If you want a fun, delicious meal that you can whip up in less than 30 minutes, try this Korean ground beef bulgogi bibimbap! It features sweet and spicy Korean ground beef, jasmine rice, shredded carrots, purple cabbage, and bean sprouts, all topped off with a fried egg. The toppings also include a sprinkle of sesame seeds, green onions, and a spicy gochujang sauce.
What do bulgogi and bibimbap mean?
If you're new to Korean cuisine, these words may not be very familiar. Bulgogi literally means "fire meat", and is beef marinated in soy sauce, sugar, ginger, garlic, sesame, and other seasonings. Because this recipe calls for ground beef, there's no need to marinate ahead of time. Just cook the meat with the assembled marinade.
The Korean word bibimbap means "mixed rice", and describes a bowl of rice mixed with a variety of meat and vegetables, usually with a fried egg on top. For the vegetables in this recipe, I've chosen carrots, purple cabbage, bean sprouts, and green onions. You are welcome to use your favorite variety of vegetables instead!
How to Make Korean Ground Beef Bulgogi Bibimbap
First off, start by making the marinade for the beef bulgogi. Whisk together the soy sauce, brown sugar, garlic, ginger paste, red pepper flakes, and sesame seeds. Then set the marinade aside to use later. This is usually when I cook the jasmine rice so that it can cook while I make the ground beef.
To make the ground beef bulgogi, heat the olive oil on medium heat in a large sauce pan and add the ground beef once the pan is hot. Cook the meat until it's no longer pink, breaking it up into small pieces as you go. Don't overcook it, or the meat with be tough. Drain the excess liquid from the pan, then add the soy sauce mixture to the ground beef. Cook the meat for another 1-2 minutes while stirring and then remove it from the stove.
To make the gochujang sauce, mix together the gochujang paste, mayonnaise, minced garlic, rice vinegar, and sesame oil. Refrigerate the sauce until the rest of the meal is ready to serve. I like to make this ahead of time so that I'm not worried about rushing. This recipe comes together fast!
Serve the beef bulgogi on top of some cooked jasmine rice, along with some bean sprouts, shredded purple cabbage, and shredded carrots. Cook a fried egg to your preferred level of doneness and place it on top. Drizzle everything with the gochujang sauce, and sprinkle some sliced green onions and sesame seeds on top as well.
Helpful Tips for Making Korean Ground Beef Bulgogi Bibimbap
- Prepare ahead of time: Some parts of this recipe can be made ahead of time (like the gochujang sauce) and left in the refrigerator until serving. Some ingredients, like the shredded carrots, I buy pre-cut so that I don't have to worry about it. But some vegetables, like the green onions and purple cabbage, I slice ahead of time. This recipe comes together fast, so it's nice not to have to worry about that while everything is cooking. I also have the rice cook while I'm cooking the meat, and they usually finish around the same time.
- Low sodium soy sauce: Make sure to use low sodium soy sauce, otherwise the meat will turn out too salty.
- Substitutions for ginger paste: Ginger paste is the easiest ingredient to use, but you could also use fresh minced ginger instead. I don't recommend using ground ginger, but if that's all you have on hand, only use a tiny pinch.
- Gochujang paste: This is the brand that I used, and it worked great in this recipe. You should be able to find this brand or a similar one at your local grocery store in the Asian foods section.
Other Recipes
If you're interested in other Asian-inspired dishes, here are a few of my other favorites:
Teriyaki Salmon Bowl with Sriracha
One Pot Thai Massaman Chicken Curry
Slow Cooker Tikka Masala (Chicken)
If you try out this Korean beef bulgogi bibimbap recipe or any of my other recipes, I’d LOVE to hear about it. You can leave a comment below the recipe, or if you post a picture on Instagram, be sure to tag me! Getting any feedback on my recipes is both rewarding AND helpful as I write and edit recipes in the future.
Now get cooking, and enjoy!
Korean Ground Beef Bulgogi Bibimbap
Print Pin RateIngredients
Beef Bulgogi
- 1 lb lean ground beef
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- ¼ cup low sodium soy sauce*
- ¼ cup brown sugar
- 2 teaspoon minced garlic
- ½ teaspoon ginger paste**
- ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes
- ½ teaspoon sesame seeds
Gochujang Sauce
- 1 tablespoon gochujang paste***
- ⅓ cup mayonnaise
- 1 teaspoon minced garlic
- 1 teaspoon rice vinegar
- ½ teaspoon sesame oil
Other Ingredients
- 2 cup cooked jasmine rice
- canned bean sprouts (rinsed)
- shredded purple cabbage
- shredded carrots
- green onions, sliced
- fried egg for each serving****
- sesame seeds
Instructions
Beef Bulgogi
- In a small bowl, whisk together the soy sauce (¼ cup), brown sugar (¼ cup), garlic (2 tsp), ginger paste (½ tsp), red pepper flakes (½ tsp), and sesame seeds (½ tsp). Set aside.
- In a large saucepan, heat the olive oil (1 Tbsp) on medium heat. Add the ground beef (1 lb), and cook it until no longer pink, breaking it up into small pieces as you go. Don't overcook it. Drain the excess liquid.
- Add the soy sauce mixture to the ground beef, and cook for another 1-2 minutes while stirring. Remove from heat.
Gochujang Sauce
- Mix together the gochujang paste (1 tablespoon or less), mayonnaise (⅓ cup), minced garlic (1 tsp), rice vinegar (1 tsp), and sesame oil (½ tsp).
- Refrigerate until serving.
Assembly
- Serve the beef bulgogi on top of some cooked jasmine rice, along with some bean sprouts, shredded purple cabbage, and shredded carrots.
- Cook a fried egg to your preferred level of doneness and place it on top.
- Drizzle the gochujang sauce over the top, and sprinkle some sliced green onions and sesame seeds on top as well. Enjoy!
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