Bulgogi | 불고기
Grilled Marinated Beef
Bulgogi is a signature Korean meat dish made by marinating thinly sliced beef in soy sauce and then grilling it. Although the name bulgogi means meat grilled on fire, bulgogi is generally stir-fried in a moist pan.
- 1 lb (500g) beef (sirloin), 1 onion (7 oz, 200g), 3 pyogo (shiitake) mushrooms (or oyster mushrooms) (3 oz, 90g), 6 stalks green onion (2 oz, 60g), 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
Marinade for beef
- 5 tablespoons soy sauce, 3 tablespoons sugar, 2 tablespoons minced green onion, 1 tablespoon minced garlic, 1 tablespoon sesame
oil, ½ teaspoon ground black, pepper, 1 tablespoon toasted sesame seeds, crushed
*optional for marinade
- ¼ Korean pear (5 oz,150g, 5 tablespoons pear juice) or 5 tablespoons beef broth, 2 tablespoons rice wine
- Cut the beef into thin slices -inch (2-mm) thick across the grain, or have butcher slice meat for you. If necessary, cut into smaller bite-size pieces. Pat meat dry with paper towels to remove excess blood.
- Cut onion into long thin slices.
- Cut the mushrooms into thin slices.
- Slice the green onions into 1½-inch (4-cm) long pieces.
- In a big bowl, combine all the ingredients of the marinade for beef and mix well.
- Add the beef to the marinade and toss meat so marinade coats all of the meat. Let it stand about 20 minutes. Add onion, green onions and mushrooms and mix well.
- Pan fry the beef in a small amount of oil until tender over the high heat. You may grill the meat over an open fire or grill.
In general, bulgogi is made from rib-eye sirloin, tenderloin or strip loin. The thinner the meat, the better the marination. To thinly slice the
meat, leave it in a freezer for 30 minutes and slice in the opposite direction of the grain using a sharp blade. Add fruits such as pears or apples to the marinade sauce to make the meat more tender. Skewer the marinated meat and vegetables to make ‘sanjeok’. Alternate the meat with green onions and mushrooms for a more beautiful color and better taste. Although it is common in Korean homes to cook bulgogi, neobiani (grilled marinated beef slices) and galbi-gui(grilled beef short ribs) in a frying pan, ovens may be used in places where ovens are more common. Grilling on a direct flame results in a better taste, due to the smoke; however, it is recommended to barbeque on
a charcoal fire outside, not inside.
