Best and Easiest Beef Bulgogi – Asian Recipes At Home (2024)

This is the best and easiest Korean beef bulgogi recipe. It consists of thin slices of ribeye beef marinated in our own very special homemade marinade and then stir-fried to perfection. Bulgogi is a classic Korean dish and is a staple in many Korean households.

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A brief history of Korean beef bulgogi

Pronounced “buul-GOH-ghee”, bulgogi is literally translated as “fire meat” in Korean (“bul” means “fire” and “gogi” means “meat”). According to the peer-reviewed Korean Journal, this dish’s origins date back to the Goguryeo dynasty (37 B.C. to 668 A.D.). It went through a few transitional periods, such as grilled beef that originated from neobiani, then to being boiled in a meat broth around the 1960s. Bulgogi was revived with full-force after the 1990s. It was then that bulgogi was adapted through various different cooking methods and collectively was regarded as the most popular food in Korea.

What makes this the best and easiest Korean beef bulgogi recipe

A lot of traditional recipes you may see tend to use Asian pear in their recipes. Today, we are sharing a super easy and more simplified bulgogi recipe with you. It can be hard to find Asian pears, especially when they are not in season. We use thinly sliced ribeye for this recipe due to its tenderness and fat content. However, sirloin and brisket are also popular cuts to use in bulgogi recipes. You should be able to find all of the ingredients needed for our Korean beef bulgogi recipe easily at the grocery store or Asian markets at any time of the year.

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Thinly sliced beef

Thinly sliced beef is one of the most important components in making great bulgogi. It is possible for you to slice the meat thinly yourself at home too. If you decide to slice it yourself, many suggest freezing the beef for only about 20 minutes to make it easier to slice. You don’t want it completely frozen, you just want it frozen enough so that the knife can glide through a firmer, almost frozen piece of meat. However, it is even easier to have the grocery store, or butcher slice the meat for you. Many bigger grocery stores will happily slice it for you. We have asked Kroger’s meat counter to slice the ribeye paper-thin for us and most are happy to help. If you have a locally-owned Asian market or Korean supermarket nearby like an H Mart, they also usually have pre-sliced beef frozen and ready to go.

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What to serve with this easy beef bulgogi

As you would probably expect, we recommend serving this delicious beef bulgogi with freshly steamed white rice. Traditionally, beef bulgogi is served accompanied by a variety of different side dishes (banchan). Try one, any or all of these great side dish (banchan) recipes that would go great with this beef bulgogi:

  • Easy Napa Cabbage Korean Kimchi (Cut-Up Kimchi)
  • Crunchy Fried Spring Rolls
  • Spicy Korean Cucumber Salad
  • Easy Asian Pan-Fried Zucchini
  • Korean Seasoned Spinach Side Dish (Sigeumchi-namul)
  • Korean White Kimchi (Baek Kimchi)

We hope you enjoy this best and easiest Korean beef bulgogi recipe! Please be sure to comment or tag us on Instagram or Facebook (@asianrecipesathome) if you make this recipe.

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Yield: 4

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 20 minutes

Additional Time: 14 hours

Total Time: 14 hours 35 minutes

This is the best and easiest Korean beef bulgogi recipe. Thin slices of ribeye beef marinated in our own very homemade bulgogi marinade and then stir-fried to perfection.

Ingredients

  • 2lb Ribeye beef, sliced paper-thin
  • 1 Tbsp avocado oil
  • 1 medium/large-sized yellow onion (about 1 ½ cups), sliced about ¼” thickness
  • 1 medium-sized carrot (about 1 cup), cut like matchsticks
  • 2 green onions (about ½ cup), sliced on the diagonal
  • ½ Tbsp sesame seeds
  • 1 green onion (about ¼ cup), sliced on diagonal (optional, garnish)

For the marinade:

Instructions

  1. First, let’s prepare the beef. Rub the sugar into the beef and let it sit for about 2 hours in the fridge in a medium-sized bowl.
  2. While the beef is marinating in just the sugar, let’s make the actual marinade. Mix together sesame oil, soy sauce, water, black pepper, salt, garlic cloves, and sesame seeds in a small bowl. Once mixed thoroughly, pour this mixture onto the beef and mix together well. Let the beef marinate in the fridge for about 12 hours. The longer it marinates the better the flavor.
  3. Place a cast-iron pan (or any frying pan) onto high heat and then add 1 Tbsp avocado oil to the pan.
  4. Stir-fry the beef for about 1 minute on the high heat. After a minute, turn the heat down to medium and continue stir-frying the beef to allow the liquid to evaporate/absorb into the beef.
  5. Once the liquid from the beef and marinade has evaporated about 80%, then add in the onions, carrot, and green onion. Stir-fry the beef and vegetables together until all of the liquid has evaporated.
  6. Add the remaining sesame seeds and mix into the finished bulgogi. Top with freshly sliced green onions (optional), serve and enjoy!

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Best and Easiest Beef Bulgogi – Asian Recipes At Home (2024)

FAQs

How long should you marinate bulgogi? ›

Add the thinly sliced beef, thinly sliced onions, and green onions. Mix and marinate for at least 8 hours or up to 24 hours. Over high heat, add a tbsp of oil to a pan. Cook the beef bulgogi in batches until the water cooks out and the beef and onions are nicely caramelized, about 4-5 minutes.

What cut of meat is used for beef bulgogi? ›

Boneless ribeye steak is our cut of choice for this recipe and the most popular because it is tender and flavorful with nice marbling. Sirloin is also commonly used to make bulgogi and is slightly leaner that ribeye. You can also use flank steak in a pinch with good results, but the texture won't be quite as tender.

What are the three types of bulgogi? ›

noodles—mixed into the brothy sauce. bulgogi memories. There are three main regional styles of bulgogi: Gwangyang, Eonyang, and Seoul.

How to serve Korean beef bulgogi? ›

The best way to serve beef bulgogi is with some freshly cooked rice where you drizzle all that sauce. On the side, you can have kimchi and other banchans, as well as some vegetables such as lettuce and sliced peppers. For the sauce, don't forget the ssamjang! With these, you can make a ssam or bulgogi lettuce wraps.

How long do you really need to marinate meat? ›

Information. Most recipes for marinating meat and poultry recommend six hours up to 24 hours. It is safe to keep the food in the marinade longer, but after two days it is possible that the marinade can start to break down the fibers of the meat, causing it to become mushy.

Is 30 minutes long enough to marinate beef? ›

Steak marinade is a liquid that steak soaks in for some time. While marinades can help out the flavor of steak in about 30 minutes or so, they work their best magic when steaks soak in them for several hours, or even a full day, before cooking.

What is bulgogi meat in English? ›

Bulgogi (Korean: 불고기; American English /bʊlˈɡoʊɡiː/ buul-GOH-ghee; from Korean bul-gogi [pul. ɡo. ɡi]), literally "fire meat") is a gui (Korean-style grilled or roasted dish) made of thin, marinated slices of meat, most commonly beef, grilled on a barbecue or on a stove-top griddle.

What do you eat with bulgogi? ›

Bulgogi pairs well with many dishes, but typically served with white short grain rice, kimchi and side dishes.

What does the word bulgogi mean? ›

The term 'bulgogi' comes from Korea and translates to 'fire meat' as it was originally cooked using skewers on a hwaro grill. This ubiquitous meal's early history and origin date back to the Goguryeo era (37 B.C. to 668 A.D.), when it was initially called maekjeok.

What is bulgogi sauce made of? ›

Mix some soy, apple juice and sugar in a sauce pan. Heat until the sugar melts. Mix in some ginger, garlic, green onions and sesame oil. Literally that's it.

What part of the body is beef bulgogi? ›

What kind of meat do you use for beef bulgogi? Bulgogi is typically made with almost paper-thin slices of the most tender cuts of beef. Rib-eye is the most common cut of beef with top sirloin coming in a close second.

What vegetables go with bulgogi? ›

Grilled vegetables are a simple and versatile side dish that can be easily paired with Bulgogi. The smoky, charred flavors of the vegetables enhance the taste of the marinated beef, while the variety of textures creates a satisfying meal. Popular choices include bell peppers, zucchini, onions, and mushrooms.

How to make bulgogi more tender? ›

Bulgogi, or Korean barbecued beef, is made with marinated sliced beef. Most recipes call for crushed pear to tenderize the meat. My boyfriend's Korean mother says Coca-Cola can also be used for the same purpose. This recipe uses very thinly-sliced sirloin steak, so tenderization isn't necessary.

What do Koreans drink with bulgogi? ›

Yoon Sook-ja, director of the Institute of Traditional Korean Food, recommends pairing dwaeji bulgogi (marinated grilled pork) with soju (clear liquor). Soju, the clear traditional liquor that comes in the iconic green bottle, is widely known to soothe the sorrows of Koreans as shown in many films and TV dramas.

Why do Koreans eat bulgogi? ›

The dish is believed to have entered South Korea as a result of refugees fleeing Pyongan Providence after the liberation of the Korean Peninsula from the Japanese in 1945. After its introduction into South Korea, bulgogi became popular in Seoul and many other cities.

How long to marinate before BBQ? ›

Generally tender cuts of meat need anything from 15 minutes to 2 hours and tougher cuts of meat will need longer (At least 6 hours). A longer marination time will provide more flavour and allows the acid or enzymes to tenderise the meat more.

How long does marinated bulgogi last in fridge? ›

Store leftover beef bulgogi in the refrigerator for 4-5 days in an airtight container. Uncooked marinated bulgogi will also last up to 4 days in the refrigerator before cooking.

How long does marinated beef bulgogi last in the fridge? ›

Cooked bulgogi can be stored in the fridge for a few days. Any uncooked portion of the bulgogi (just marinated) can be stored in the fridge for 3 to 4 days or in the freezer for a few weeks.

Can you reuse bulgogi marinade? ›

You'll need to cook it first to eliminate bacteria like Salmonella and E. coli. Then — and only then — is it safe to reuse as a sauce or glaze.

References

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