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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This was a delicious, warming meal. The only substitute I used was for the meat. Boneless prime rib was cost prohibitive for me so I used fajita meat and cooked it slow and low in a cast iron skillet, one layer at a time. We also didn’t have time to marinate the meat but still used the sauce. When all the meat was browned I added rough cut chunks of onion in with the meat and poured the sauce on top. Again, I cooked this slow and low. We ate this with rice and it was very, very good.
Absolutely awesome recipe and one that we’ll make again! I used maple syrup instead of brown sugar. I ended up cubing a 1.5 lb flank steak and dumped the beef and marinade into the slow cooker. After 5 hours on low, the beef was nice and tender. Served with kimchi. 🙂
Flank steak in a slow cooker?!? Why? Just slice across the grain for delicious and tender pieces. Save braising for the lesser cuts.
Thank you SO much for this recipe–it is my new favorite thing! I never would have thought of grated pear, but it is SO complimentary with that sesame/soy/ginger profile! Also great to make with a big batch of sticky rice & bring leftovers to work for lunch. NOmnomnomnom.
We wanted to try Korean food and came across this recipe and decided to try it. We had regular soy sauce and only marinated it for 1 hour. It was delicious! It’s going into our dinner rotation! Thank you!
I made this last night. It is the best bulgogi recipe I’ve made so far. Even better than my mom’s recipe (yes, she is Korean). I marinated it for 24 hours and I think that is the magic in the recipe. Much stronger flavor than any restaurant dish or recipe I’ve eaten before. One thing, it is a bit spicy. Next time, I will definitely decrease the amount of gojuchang.
Great Recipe!! I added 1/2 cup white wine, and subbed out the Ribeye with New York Strip steak. Cooked on very hot grill after marinating for only 60 minutes. Was a bit worried if that would be enough, but it was plenty. The flavor was spot on, my wife stated this was the best steak she had in a few months. Grill was fired with Mesquite wood chips, cooking time was just a few minutes total once on the grill. Steak was super tender, like cut with a fork tender, and the mix of ingredients provided very nice depth of flavors.
Superb every time. First time I made it I reduced the sugar a bit. Now use a scant tablespoon of sugar and it’s perfect for those of us who are seriously sweet adverse. I usually cook only half the beef and freeze the rest in the marinade. It is the perfect get a meal on the table in 20 minutes dish, even faster if I have leftover rice.
This was amazing! Throw in some rice and veg and its a wonderful meal.
Hi! Should we drain the marinade ?
If you want the crispy texture, I would say no. I used the marinade to sautee vegetables. It was delicious!
Used wagyu beef. Used sesame oil instead of seeds. I’m an mediocre cook but this came out freaking awesome.
This was delicious! I used half of an apple because I didn’t have any pear, and I skipped the red pepper paste because I wanted it to be kid-friendly. Unfortunately, the kids hated it because they hate deliciously flavorful foods, but the grownups loved it!
I had meant to double the recipe, but found out right after making the marinade that our dinner guests had to cancel because of COVID exposure. So I used the regular amount of meat with double the marinade. It came out delicious, but definitely way too sweet. Just a word to the wise if anyone is thinking about doubling up the sauce!
This was amazing!!! Made it for my family & they loved it!! We want to make a larger quantity but find that ribeye’s a little pricey. Is there a cheaper alternative cut you’d recommend?
I use flank steak
Thanks Bobbie! Trying london broil tonight, fingers crossed!
You can actually use any cut of beef you want or even pork or mutton and they all taste wonderful but for pork I recommend Korean BBQ sauce for the marinade. hope this helps
Thanks so much for this recipe. Made it tonight and it was Damn Delicious!!! 🙂 The beef was so tender it could be cut with a fork.
This bulgogi recipe ROCKS!!! I’ve tried several and they have all been way too sweet.
This one, however is perfectly balanced and oooooh the flavours are amazing. The meat was tender and juicy.
I have printed out this recipe and it will go in my recipe binder, cos this is a keeper. It’s going to be made at least once a month in my house from now on! Thank you so, so much for this recipe! My sister, niece and nephew loved it and they have never tried Korean food before!
This recipe is the most similar that I could find to a recipe my family made growing up that I’ve lost. Thank you so much for this! It’s delicious every time!
I have made this for years and this recipe closely resembles my Korean friend’s recipe. She had us use 1 small can crushed pineapple and added pepper and cooked on BBQ grill. Excellent cold also!! It melts in your mouth!
This recipe is really delicious. I marinated beef overnight and it made it really tender. My family loved it, I will definitely be making it again.
I tried this and we made bulgogi nachos and this recipe did not dissapoint for the beef. Well done!
Amazing. How a simple recipe can turn out so good. The recipe didn’t mention to drain marinade and discard before grilling, which I did, so I hope I opted for the correct procedure. Toasted the sesame seeds. Served with rice and kimchi which made for a complete Korean meal.
This is just the recipe I was looking for- I had ordered gochujang several months ago but hadn’t opened it because I wasn’t sure how to use it. I love bulgogi and yours is the best I have ever had! I don’t keep pears or apples around- do you think I could use unsweetened applesauce next time?
i suspect not… enzymes in certain fruits act as a tenderizer, while adding sweetness.
these enzymes can break down with cooking.
from a Reddit on Asian Pears in Korean marinades:
“fruits that have the enzyme protease can tenderize the meat. Kiwi, pineapple, papaya, mango, fig all have this enzyme. Kiwi works great because you only need a little bit and so does not add too much flavor. Kiwi is also very powerful so 1/2 kiwi for 5 lbs of bulgogi works best. None of the fruits above naturally grows in Korea so traditionally pear was what was used but kiwi works just as well in tenderizing. I hope this helps! And yes, you can use onion too”
warning: some fruits have VERY powerful tenderizing powers (e.g. pineapple) and if left for even a few hours can turn your meat into mush. so do your homework before substitution!