Worldly Recipes: Bibimbap

I fell in love with bibimbap on my first night in Seoul, Korea.  My first meal right off the plane was in a mall restaurant, where we had Shabu Shabu for the table and there was a build your own bibimbap bar. I loved how customizable the dish was while still being absolutely delicious no matter the toppings.  This dish consists of rice, meat (if you want it), vegetables, and any other topping that might enhance it.  I make this recipe at least once a month for my boyfriend and myself and it never gets old.  I will say that you will probably dirty ALL of your sauté pans making this dish, but I promise it will be worth it.  It makes two healthy servings with enough for a leftover lunch.

Let’s start with the wine that I drank while I made this delicious dish, Bollicini Prosecco.  Now pour yourself a glass of wine and get cooking!Bollicini Prosecco.jpg

Ingredients:

Marinade:

  • ½ Cup Soy Sauce
  • 2 Tsp Brown Sugar
  • 1 Tsp Sesame Seeds
  • 2 Cloves of Garlic, Chopped
  • 1 Tsp Fresh Ginger, Chopped
  • 2 Stalks of Green Onions, Sliced
  • 1 LB of Beef Short Rib, Sliced
  • 2 Cups Jasmine Rice
  • 4 Cups Water
  • 1 tsp saltBibimbap Short Rib
  1. Whisk marinade ingredients together and add in sliced short rib. Make sure the meat is fully coated with the marinade, cover dish and place in refrigerator while you finish your mis en place.  Start cooking rice, adding salt to water.

Ingredients:

Accouterments:

  • 1 Cup Red Pepper, Slice Thin
  • 1 Cup Mixed Mushrooms, Sliced
  • 2 Cups Spinach
  • 1 Clove Garlic
  • ½ Cup Yellow Onion, Chopped
  • 3 Tbsp Olive Oil
  • 1 Tbsp Sesame Oil
  • ½ Cup Bean Sprouts
  • 1 Large Egg
  • Salt and PepperBibimbap Ingredients

Garnish:

  • ½ Cup Green Onions, Sliced
  • Sriracha
  • Kimchee

Directions:

  1. Cut your vegetables: Slice the mushrooms, if they aren’t already (mine were) and chop the onions, these will be cooked together. Chop your garlic, this will be cooked with the spinach.  Slice your red peppers.
  2. Once the water for your rice is boiling, start cooking your meat in the marinade in a stir fry pan.
  3. Heat sesame oil in a sauté pan, once hot, sweat onions in pan before adding mushrooms and salt and pepper.
  4. Heat olive oil in another sauté pan, and throw in garlic. If you’re like me, this is the extent of your burners’ capacity, but don’t worry, we’ll make it work.  Add in spinach, salt and pepper and stir.
  5. Once mushroom and spinach dishes are thoroughly cooked, remove them from the stove and cover to keep warm.
    Stove Top Bibimbap
  6. If you have two more sauté pans, now is the time to use them. If not, place cooked vegetables in separate bowls, and cover with saran wrap.
  7. Sauté red peppers in olive oil and set aside
  8. Heat olive oil for your eggs (I only do this step for Michael, because I don’t eat eggs), once oil is hot, start egg. I usually cook it over easy but it’s up to you.  Season with salt and pepper.
  9. Start plating while the egg cooks. Scoop rice into bowls, and place each vegetable, the meat and the bean sprouts separately around the center.
  10. Top your bibimbap with the egg, place it in the center of the dish, and garnish with green onions, kimchee and sriracha to taste.

     

    And voila! Enjoy your Korean Bibimbap!

Have you had bibimbap before? What do you top yours with?  

Top Five South Korean Foods, RebeccaWanderlusting

Top Five Friday #2

South Korean Foods

Apparently, its South Korea week, and I’m totally okay with that!  One of my favorite parts of traveling is trying new cuisines.  Sampling dishes the destination is known for is a great way to literally take in the culture of a new place.  Seoul opened up a whole new world of delicious treats for me.  That trip instilled a deep love of South Korean foods that I now actively seek out whenever I can.  It was hard to narrow it down to just five favorites, but here they are, listed in no particular order:

  1. Korean BBQ, as a whole: I could eat Korean Barbecue every night and be happy.  The process of cooking the meat and snacking on pickles, fish cakes and potatoes as you waited is so satisfying.  The banchan (side dishes) are perfect compliments to the grilled meat, and good on their own too!  Every restaurant that I had barbecue in Seoul, I was not disappointed.  Wash it down with some Cass Beer and Sprite and you’re set for a beautiful evening.
    Red Bean Bao from Nami Island
  2. Red Bean Bao/Donut: An ode to the red bean: Oh how I love you so. Sweetened and encased in dough.  Wherever you are, that’s where I’ll go.  But seriously, I wish there was a red bean bao vender on every corner in Chicago.  Fried or steamed, I don’t care.  The red bean pastries were my favorite sweet treats from my time in Seoul.
  3. Bibimbap: It’s the perfect bowl of rice with sauteed vegetables, meat and possibly an egg or some spice. What more could you want?  I have been practicing the art of bibimbap at home, despite the six pans the process dirties, just so I can enjoy it whenever I want.  I like mine a little spicy, with some Korean hot pepper paste (gochujang).
  4. Kimchi: I can eat Kimchi out of the jar with a fork, because I love it. But it also compliments mostly anything.  I love the spice of it, and the vinegary delicious crunch.  I had never even tried it until I went to Seoul, but now I am so happy to have it in my life.
    Dak Galbi, Korean Specialty
  5. Dak Galbi: This dish is very popular in Chuncheon, which is where I first had it after we returned from Nami Island. This spicy rice cake and chicken dish is absolutely amazing.  They mix the ingredients in a pan at your table and after you feel like you can’t possibly eat any more, they mix the leftover sauce and scattered vegetables with white rice to make a delicious fried rice.  It’s perfect.

    NOM. Top 5 South Korean Foods

Have you tried any of these dishes? What did you think? What type of cuisine are you obsessed with?