Skip to main content
Epicurious
Gourmet

Korean Marinated Beef (Bulgogi)

By Lillian Chou

4.3

(39)

Strips of beef with garlic and kimchi over rice on a lettuce leaf set inside a red bowl on a red surface.
Photo by Romulo Yanes

This popular dish can be found on the menu at virtually every Korean restaurant in Manhattan. The beef is topped with various accompaniments such as a few raw garlic slices, kimchi (assorted spicy pickles), and steamed white rice, then wrapped in lettuce and eaten with your hands.

Recipe information

  • Total Time

    40 minutes

  • Yield

    4 main-course servings

Ingredients

1/4 cup soy sauce
1 tablespoon sugar
2 teaspoons Asian sesame oil
1 bunch scallions (white and pale green parts separated from greens), minced (1/2 cup)
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1 tablespoon minced peeled fresh ginger
3 tablespoons sesame seeds, toasted
1 lb flank steak, cut across the grain into very thin slices (no more than 1/8 inch thick)
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
Accompaniments: butter lettuce or other soft-leaf lettuce; thinly sliced garlic; packaged kimchi*; steamed white rice

Preparation

  1. Step 1

    Stir together soy sauce, sugar, sesame oil, white and pale green scallions, garlic, ginger, and 2 tablespoons sesame seeds in a bowl until sugar is dissolved. Add steak and toss to coat, then marinate 15 minutes.

    Step 2

    Heat vegetable oil in a 12-inch heavy skillet over high heat until just smoking, then add steak in 1 layer and sauté, turning over occasionally, until browned and just cooked through, about 5 minutes total. Transfer to a platter and sprinkle with scallion greens and remaining 1 tablespoon sesame seeds, then serve with accompaniments.

  2. Step 3

    *Available at Asian markets and many supermarkets.

TagsKoreanEast AsianAsianScallionOnionRoot VegetableVegetableSteakBeefMeatLettuceLeafy GreensGingerHerbs & SpicesGarlicMainDinnerDairy FreeQuickEasyWeeknight Meals30 Minutes or LessSearGourmet
Read More
Sofrito Bolognese
An ex-boyfriend’s mom—who emigrated from Colombia—made the best meat sauce—she would fry sofrito for the base and simply add cooked ground beef, sazón, and jarred tomato sauce. My version is a bit more bougie—it calls for caramelized tomato paste and white wine—but the result is just as good.
Smothered Italian Sausage
This is what I call a fridge-eater recipe. The key here is getting a nice sear on the sausage and cooking the tomato down until it coats the sausage and vegetables well.
Pad Kee Mao (Drunken Spaghetti)
Spaghetti is a common variation in modern Thai cooking. It’s so easy to work with and absorbs the garlicky, spicy notes of pad kee mao well.
Crispy Oyster Mushroom Skewers With Bok Choy Salad
Oyster mushrooms are a strong all-rounder in the kitchen, seeming to straddle both plant and meat worlds in what they look and taste like when cooked. Here they’re coated in a marinade my mother used to use when cooking Chinese food at home—honey, soy, garlic and ginger—and roasted until golden, crisp, and juicy.
Smashed Pork Tacos
Instead of searing one tortilla at a time, you'll cook eight at once under the broiler.
Spicy Tinned Tuna Tostadas
Made with tinned fish and topped with mango and avocado, these vibrant tostadas won't break the bank.
Pickle Coleslaw
Creamy, vinegary, and with lots of fresh dill.
Fufu
Fufu is a dish that has been passed down through many generations and is seen as a symbol of Ghanaian identity and heritage. Making fufu traditionally is a very laborious task; this recipe mimics some of that hard work but with a few home-cook hacks that make for a far easier time.