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
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Amazong! I made it keto by using the Swerve brown sugar. Best recipe I’ve found. Thank you!
This marinade was so easy to make and is the best recipe we’ve tried so far. My son who said he wasn’t hungry had two servings. I didn’t have gochujang so left that out and subbed the asian pear with a Bartlett. Thanks so much for sharing this recipe!
I love Korean food and there’s a dirth of Korean restaurants where I live. So I decided to take matters in to my own hands, using this recipe with a pound of ground beef. I mashed up the beef with all the ingredients and put it in a gallon zip lock bag overnight. Next day I made patties and fried them up with scallions and toasted sesame seeds to garnish. Oh my gosh, so good! This would make a great hamburger with some bacon and kimchi on it. The patties, just by themselves, were so delicious! I had to use O”Food Gochujan sauce, as my local grocer did not have paste, and found it to be very balanced with regards to heat, sweet and savory. Great recipe, even for ground beef. Highly recommend this recipe. Thanks for putting it out there!
Delicious. I eat Korean all the time and have tried several recipes for Bulgogi. None compare to this one. It was pretty simple and really good. I did a 4 hour marinade. I served with Jasmine rice, bean sprouts in toasted sesame oil and kimchi. It was a big hit.
This is one of my family’s favorite recipe of yours. Thank you for being my nightly dinner inspiration!
My husband is Korean and this is his favorite meal!! This recipe is simple and delicious. I serve it with kimchi and rice.
My fave beef bulgogi recipe! Easy, tastes fantastic and if you have the time to marinate overnight the flavor is extra intense m.
One of my favorite go-to recipes. I use an Asian pear as I can get those easily and trader joes paste-great receipe.
Can I get away with a 30 min marinade? This is tonight’s dinner.
Absolutely! I did it tonight for 30 mins and was so good. I added some shaoxing wine too
Made this tonight for my family. It’s better than even the bulgogi at my favorite Korean restaurant (and where I live, there are many). Even my 8 y.o., who found it a tad spicy for her, was like “I love this, what can I do to cut the spice so I can keep eating it?” (Solution: sliced cucumber and put all the stuff in a lettuce wrap.)
P.s. I made this with thin cut blade steaks that were on mark down at my super market and they were just as tender and delightfully chewy as anything ive had in restaurants. So you don’t necessarily need to use the more expensive meat. Anything you find with lots of marbling could work. I served it with garlicky green beans, rice cooked Korean style (soak for an hour before putting in rice cooker) and (forgive me) grocery store Kim chi. It was every thing I wanted it be!!! Chef, any, recommendations on how to make a “sauce” to go with this? Wanting “more sauce” was my family’s only complaint.
How about just doubling the sauce?
Prepped this up last night before I went to bed, and cooked it this morning so I had lunch at work. Immediate smile on my face. This has to be one of the best things I’ve ever made (not saying much since I’m a fairly new cook), and it was so easy too. I think I’m going to come back to this recipe but using the comment below to help guide me. There really is a whole world out here.
I *love* this recipe, but it does take a bit of doctoring if you want it to be flavorful. If you just want a nice, somewhat bland version of Bulgogi (or you don’t like spicy dishes AT ALL), it’s great as-is. If you’re looking for something more authentic, first off – double the Gochujang. Then add about 1/2 teaspoon of ground cayenne pepper. You can substitute crushed red pepper or dried curry – even a couple of teaspoons of Curry paste. The first time I tried it, it was very tender and nicely crispy on the outside, but almost flavorless. Second – marinate overnight. It makes such a big difference! Serve it over Basmati rice. I’m mixing my genres here, but if you have leftovers, wrap them in some naan with green onions, feta cheese, and hummus. Perfect every time!
Bulgogi is not traditionally spicy.
Thank you for sharing this recipe. It’s perfect !! It has become a firm family favourite with my kids requesting it for Birthdays & special occasions. ❤️
Will leaving out the gochujang make a big difference?My household has very low spice tolerance
I have learned that gochujang is not actually very spicy (hot). If you’re more familiar with western or American spices, consider when one is making chili, and the difference between Chili powder, which adds distinctive flavor, and caynne pepper, which adds heat. If you’re more familiar with Latino cooking, it’s like the difference between guajillo Chile’s, which add flavor, and jalapeños or others which add heat. I hope this helps!
this is such a great explaination!!!
This became my most favorite Bulgogi recipe on the net. I tried many of them. Yours are the best!
Both my son and husband cleaned their plates and we all thoroughly enjoyed this dish. I soaked sliced sirloin overnight and it was the perfect tenderness.
Substitutions due to availability: hot sauce for gochujang and regular sesame oil rather than smoked. I served over a bed of jasmine rice with a hearty salad….yum!!
So delicious! This will be my go to recipe from now on, after trying about 5+ others. We had ours with sesame broccoli, rice, kimchi, and daikon pickle. Too good!
As a non-Korean whose in-laws immigrated from Korea, the best compliment was when my MIL asked for my recipe. I cut the gochujang in half and add about 1 T of rice wine, but otherwise yours is hands down my favorite bulgogi recipe that has my friends who grew up in Korea shocked I made it myself 🙂 thank you for the winner!!
I made this with a package of thinly sliced steak from Costco. It turned out so good!! I marinated the meat for about 2 hours. The meat was still frozen when I put it in the marinade and let it thaw until ready to cook. I will definitely make it again! I followed a different recipe the last time I made it but this is my GO TO recipe, every time now!! The meat was so flavorful! I paired it with some rice and veggies. Thank you for sharing this delicious meal!
So I have made this several times. I feel like the first time was the best (it was so good so I keep making it!). I have done ribeye, NY strip, and flank steak. I have done a very short 2 hour marinade , several hours, and finally this time around did a full day (overnight). I feel like ribeye for that long is too much. The meat starts to border on the edge of mushy. I would love to try a cheaper cut of sirloin or something with that kind of long marinade, but with the expensive ribeye, it is already pretty tender, so I think it was overkill.
I also think the brand of gochujang makes a difference. I had a different variety the first few times, and this time my gochujang was from Trader Joe’s and was spicier with less overall flavor. Will keep experimenting, but overall, this was tasty and will keep at it.
PERFECTLY AWESOME!! You are an absolute genius! As always you cut to the chase and create outstanding doable dishes. I am constantly finding myself at your website. And… fyi been cooking for many decades. It’s easy to spot true talent and someone who loves cooking and does such a wonderful job of sharing with others. Thank you so much. Also adore your sense of humor and candid approach to life.