Let’s tackle a classic at-home meal for families.
About the South of Seoul ‘A Year to Learn Korean Cooking’ Series
Many of us live in South Korea for only a year. The time flies past faster than we can imagine. At South of Seoul, we decided to create a simple series that will offer 2-4 dishes to learn each month so that when you leave South Korea you have a slew of new dishes you feel comfortable making anywhere.
This series is a collaboration with Kimchi Rednecks. In 2020 they created the first blog in this series Online Resources for Learning to Cook Korean Food. These two love to have adventures in the kitchen and share the results with their community. Be sure to follow Kimchi Rednecks on YouTube for other great videos about living life in South Korea.
About Bulgogi
Bulgogi (불고기) literally translates to “fire meat.” It is perhaps the most popular Korean BBQ dish known to the western world. It is made from thinly sliced meat, marinated, and cooked over fire. The dish can be made from beef, chicken, or pork. Before cooking, the meat is marinated in a mixture of soy sauce, garlic, black pepper, sesame oil, sugar, and often onions, green onions or mushrooms.
The marinade mixture often has a fruit like the Korean pear or an extract like maesil-cheong (Korean Plum Extract) to help tenderize the meat. Often the meat can develop great flavor from the marinade in just an hour, but many cooks tend to marinate the meat overnight for better taste. This marinade mixture often varies according to the chef, but the basics stay the same.
Believed to have originated in the Goruyeo era (37 BC to 668 AD), this dish has evolved from a skewered meat called maekjeok (맥적) to neobiani (너비아니) during the Joseon Dynasty. These days bulgogi is a popular family meal with many pre-made bulgogi options at the local grocery in South Korea, however, once we all return to our homelands we will need to know how to make it ourselves.
Although traditionally bulgogi was grilled, it is commonly pan-fried as well. It is often served with rice, side dishes and a leafy vegetable (lettuce, perilla leaf, etc.) and ssamjang (thick spicy paste made from doenjang, gochujang, onions, sesame oil, garlic, sugar and green onions). It is not uncommon for diners to make a lettuce wrap from bulgogi, rice, ssamjang and side dishes.
Biggest Hurdle Making Bulgogi
You can choose to grill your bulgogi which will give it a rich smokier flavor or you can pan fry it. Often when pan frying your bulgogi, the extra juice created from the vegetables and marinade can create a wonderful gravy that can be added to your rice. That extra juice, however, keeps the pan-fried bulgogi from developing smokiness.
If you still want that flavor and are pan frying, try heating your cast iron pan on a higher heat prior to adding your meat and frying your meat in smaller batches and without the vegetables. Don’t worry if you don’t have a cast-iron pan, your bulgogi will still taste great.
Also, be careful not to marinate the meat too long as it will change color and possibly texture. We recommend marinating for a couple of hours to overnight (depending upon the cut of the meat and how tough it is). If you over-marinate the meat it does not get better. Instead, it changes into a strange-looking ‘mush’.
Three Recommended Bulgogi Videos to Watch
Bulgogi is an incredibly easy dish to make. You can often find the meat pre-sliced and ready to go at the grocery store. It is also possible to find the dish pre-marinated and ready to cook. Since it is a really easy dish to put together yourself, we recommend finding a recipe you love and get to cooking. (You can also add gochugaru to add a little heat to this dish if you like spicy!)
Watch these three versions of bulgogi and try your hand at making it tonight!
Korean Pork Bulgogi
Korean Beef Bulgogi and Seoul-Style Bulgogi
American in Korea Bulgogi
Let Us Know How It Turns Out
When you try Bulgogi for the first time, be sure to leave a comment and let us know how it went! If you live in Pyeongtaek you can even share your success (or failure) with us in the Pyeongtaek Food & Fun Facebook group. If you are looking for other dishes (Korean or otherwise) or reviews of restaurants, be sure to check out the KimchiRednecks channel or check out our social media accounts on Facebook or Instagram, where we often share what we are cooking or eating.
Read more in our Year to Learn Korean Cooking Series
The KimchiRednecks channel was created in September 2018 by Chuck Whittington and Melissa Edwards-Whittington. They moved to Korea in July 2017 with their three Shih Tzu daughters, Sookie, Minion, and Mayhem.
The YouTube channel started as a way to share their lives here with their friends and families back in the states. They both have a deep love for Korean culture, people, and food and love being able to share that with others.
Chuck Whittington graduated from Francis Marion University with a Bachelors in Information Systems Management. He has worked in Information Technology roles for over 20 years. Chuck has always had an interest in Korea and has traveled here many times in the past.
Melissa Edwards-Whittington graduated from Mid-Atlantic Christian University with a Bachelors in Bible and a Minor in Elementary Education. She has worked in various roles in customer service and marketing over the years.
The YouTube channel has many interests just like they do because it is an extension of their lives here in Korea. You will often find videos on their channel about daily life in Korea, cooking, foodie adventures, traveling and exploring, computer and tech pursuits, gaming, and working on the Subaru BRZ.
Over the years, many of their friends have joined them for their videos and adventures because they enjoy sharing their lives with those around them. In addition, they add new interests from time to time, like making moonshine in Korea.
Life is about growing and changing, and the longer the KimchiRednecks live in Korea, the more they learn to love this country and culture and all it has to offer.
