Korean Beef Bowl
by Chungah
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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?
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I wasn’t sure what to make tonight and just I happened to find this recipe. I thought it would be an easy way to finish off my ground beef. It was excellent! I look forward to experimenting with it. Thank you for the inspiration !
Top this with a fried egg, some quick pickled asian style shredded carrots and some quick pickled asian style cucumber. Add a garnish of cilantro and some chopped peanuts.
This is recipe is a staple in our house!
I doubled this recipe for my family of 5, and it made enough for the boys to have seconds and my husband to have leftovers for lunch. It tastes even better the second day! My younger kids don’t really like ground beef, but they ate this dish with gusto. I made the recipe as written, doubling all ingredients and using an entire bunch of green onions (white and green parts). I left out the ginger because we didn’t have any on hand, and it had great flavor even without it. I will definitely make this again!
Wow, we loved it! It was quick and easy, but super tasty. Thank you for the recipe.
Super fast, super easy, super tasty! I’ve been making this every 3 weeks or so.
I make this ALL.THE.TIME…love it exactly as is!!
A favourite in our house!
It’s requested at least once a week!
This has been in heavy rotation for years. I always use fresh ginger. I top with cilantro if I have any. I also give each serving a fried egg on top, and that’s what seals the deal.
I may experiment with less sugar and replace some sweetness with shredded pear. I don’t think the full sugar amount is needed.
Excellent.
Is it better you use fresh ginger?
My family loves this dish! I double it and prep for lunches for the week. Question…does the nutrition info provide include the rice? My guess is no.
This recipe is amazing, I can’t believe I never thought to cook ground beef in this way. Much more cost-effective than using steak cuts.
I altered this a little bit for even more flavor. I sautéed the garlic in chili oil instead of plain vegetable oil for additional spice, and I also added a dash of Chinese 5 Spice Powder in the sauce mixture which gave the dish more depth.
I absolutely love how the recipe uses simple pantry ingredients and it’s so simple to put together. With some steamed vegetables it’s a complete meal and an easy meal prep recipe! This will be added to my rotation.
So good! I added broccoli and red pepper to it for a little vegetable and it was super yummy!
Did you increase the amount of sauce to accommodate for the veggies or was it fine as is? I also want to add broccoli!
This is a terrific recipe!! So easy and delicious! Do try! I recommend this!
I love this recipe so easy and simple and delicious!
Made this tonight over rice with steamed broccoli and it was amazing. We will be making this again! It was tasty and super simple. I almost always have these ingredients.
Love this recipe! I modify and use ground turkey and add in onions, peppers, broccoli, carrots or whatever else I have on hand. It’s huge hit in our house and my go to meal when I am short on time or tired. Love it!
Thank you SO much for this delicious and so so easy recipe. I served it with yuzu marinated cucumbers and it was a big hit with my family. Its always great to have a new option for ground beef!!
Super delicious! My whole family loves it.
I wanted to add a review for this recipe. I was a bit skeptical of the ground ginger but it works perfectly. I really appreciated not having to grate ginger for the sauce when I had come home late and I was rushing to get dinner on the table. I love this recipe as it is tasty, quick and loved by all family members. I served it with udon but I also have served it with rice.