Beef Bulgogi to rival any Korean restaurant is easy to cook at home!
Beef Bulgogi is crazy tender and juicy seeping with mildly sweet, savory, smoky flavors from the soy, sesame, garlic, ginger marinade. It is intensely flavorful, and tantalizingly delicious. This Bulgogi cooks super fast, so once your steak is done marinating, it’s 15 minutes to dinner!
You will love this Bulgogi Steak
Beef Bulgogi (Korean Beef BBQ) is one of the most popular Korean dishes. And soon you will taste why. Bulgogi can be barbecued on top of a charcoal grill (in which case you will want a fine mesh sieve) or pan-fried. I’ve chosen the pan-fried version for this recipe for convenience and ease – as in soooo easy! You may never want to eat any other Bulgogi again!
What is Bulgogi?
Beef Bulgogi is one of the most popular Korean dishes. It is tender, thinly sliced, caramelized beef usually rib eye, but I have had great success with flank steak as well. The marinated beef is slightly sweet, savory and characteristically seasoned with soy sauce, ginger, garlic, sesame and scallions as well as a freshly grated ripe pear to tenderize the meat.
Bulgogi literally means “fire” and “meat” and is traditionally grilled on a barbecue or on a stove-top griddle. Modern interpretations, however, often cook Bulgogi in a screaming hot cast iron or stainless steal skillet so the edges caramelize like they would on a grill.
Bulgogi Beef ingredients
- Soy Sauce: Use reduced sodium soy sauce so the beef isn’t too salty.
- Asian Pear: Also known as an apple pear or nashi pear, is a type of fruit that originated in East Asia. We grate ¼ of the pear and add it to the marinade. The grated pear not only adds sweetness but more importantly, tenderizes the meat.
- Brown sugar: Use light brown sugar to add slightly sweet caramelized notes.
- Rice wine: If you aren’t familiar with rice wine – rice wine is NOT rice vinegar– DO NOT switch them out. Rice wine adds a sweetness and depth of flavor while also tenderizing the beef. Rice vinegar, on the other hand will add an acidic flavor. I use “Kikkoman Aji-Mirin: Sweet Cooking Rice Seasoning” which is commonly found in the Asian section of most grocery stores or you can purchase on Amazon. The best substitute for rice wine is pale dry sherry.
- Toasted sesame oil: You can find it in the Asian section of the grocery store, or on Amazon. Take care to use toasted sesame oil for its strong nutty aroma and flavor. Please don’t use light/plain sesame oil which isn’t nearly as flavorful.
- Gochuchang: This is a sweet and spicy Korean Sauce that you will love having on hand for this and future recipes. I use Annie Chun’s Sweet and Spicy Gochujang Sauce located in the Asian section of my grocery store, but you can also purchase it on Amazon.
- Garlic: Fresh is best but you may substitute with 1 teaspoon ground garlic.
- Ginger: Use fresh or substitute with 1 teaspoon ground ginger.
- Scallions: Also known as green onions, add an aromatic freshness.
Bulgogi sauce is intensely flavorful and irresistible. It is a soy based marinade/sauce flavored with ginger, garlic, sesame and Asian pear (more on pear below). Brown sugar is added for sweetness as well as sweet rice cooking wine. I’ve also added Gochuchang to the Beef Bulgogi marinade for a subtle sweet heat and dimension of flavor.
If you aren’t familiar with rice wine – rice wine is NOT rice vinegar- DO NOT switch them out. Rice wine adds a sweetness and depth of flavor while also tenderizing the beef. Rice vinegar, on the other hand will add an acidic flavor. I use “Kikkoman Aji-Mirin: Sweet Cooking Rice Seasoning” which is commonly found in the Asian section of most grocery stores or you can Amazon it. I highly suggest you google image before you head off to the grocery store so you know exactly what you are looking for. The best substitute for rice wine is pale dry sherry.
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.
That being said, I have used both rib-eye and flank steak for this Beef Bulgogi recipe and honestly, I could barely tell a difference! So, if you are looking for a more economical way to make Bulgogi, I highly suggest either flank steak or skirt steak and then marinate for a few hours to ensure your beef is melt-in-your-mouth-tender.
WHAT IS GOCHUJANG AND WHERE CAN I BUY IT?
Gochujang is a Korean BBQ Sauce that’s the perfect blend of savory, sweet and spicy and one of my absolute favorite Asian condiments. By adding it to the marinade, the resulting beef Bulgogi isn’t spicy at all, by our standards, but boasts fabulous dynamic flavors.
If you don’t want to purchase Gochujang just for this recipe, then I suggest adding 1-3 teaspoons of an alternative Asian hot chili sauce. However, I also use Gochujang in my Korean BBQ Burgers, Korean Meatballs, Korean Beef Stir Fry and Korean Beef Bowls, so it is fabulous to have on hand and won’t go to waste!
I use Annie Chun’s Sweet and Spicy Gochujang Sauce located in the Asian section of my grocery store, but you can also easily buy it on Amazon. I do recommend looking to see what Annie Chun’s Gochujang Sauce looks like so you can easily spot it at the grocery store (not an affiliate, just will make your life easier).
Asian Pear and Asian Pear Substitutes
The Korean/Asian pear is round and pale yellow. Essentially, it looks like a yellow-ish apple. To me, it tastes like a cross between an apple and a pear and is one of my favorite fruits! It is sweet and juicy with the firm texture of an apple.
Asian pears are more readily available in the fall and winter months (sometimes even Costco carries them), but I easily found mine at Sprouts in July! So if you aren’t sure if your store carries them, just ask! If you can’t find Asian pears, you can substitute a sweet apple like Fuji or Bosc pear.
How to Make Beef Bulgogi
Step 1: Make Marinade.
Add all marinade ingredients to a shallow bowl or freezer bag (whatever you are going to marinate your steak in) and whisk to combine.
Step 2: Marinate Beef.
Add steak and turn to coat. Cover and marinate 30 minutes at room temperature (only an option if using rib eye or top sirloin) or refrigerate up to overnight.
Step 3: Cook Beef.
Working in 4 batches, add meat in a single layer to sizzling hot oil in a cast iron skillet. Sear 1-2 minutes, flip, and cook and addition 1-2 minutes or until browned but barely cooked through.
Step 4: Add Sesame Seeds.
Add sesame seeds and stir to combine. Transfer to a plate and add additional sesame seeds and green onions if desired.
Helpful Tips to make Easy Beef Bulgogi
- Freeze beef. You can purchase pre-sliced Beef Bulgogi meat at Korean grocery stores, otherwise, the easiest way to thinly slice beef is while it is partially frozen. Wrap beef in plastic wrap and freeze 1-2 hours until it is firm enough to hold shape but still soft enough to slice. I like to cut the beef in half and place one half in the freezer until I am finished slicing the first half so it doesn’t start to defrost on the cutting board.
- Cut beef thin. Slices should be less super thin – even more thin than the beef in Beef and Broccoli or Spicy Korean Noodles. Beef Should be sliced less than 1/8” thick if cooking in a skillet and 1/8” thick if cooking on the grill. Don’t worry if the edges look a bit ragged.
- Cut beef across the grain. You can see the “grain” running through the meat in one direction. The grain is essentially the muscle fibers running through the meat. You want to cut perpendicular to the muscle fibers so they become as short as possible as opposed to long muscle fibers. Long muscle fibers will give you chewy, rubbery tough meat – so cut AGAINST the grain.
- Butcher’s help. You can ask your butcher to slice the meat thinly for you!
- Beef Substitutes. You can mix up the meat in this Bulgogi and use boneless pork loin, boneless short rib, skinless, boneless chicken breasts or thighs.
- Bring meat to room temperature. Let beef sit at room temperature for 30 minutes. This way your beef won’t be cold when it touches the hot skillet and immediately reduce the skillet temperature. Chilled meat also will releases more of its juices, which we don’t want.
- Use tongs. We don’t want excess moisture/marinade in our skillet in order for the beef to sear and caramelize instead of just steam, so use a pair of tongs to transfer your beef from the marinade to the skillet, letting excess marinade drip off. If there is excess moisture left in your skillet after you cook you first batch, wipe it out with a paper towel.
- Use a hot skillet. Your pan should be hot enough so that the meat sizzles as soon as it touches the pan. We want the outside of our meat to develop a nice sear while the inside remains tender, this ensures juicy steak. To do this, use a wok, cast iron or stainless steal pan, make sure your skillet is nice and hot.
- Don’t overcrowd your pan. Cook your steak in 4 batches so you don’t overcrowd your skillet which will steam instead of sear your beef. The hot skillet will evaporate any extra moisture as it sears the meat and leave you with beautifully caramelized Beef Bulgogi. It only takes a few minutes to cook each batch, so please do not try to rush the process and crowd your pan or your beef will suffer flavor and tenderness.
- Add additional sugar to taste. Beef Bulgogi is mildly sweet, but just how sweet is subjective. I think the recipe is perfect as written, but you can add more sugar while you’re cooking if you like sweeter Bulgogi. To do this add sprinkle ½-1 teaspoon brown sugar over your meat then stir fry.
How to serve Bulgogi Meat
Bulgogi is commonly served with rice and kimchi. It is also served as a wrap. To make a wrap, use whole, fluffy lettuce leave such as green leaf or romaine and add any of the following: rice, hot peppers, carrots, cucumbers, bean paste.
Bulgogi can also be easily turned into a Beef Bulgogi stir fry by adding any of your favorite veggies. I recommend stir frying your veggies separately after the beef so they don’t overcrowd the pan and release excess moisture with the beef. Bulgogi can also be turned into delectable Korean Tacos. I serve mine with Asian Pear Mango Slaw and they are divine!
FAQs on How to make Bulgogi
Although Bulgogi means “fire meat,” it is not spicy. The literal translation in reference to the cooking style of being fried in a skillet or tabletop grill. Beef Bulgogi is more on the sweet side, even with the addition of Gochujang.
You can certainly make your beef spicier by adding additional Gochujang or Asian hot chili sauce.
If you choose to use flank steak or skirt steak, I suggest marinating the beef longer because these are tougher meats to start with. I would marinate flanks and skirt steak for at least 2 hours but overnight is best.
If you are using rib-eye or top sirloin, you can get away with marinating for as little as a 30-minutes at room temperature, but 2-3 hours in the refrigerator is optimal. The meat is sliced so thinly and it’s already so tender so you don’t need much more than 3 hours, but you are welcome to marinate longer.
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Beef Bulgogi
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Ingredients
- 1 1/2 pounds rib eye, top sirloin or flank steak THINLY sliced across the grain (less than 1/8″)
- Vegetable oil
Marinade
- 1/4 cup low sodium soy sauce
- 1/4 of an Asian pear, grated (may sub sweet apple like Fuji)
- 3 tablespoons brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon sweet Japanese rice wine may sub dry sherry (see notes)
- 1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil
- 1 tablespoon Gochuchang (see notes)
- 4 garlic cloves minced
- 1 tablespoon freshly grated ginger
- 1/2 teaspoon pepper
- 3 Scallions chopped
ADD LATER
- 1 tablespoon toasted sesame seeds divided
- additional scallions for garnish optional
Instructions
- Add all of the marinade ingredients to a shallow bowl or freezer bag (whatever you are going to marinate your steak in) and whisk to combine. Add steak and turn to coat. Cover and marinate 30 minutes at room temperature (only an option if using rib eye or top sirloin) or refrigerate up to overnight.
- When ready to cook, let beef sit at room temperature for 30 minutes. Heat one tablespoon vegetable oil over medium high heat in a large cast iron skillet, wok or stainless steal pan.
- Working in 4 batches, add meat (grabbing meat with tongs so excess marinade drips off) in a single layer and let sear 1-2 minutes. Flip and cook and addition 1-2 minutes or until browned but barely cooked through then add sesame seeds and stir to combine. Transfer to a plate and cover tightly with foil. Repeat.
- Garnish with additional sesame seeds and green onions if desired. Serve with additional Gochuchang if you would like it spicier.
Notes
- Butcher’s help. You can ask your butcher to slice the meat thinly for you or many stores, like Trader Joe’s, carry thinly shaved beef.
- Korean/Asian pear. Asian pears look like a pale, yellow apple. Asian pears are more readily available in the fall and winter months (sometimes even Costco carries them), but I easily found mine at Sprouts in July! So if you aren’t sure if your store carries them, just ask!
- Asian pear Substitute. If you can’t find Asian pears, you can substitute a sweet apple like Fuji or Bosc pear.
- Rice wine is NOT rice vinegar– DO NOT switch them out. I use “Kikkoman Aji-Mirin: Sweet Cooking Rice Seasoning” which is commonly found in the Asian section of most grocery stores or you can Amazon it. I highly suggest you google image before you head off to the grocery store so you know exactly what you are looking for. The best substitute for rice wine is pale dry sherry.
- Gochuchang is a sweet and spicy Korean Barbecue Sauce and is one of my favorite condiments. I use Annie Chun’s Sweet and Spicy Gochujang Sauce located in the Asian section of my grocery store, but you can also easily buy it on Amazon. I do recommend looking to see what Annie Chun’s Gochujang Sauce looks like so you can easily spot it at the grocery store (not an affiliate, just will make your life easier). If you don’t want to purchase Gochuchang just for this recipe, then I suggest adding an 1-3 teaspoons of an alternative Asian hot chili sauce.
- Freeze beef. You can purchase pre-sliced Beef Bulgogi meat at Korean grocery stores, otherwise, the easiest way to thinly slice beef is while it is partially frozen. Wrap beef in plastic wrap and freeze 1-2 hours until it is firm enough to hold shape but still soft enough to slice. I like to cut the beef in half and place one half in the freezer until I am finished slicing the first half.
- Cut beef across the grain. You can see the “grain” running through the meat in one direction. The grain is essentially the muscle fibers running through the meat. You want to cut perpendicular to the muscle fibers so they become as short as possible as opposed to long muscle fibers. Long muscle fibers will give you chewy, rubbery tough meat – so cut AGAINST the grain.
- Beef Substitutes. You can mix up the meat in this Bulgogi and use boneless pork loin, boneless short rib, skinless, boneless chicken breasts or thighs.
- Marinating Times. If you choose to use flank steak or skirt steak, I suggest marinating the beef longer because these are tougher meats to start with. I would marinate flanks and skirt steak for at least 2 hours but overnight is best. If you are using rib-eye or top sirloin, you can get away with marinating for as little as a 30-minutes at room temperature, but 1-2 hours in the refrigerator is optimal. The meat is sliced so thinly and these cuts of meat are already so tender you don’t need much more than 3 hours, but you are welcome to marinate longer.
- Use tongs. We don’t want excess moisture/marinade in our skillet in order for the beef to sear and caramelize instead of just steam, so use a pair of tongs to transfer your beef from the marinade to the skillet, letting excess marinade drip off. If there is excess moisture left in your skillet after you cook you first batch, wipe it out with a paper towel.
- Use a hot skillet. Your pan should be hot enough so that the meat sizzles as soon as it touches the pan. We want the outside of our meat to develop a nice sear while the inside remains tender, this ensures juicy steak. To do this, use a wok, cast iron or stainless steal pan, make sure your skillet is nice and hot.
- Don’t overcrowd your pan. Cook your steak in 4 batches so you don’t overcrowd your skillet which will steam instead of sear your beef. The hot skillet will evaporate any extra moisture as it sears the meat and leave you with beautifully caramelized Beef Bulgogi. It only takes a few minutes to cook each batch, so please do not try to rush the process and crowd your pan or your beef will suffer flavor and tenderness.
- Add additional sugar to taste. Beef Bulgogi is mildly sweet, but just how sweet is subjective. I think the recipe is perfect as written, but you can add more sugar while you’re cooking if you like sweeter Bulgogi. To do this add sprinkle ½-1 teaspoon brown sugar over your meat then stir fry.
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Virginia Graves says
your photos are beautiful. This is a must try recipe Thank you so much. I know you give your best for us.
Jen says
Thank you for such a thoughtful comment Virginia! I so appreciate your kind words! Only the best for my readers!
SIPPIE says
SO FAR ALL THE RECIPES I TRIED FROM CARLSBAD HAVE BEEN VERY HEALTHY AND TASTY.
Jen says
Thank you so much! I’m so happy you are enjoying my recipes!
Patrick Harrington says
Jen,
You are unbelievable! The Bulgogi was an enormous success!!!! & the shrimp fajitas oh my word!!!! You totally ROCK!!! You are always makein me look like a hero to my family! THANK YOU!!!!
paddy
Jen says
Thank you for making my day Paddy! I’m thrilled the Bulgogi was such a hit and that you love the shrimp fajitas as well! Thank you so much for making my recipes!
Darshan says
After cooking/grilling the meat, can you put in crockpot on Warm setting to keep it warm. If so, would also put some of the marinade back in with it to keep the moisture?
Jen says
Hi Darshan, Yes, you can add the meat to the crockpot on warm after cooking and then you would need to boil the marinade to get rid of any bacteria and then add some to the meat to keep it moist. I hope that helps!
Wendi L says
I’m marinating this currently for dinner tonight. It smells DIVINE and I CAN’T WAIT!! I have a Korean cookbook, but honestly the ingredients in your recipe appealed to me more, and I even had Gochujang in my cupboard! Thank you and I’ll report back soon!
Jen says
I hope you absolutely loved the end result Wendi!
Wendi L says
It was perfect, thank you so much Jen! It’s now my go-to bulgogi recipe!
Jen says
Wahoo! thanks so much Wendi!
davey says
This recipe is spot on, including the use of pear. And the detailed instructions are excellent. A lot of recipes basically call for stir-fried strips of meat, which is wrong. The key is VERY thin slices so that the meat cooks almost instantly in a screaming hot pan. And pay attention to the note about not cooking it all at once, otherwise you will have simmered meat. Still tasty, but it will not have that charred caramelized flavor. I will admit that I’ve eaten an entire pound of meat in one sitting, it’s so good.
Jen says
Thanks so much for your awesome comment Davey! I’m so happy you loved this Beef Bulgogi recipe so much!
Evie says
Would it be ok to thread the meat on wood skewers for grilling?
Jen says
Absolutely!
Stacy says
I’ve tried a handful of your Asian recipes and all of them are unbelievable. This one is no exception. I’m actually dumbfounded how all your recipes are so spot on! How do you know how to cook like this??
Jen says
Thank you so much Stacy! I’m honored you’re loving my Asian recipes so much! As far as knowing how to cook like this, it’s a lot of cooking, cooking and more cooking paying attention to salt, acid and heat. I just love flavor!
Andrea says
This was so good, I’ve made it twice in the past two days. Two days ago I used thinly sliced ribeye for my entire family at the beach (16 of us). Everyone loved it. I had to sub Fuji Apple for Asian pear – amazing. Tonight, I used ground beef. Still super outstanding! We sprinkle with furikake and serve over sushi rice. Fantastic. Thank you so much!!!
Jen says
Thanks Andrea, I’m so pleased this recipe is on repeat and I love that you are having fun experimenting with it!
Jill B says
What a wonderful Bulgogi recipe! My family loved it. I bought the thinly sliced Boneless New York Roast at Costco. I served this with stir fried veggies and rice. I think your Korean Tacos with Bulgogi Beef is next on my menu list. I had been buying Costco’s Beef Bulgogi for a couple of years, but they’re having an issue with the supplier of the marinade so they no longer have it in the ready made case. Good news is I like this recipe’s marinade even better than the Costco version. Thanks for your creative and delicious tecipes.
Jen says
Thanks so much Jill, I’m so pleased this recipe bests your favorite Costco version! I’m excited for you to try the tacos next, they are incredible!
Chrystal says
Thank you for this AMAZING recipe! Love love it. I used this along with the Korean tacos. So good.I wish I would have taken a picture to post. This was my first time on your site and it will not be my last.
Jen says
I’m so pleased you loved it and the tacos! And welcome to my site, I hope you discover many new favorite recipes!
April says
This looks so good, but could I cook this in the crockpot instead of the stove?
Jen says
I haven’t tried it but I’m sure it would work! You can put it in for 2-3 hours on high or 4-5 hours on low or until it’s cooked and tender.