kids love it.
I serve it with pickled cucumbers.
Hi ! Great recipe I’m making it tonight!
How much gochujang would you sub for red pepper flakes in the sauce mixture?
Thank you!
Super easy meal to make – definitely double the sauce.
My husband and I eat this once a week – it’s so good! Topped with chili crunch
Such a good addition to this! Thank you for sharing, Zoe!
Easy and delicious! I added broccoli too the whole bowl- yum!
How could I make this without the sugar?
I use maple syrup instead
Simple. Don’t add it
You can probably just leave it out or use a no calorie sweetener like stevia (powdered or liquid) monk fruit, eritherol, etc. 🙂
Super tasty, added mushrooms + chili crisp- will definitely be making again
Super easy and delicious!
I used basmati brown rice instead of white rice
We tried this for all day Sunday supper!! Absolutely delicious. I did not have any sesame oil so I will be making this again tomorrow for work lunches and I will have it then…. looking forward to a proper remake! Great recipe.
I really liked this recipe. I also ended up using brown sugar replacement. Doubled the sauce. And put it over a mix of rice and cauliflower rice. Great meal.
Great recipe. Ive been making this for years as a constant part of our family meal prep rotation, with a very picky 12 year old.
The recipe is super balanced, however I do now add less sugar.
Leaving a review to show our appreciation.
So delicious and easy! Doubled the sauce, added carrots and broccoli. Will absolutely be making again.
Today will be the 4th time I make this dish. My extremely picky teenager, who insisted the first day I made it that he’d HATE the little bit I gave him, asks for me to make it weekly now.
Just cooked it today. Really delicious, fast and simple, thanks for sharing! Love recipes like this!
This has become a weekly staple for my family. We eat it with rice, carrots, cucumbers, egg, and little bit of gochujang. Delicious!
Just made this!!! Doubled the sauce, added mushrooms and shredded carrots and tossed with some thick udon noodles.
Delicious!!! Thank you!!
One of our family favorites. My hubby says he could eat this every day. The leftovers heat up well too.
Very, very delish.
Surprised at how quickly this came together.
I was looking for a different dish to make with 1pound of ground beef. Didn’t have green onions, used yellow and it was delicious
Easy to prep/cook and a dinner HIT!
I used ground turkey and added a little broccoli, red bell pepper, and asparagus not the pan after incorporating the sauce. I also popped some quick-pickled carrots, red onions, and radishes on top with lots of cilantro. This is a winner which I’ll make again. Thanks!
Really good