Korean Beef Bulgogi
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A super easy recipe for Korean BBQ with the most flavorful marinade! The thin, tender slices of meat cook SO quickly!
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It was always a treat when my mom would whip this up on those busy weeknights – marinating the beef just a few hours while I was at swim practice. And then she’d throw these onto a hot skillet, filling up the house with the best kind of beef aroma – you know, the smell at the Korean BBQ restaurants that gets you so hungry.
The meat cooked in seconds, and she’d serve these with perilla leaves, white rice, and ssamjang (best known as a Korean BBQ dipping sauce). It was just perfection. But with my mom being in Korea, she doesn’t really get a chance to make this for me anymore. So I’ve done my best to “grow up” and whip this up myself. Now to be honest, nothing beats my mom’s cooking but this is a very close second.
what is korean bulgogi
Bulgogi (불고기) is a Korean dish made of thinly-sliced meat typically marinated in soy sauce, sugar, sesame oil, garlic, ginger and pear. Bulgogi is most commonly made with beef, but can also be made with chicken or pork.
tips and tricks for success
- Freeze the steak for slicing. The key to bulgogi is using paper thin slices of meat. Throwing the steak in the freezer for 20-30 minutes will make it easier to slice the meat into very thin, even pieces. Pre-sliced bulgogi beef is also readily available at Korean and Japanese grocery stores.
- Pear adds maximum flavor. Adding coarsely grated pear will not only add a subtle sweetness to the marinade, but it will also help tenderize the meat. Korean pear or Bosc pear can be used.
- Use reduced sodium soy sauce. Reduced sodium has less sodium and less salt without compromising flavor.
- Use a hot cast iron grill pan. A heavy bottom pan, such as a cast iron grill pan, retains heat much better than a nonstick skillet, allowing for even cooking, a better sear and smoky, caramelized flavors.
- Cook in batches. Work in batches to properly sear the meat for maximum caramelization and smoky flavors. An overcrowded pan will unfortunately steam the beef instead.
- Freeze as needed. Marinated bulgogi is very freezer-friendly, great for meal prep and making weeknight meals even easier and quicker.
freezing and storage
Storage
Leftovers can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for 2-3 days.
Reheating
Let the meat sit at room temperature for 10-15 minutes. Reheat over medium high heat, stirring frequently, until heated through.
Freeze before cooking
Transfer the marinated meat to an airtight, resealable freezer bag. Label, date and freeze up to 2 months. To cook, thaw overnight in the fridge and cook as directed, adding a few more minutes of cook time as needed.
Freeze after cooking
Let cool completely. Transfer the meat to an airtight, resealable freezer bag. Label, date and freeze up to 2 months. To reheat, thaw overnight in the fridge, reheating over medium high heat, stirring frequently, until heated through.
more favorited korean recipes
Tools For This Recipe
Cast iron grill pan
Korean Beef Bulgogi: Frequently Asked Questions
We prefer ribeye and top sirloin, but flank steak or skirt steak can also be used for a more budget-friendly option.
Fuji apple is a suitable substitute for the pear.
Gochujang is a red chili paste, a pantry staple in Korean cooking. It can be found in most grocery stores in a red, rectangular tub.
If you do not have a cast iron grill pan, you can also use a large cast iron skillet.
Bulgogi is commonly served with rice and a side of kimchi, cucumbers, perilla leaves and ssamjang.
Korean Beef Bulgogi
Ingredients
- 1 ½ pounds boneless rib eye steak
- ½ small pear, peeled and coarsely grated
- ¼ cup reduced sodium soy sauce
- 2 tablespoons brown sugar
- 2 tablespoons toasted sesame oil
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 tablespoon freshly grated ginger
- 1 tablespoon gochujang, Korean red pepper paste
- 2 tablespoons vegetable oil, divided
- 2 green onions, thinly sliced
- 1 teaspoon toasted sesame seeds
Equipment
Instructions
- Wrap steak in plastic wrap, and place in the freezer for 30 minutes. Unwrap and slice across the grain into 1/4-inch thick slices.
- In a medium bowl, combine pear, soy sauce, brown sugar, sesame oil, garlic, ginger and gochujang. In a gallon size Ziploc bag, combine soy sauce mixture and steak; marinate for at least 2 hours to overnight, turning the bag occasionally.
- Heat 1 tablespoon vegetable oil in a cast iron grill pan over medium-high heat.* Working in batches, add steak to the grill pan in a single layer and cook, flipping once, until charred and cooked through, about 2-3 minutes per side. Repeat with remaining 1 tablespoon vegetable oil and steak.
- Serve immediately, garnished with green onions and sesame seeds, if desired.
Video
Notes
Did you make this recipe?
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Superb recipe. However, I added Chile pepper flakes to the marinade. Also I used some orange juice to the marinade. I also used a Gas grill with an Iron veggie grilling insert with holes to allow me to cook the strips of meat without worrying about losing a piece through the grates. Also added blueberry Jam to the marinade to give another rich taste dimension.
Very delicious recipe! tried this samgyupsal on my niece’s Birthday and they all loved it! although I always use beef for the meat. much flavorful.
Really tasty!! Love this. Thanks for sharing
Extremely flavorful! We followed the recipe exactly and have made the dish three times this past month. This is my husband’s most requested dish. Thank you
Love this!!! I’ve made this recipe at least 5 times in the past few months, always with beef. Sometimes with lettuce wraps, sometimes with rice, sometimes with both. Adding quick pickles of radishes and cucumbers as sides upps it from excellent to outstanding. Any leftovers, rare, make a terrific lunch. Without green onions it’s great. Without the pear, it’s great. With just an hour marinade, it’s great. The sesame seeds add a wonderful toasty nutty flavor. Kudos!!!!!
Excellent! But I use Korean short ribs for the beef, which we love. These are thin sliced short ribs. I use the meat with white rice, or use it on bi bim bap. Rice, then sliced cooked or pickled veggies, like spinach, carrots, bean sprouts, then layer of meat, then a very softly cooked egg on top. Stir it all together and add additional go-chu-jang sauce to taste and it will be your favorite meal for life! Getting that wet egg yolk incorporated into your rice with your chop sticks is kept.
Excellent. Wish I had tripled the sauce. Served with white rice, Asian vegetables, and pickled cucumbers. I did reduce the amount of brown sugar to 1 tbsp based on other posts.
I love this recipe. I will buy sirloin roasts when they are on sale, cut it up thinly and divide into make 3-5 pkgs with their own marinade. Leave them in the fridge 24 hours t marinade and freeze. I love pulling one out for dinner and just need to make accompaniments. Awesome recipe.
Brenda, I was wondering, do you find the frozen marinated meat salty when you cook it later?
I’m wondering because I was thinking of doing that but was concerned it would change the consistency of the meat and also make it salty. I consider slicing the meat and doing the packages as you did for the freezer, but either just doing that and making the sauce later, or possibly, making the sauce and freezing separately?
Thanks,
Mary
* No rating because I haven’t made this yet, but am looking forward to it!
Easy to follow instructions and the taste was delicious.
I made a batch with seitan for my vegetarian son, plus included some brown jasmine rice and the butthead lettuce leaves to use as wraps.
Everyone loved it and I would make this again.
Amazing flavor! I used 2.5 lbs of venison roast since that was the closest to beef in the freezer. Shaved the roast while completely frozen for super thin slices. Used Gochugaru 고추가루 which is in powder or flake form, and all I had available. Doubled the sauce and had to use molasses and white sugar to sub for brown sugar. Super tender. Served with stir fried bok choi, carrot and onion and a huge pot of white rice to 3 teenage boys and myself. No leftovers 🙁 Will be making this again and again!
Absolutely delicious!!! I already expected it to be good based on the other reviews, but I was shocked at how amazing it was! And it was so easy to make! I will be making this regularly now for sure!
Easy instructions, and insanely easy considering how delicious it is. This is definitely be a recipe that will get lots of use in my house! Everybody loved it and the meat is so tender.
So so so so….so so so good! We ate until we popped.
I’ve been using this marinade forever and we all love it. I’ve even used the marinade with shaved steak and it comes out so good. My husband cooks it on his flat top grill and we serve it with white rice, grilled mushrooms and onions. Sometimes we even eat it in romaine lettuce as a wrap. So good!
So, I didn’t know what green onions were when I first made this, so I used a small yellow onion instead.
I put the onion, along with the rest of the marinade ingredients, into a blender and made a paste. Into a gallon ziplock bag with a pound of ground beef. 24-hour marinade. Throw it into a pan at medium heat and cook till all the liquid’s gone. I make this a couple times a month. Wife loves it too.
Jesus Murphy, that is truly terrifying….
No no no no no no comment necessary with such abuse of the original recipe.
WHAT????
Now I can see someone being confused if the recipe called for “scallions,” as some may not know that this is the official name for green onions. The recipe AND pictures should have ended any confusion.
The thought of putting all the ingredients in a blender is crazy but I thought I’d plotz (a GREAT Yiddish word) when I read GROUND BEEF!
So my question to you, Sir. What has your review got to do with Bulgogi Korean beef?
Let’s not shame anyone for not knowing what a specific ingredient is. Perhaps green onions are not common or readily available where the OP is from. Also, why does it matter what kind of meat they chose to use? Maybe they were using what they had on hand. Regardless, the flavor profile will be same. Eoin, I hope you continue your journey to try new food!!!
Definitely agreed with you! I used prime rib last weekend and I am going to try this using a pork tenderloin this weekend!
Good for you for standing up for Eoin. The main thing is that no one got hurt and for this person and his wife really enjoyed what they created. It may not be what you would have done or enjoy, but for them its wonderful. I agree, continue to enjoy YOUR flavorful journey what ever that may be.
great idea. put it on your favorite bun for bulgogi sloppy joe’s – kimchi optional
I nearly fell off my chair laughing when I read Eoin’s down-home method for assembling this recipe. However, Bruce called it by naming it Bulgogi Sloppy Joes. I used to LOVE Sloppy Joes, and I love this Bulgogi recipe. Thank you Eoin for your creativity and fun. I haven’t laughed like that in at least a year. Thank you Bruce for further clarification and inspiration. Very soon, I’m going to try Bulgogi ground beef lettuce cups. I bet the family will love them!
Amazing recipe!!!! So delicious
This turned out so good! Will definitely keep this as an easy go-to weeknight meal. It was a hit with the husband and kiddo.
great recipe. it turned out to be more brown than black, how could i make it more black?
Squid ink!
HOT iron skillet to seat meat, work in batches so as to have a single layer at a time.
Very tasty!
My “go-to” dish when I am up to cook at the firehouse! Everyone loves it!
This was one of the easiest, most delicious meals I’ve ever made. My wife and I LOVED it! Planning on making it a regularly from now on. Thanks!
amazing recipe. made it for my husband’s birthday dinner recently and he loved it so much. he was in Japan as a child on a military base and had the dish often while there. I was hoping it would be super delicious and we were not disappointed!