ok kiddies... todays recipe is going to be... BULGOGI! yay! Since im a korean half breed, i figured it only fitting that this should be the first recipe I post in this section, i know, i know kim chi would have been more appropriate, but I think the american palette prefers the sweet beef opposed to the pickled or fermented cabbage.... sooooo....
traditionally this dish calls for the use of ribeye or other very tender meat, I kind of replace these expensive cuts with more cost effective cuts like sirloin, flank, flat iron, etc.... almost any cheaper beef will work since you will be cutting it very thin and marinating it to tenderize, however i would reccomend against chuck or rump roast as it tends to stil be a bit chewy. Approximately 1lb of beef will be required for this recipe,
Ingredients:
1 lb of beef thinly sliced into long wide (as possible) strips as this will make for easier grilling. If using flank or flat iron, cut on the bias so as to get a wider grilling surface area for the meat.
Marinade:
3 tablespoons of soy sauce
1/2 cup of rice wine
1 Asian pear*
1/2 A vidalia onion or other sweet onion varietal, bermuda are not traditionally used, but again, half breed style says its ok ;)
3 smalle to medium size green onions, green and white part used, usually in america we just use the green tops for the color and slight flavor, but for this recipe you want to use the white parts as well for flavor in the marinade
4 cloves of garlic, finely minced or chopped
1 teaspoon of sugar, i prefer to use brown sugar as during the grilling process this carmelizes better and gives it a little bit of that molasses smokey taste
1 1/2 Tablespoons of sesame oil
1 teaspoon of toasted sesame seed. Black and white sesame seeds provide a great color contrast as well, if black sesame seeds are readily availiable and money is not an issue i say go for it.
Salt and pepper to flavor.... be mindful of the salt content as the soy sauce if of course very salty, and will soak into the beef.
* if asian pears are not readily availiable substitue 1/2 bosc pear and 1/4 green apple, not nearly the same flavor profile but it will provide the acids and compounds to help tenderize the beef.
Marinade the beef overnight for best results, however, 20 mins works as too if your in a hurry and just need your bulgogi fix!
Now for the cooking part. The best method is over fired coals to help provide the smokiness as the juices drip onto the coals, so a small hibachi or grill with very thin grates, otherwise you will lose alot of the meat to the grill gods as it slips between the grates, a cookie cooling sheet is a good thing to place over the grill rack if all you have is the standard bbq grill setup. Gas grilling is adequate but you will miss out on some of the flavor profiles, and lastly, the ultra americanized version, is throw the whole thing in a saute pan, and fire it up at low heat till done..... this is not bulgogi in the traditional sense, but what it does do is leave you alot of the marinade and beef juice behind to drizzle over your rice, i've come to love this method just for the juice over the rice!
Good accompaniments are of course sticky white rice, traditional cabbage kimchi, cucumber kimchi, spicy soybean sprouts, or and vegetable you really want to accompany it with.
In fine dining restaurants where i have run this as a special i usually turn it into a napoleon (stacked item) with a base of spicy asian vinaigrette tossed arugula salad topped with fried wonton square, on top of that a ring or square mold of white sticky rice, topped by another crispy fried wonton square, and on top of that the bulgogi, and then garnished on top with fine julienne of cucumber kimchi w/ julienne carrots an onions. And i usually wrote something in asian style letterings around the plate in sriacha sauce, and sprinkled with black and white toasted sesame seeds. I wish i had taken pictures as i have made this many times with resounding success in restaurants. But the above posted picture from google images gives you an idea as to generally what it should look like when prepared at home, i prefer to use higher heat then it appears the picture was prepared with, as the "burnt" crispy edges really intensify the sweet flavorings, much like bbq!
Give it a shot, lemme know how it works out for you! if you multiply the recipe, becareful as to the soysauce content, as you dont want the beef to become so salty that its like brined beef lolol.
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