Bulgogi: Super Savory Korean Grilled Meat

For many, bulgogi is the most iconic Korean dish other than kimchi.

It’s tender sliced meat marinated in a subtle sweet and spicy sauce, chargrilled to perfection. Bulgogi is one of the greatest things ever and a perfect introduction to Korean food. Bulgogi is one of the easiest Korean dishes to make at home. Whether or not you have an authentic Korean BBQ grill or just a non-stick skillet on your stove, it’s an addictive savory melt in your mouth weeknight-compatible dinner.

What is bulgogi?

Bulgogi is a classic Korean BBQ meat item. It’s typically a thinly sliced cut of beef that’s been marinated in a pear-soy-onion mix. The meat is then quickly charred on a Korean BBQ plate over an open flame. At home, people crisp it up in a pan on the stove. It’s served up with rice, lettuce, and little kimchi-forward appetizers and pickles.

Spicy bulgogi

To make spicy bulgogi, just stir in a bit of gochujang (Korean red pepper paste). I would start with 1 heaping teaspoon, taste, and go from there based on your spice tolerance. Do this before adding the marinade to the meat, of course.

The best cuts for bulgogi beef

The best cuts of beef for bulgogi are sirloin, rib eye or brisket. It’s the thin slicing that’s the real secret to great Bulgogi. You can find perfect presliced meat at H-Mart or most other asian grocery stores. If your supermarket has a good meat department, you can usually ask them for thin slices. As a last resort, you can buy a hunk of beef, quickly chill it to almost frozen, and slice as thin as you can.

Do you need a grill?

Bulgogi tastes best flame grilled over butane gas or charcoal (bulgogi means fire-meat in Korean) – although most people don’t do charcoal at home since it will be very smoky and possibly dangerous if you have poor ventilation. The best bet is a nonstick or cast iron skillet over high heat.

How to make bulgogi

1. Roughly chop an onion, core and chop an Asian pear (you want about 1 cup of rough dice), and peel your garlic.
2. Blend all the marinade ingredients until smooth.
3. Marinate your meatfor 2 hours or up to overnight.
4. Grill or fry your meat.
5. Eat with lettuce, rice, and lots of banchan!

Bulgogi sauce ingredients

Asian pear

Asian pears, sometimes called apple pears, are light golden yellow, round, and firm with a crisp crunch (crispier than ordinary pears), lots of juice and more sweetness. If you can’t find an Asian pear, you can sub a regular pear (like Bosc) or sweet apple (like Fuji).

Soy sauce

Believe it or not, soy sauces are different for each Asian country. Go for a Korean soy sauce such as Sempio if you can. If you can’t, a Japanese soy sauce is next best, such as Kikkoman.

Toasted sesame oil

Toasted sesame oil is dark, nutty, and can’t be used for frying unlike it’s clear sibling. You can find it in the Asian aisles, at an Asian grocery store, or online. Our favorite brand is Kadoya.

Rice vinegar

Rice vinegar is a little nuttier and a lot sweeter than most other vinegars. Many rice vinegars you find will be seasoned sushi rice vinegar, with sugar, salt, and possibly other items in its ingredients list. This isn’t exactly what you want but can still be used. Actual rice vinegar only has one ingredient. Any other vinegar you love will work too.

Ginger

If you hate mincing ginger, we use a Japanese ginger grater. They are very effective and pretty cheap – if you live near a Daiso, you can even get them for $1.

Bulgogi Recipe

Super Savory Korean Grilled Meat

Serves 6

4.58 from 7 votes

Prep Time 5 mins

Marinating Time 2 hrs

Total Time 2 hrs 5 mins

Ingredients

• 1/2 medium onion roughly chopped, about 1 cup
• 1/2 pear cored and quartered, Asian pear preferred, about 1/2 cup
• 4 cloves garlic peeled
• 1 tsp ginger minced
• 2 tbsp water
• 1/4 cup soy sauce
• 2 tbsp brown sugar
• 1 tbsp toasted sesame oil
• 2 tbsp rice vinegar
• 1/2 tsp black pepper
• 2 lbs ribeye thinly sliced, or other meats, see notes
• 1 tbsp gochujang or to taste, optional

Special Equipment

• blender

Instructions

• Blend the onion, pear, garlic, ginger, and water.
  
• Mix the onion-pear mix with soy sauce, brown sugar, toasted sesame oil, vinegar, and black pepper. Add gochujang, if using.
  
• Mix the marinade throughly with the meat and marinate for 2 hours to overnight.
  
• Cook the meat on a hot plate/grill, cast iron pan, or nonstick skillet, flipping as needed.
  

Notes

Other good choices for meats are brisket, sirloin, or any other thinly sliced meats you can find at an Asian grocery store. You can also use thinly sliced pork belly, collar, jowl, or thickly sliced chicken breast, or cubed chicken thighs.

You can julienne the rest of the pear as a garnish.

Estimated Nutrition

Nutrition Facts

Bulgogi Recipe

Amount Per Serving

Calories 336 Calories from Fat 106

% Daily Value*

Fat 11.8g18%

Saturated Fat 3.9g24%

Cholesterol 135mg45%

Sodium 701mg30%

Potassium 677mg19%

Carbohydrates 7.4g2%

Fiber 0.8g3%

Sugar 4.6g5%

Protein 46.9g94%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.