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korean beef bulgogi garnished with green onions on a white serving platter.
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4.74 from 34 votes

Easy Korean Beef Bulgogi

This Easy Korean Beef Bulgogi is everything you want from takeout, bold, savory-sweet, and melt-in-your-mouth tender. Made with thinly sliced flank steak marinated in a garlicky, slightly sweet sauce (yes, with kiwi), it’s quick to cook and dangerously good over rice or tucked into lettuce wraps.
Prep Time15 minutes
Cook Time20 minutes
Marinating Time30 minutes
Total Time1 hour 5 minutes
Course: Dinner, Lunch
Cuisine: Asian, Korean
Keyword: beef bulgogi, korean beef bulgogi
Servings: 4
Calories: 320kcal
Author: Joanna Cismaru

Ingredients

Marinade

  • 3 tablespoons soy sauce low sodium
  • 2 tablespoons brown sugar packed
  • 1 tablespoon honey
  • 2 tablespoons mirin
  • 6 cloves garlic minced
  • 1 green onion cut on the diagonal
  • ½ kiwi pureed with a fork, or Asian pear
  • ½ teaspoon pepper freshly ground
  • 2 teaspoons sesame seeds toasted

Beef Bulgogi

  • 1½ pounds flank steak thinly sliced
  • 1 teaspoon sesame oil
US Customary - Metric

Instructions

  • Combine all the marinade ingredients together in a medium sized bowl.
    process shots showing how to make marinade for beef bulgogi.
  • Add the sliced beef to the marinade and using your clean hands, massage the beef with the marinade. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
    process shots showing how to marinate beef bulgogi.
  • In a non-stick skillet add the sesame oil over high heat. Cook the meat in batches until slightly brown on both sides, 3 to 5 minutes, stirring constantly. Repeat with remaining meat.
    process shots showing how to cook beef bulgogi.
  • Serve hot over rice.

Video

Notes

  1. Beef matters - Flank steak is ideal, but skirt or ribeye work too. Just slice it thin, like, paper-thin. Slightly frozen meat is easier to handle.
  2. Marinate smart - 30 minutes is the minimum, overnight is the dream. And yes, the kiwi is doing most of the work here. Skip it and you'll notice.
  3. No grill? No problem - A screaming hot nonstick or cast iron pan works just fine. Just don’t crowd it, cook in batches.
  4. Serving idea - Don’t just default to rice (though it’s great). Try lettuce wraps, bibimbap-style bowls, or cold leftovers straight from the fridge, ask me how I know.
  5. Freezer-friendly - Cooked bulgogi freezes well. Just cool it completely first, then freeze flat in a bag for easy storage and faster thawing.

Nutrition

Serving: 1serving | Calories: 320kcal | Carbohydrates: 19g | Protein: 38g | Fat: 10g | Saturated Fat: 4g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 4g | Cholesterol: 102mg | Sodium: 559mg | Potassium: 682mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 13g | Vitamin A: 42IU | Vitamin C: 13mg | Calcium: 68mg | Iron: 3mg
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