Kim's Bi Bim Bap

This is one of those dishes that sounds exotic to a lot of people, but is actually extremely easy to make with basic ingredients. I do have to insert a disclaimer: I don't add some things that are in traditional bi bim bap (different kinds of kimchee). I am only making my version of what I have had at Korean restaurants with the ingredients I can find at my local grocery store.

There are 2 different parts to this dish. You can cheat on the first part, but if you want to stay as close to the traditional as possible, it is worth it.

The first step is the meat. I go to my favorite butcher and ask for a tender piece of meat and have him/her slice it as thin as possible. I don't use the most expensive piece of  meat, and I don't always use the same kind. Just look in your meat department and pick what looks good.

Bulgogi (Korean Bar B Q)
1 lb beef
1/4 c soy sauce
2-3 Tbs sesame oil
1 pear or Fuji apple
sugar
3 dashes black pepper
1 onion
2-3 cloves garlic
5 green onions
2 Tbs rice wine
1 Tbs vinegar (optional)

   Cut meat into thin slices, as thin as possible (or have your butcher slice it for you at the market). Place in large bowl and sprinkle sugar over it and mix. Let set about 20 minutes.

Place onion and fruit into food processor and liquefy, pour into small bowl.

Mix soy sauce, 2-3 Tbs sugar, black pepper, sesame oil, rice wine, and vinegar

Chop garlic, cut green onions and add to meat.

Combine sauces. Refrigerate for at least 2 hrs, or over night.

Fry in hot wok small handfuls at a time. Don't overcook.

Serve with rice or use in Bi Bim Bap

It may seem like an odd combination, but the flavors work amazingly well. If you don't have rice wine, use regular cooking wine. You can also use Kiwi instead of pears or apples.

Now for the Bi Bim Bap recipe! When I am finding ingredients for bi bim bap I go through the fresh produce department and pick all the stir fry vegetables that I love plus spinach, cucumbers, bean sprouts, and kimchee.  I will put in my recipe the ingredients that I use, but feel free to add or omit the things that you like or don't like. The fun of this dish is that you can customize it to your taste.

The quantity that I have is just approximate. Adjust according to your taste, i.e. if you love mushrooms, use more mushrooms.

Bi Bim Bap (Mixed Rice)
bulgogi
Steamed Rice
2 carrots thinly sliced or 1 package of pre-shredded carrots
1 med size bag of sugar snaps
1 1/2 c or one package sliced mushrooms
1 bunch chopped green onions
1 large package or 2 small packages spinach
1 package bean sprouts
1 thinly sliced cucumbers
kimchee (optional)
soy sauce
sesame oil
water
Fried eggs
gochujang "chili pepper paste" (optional)

Heat a large frying pan or wok to med-high heat.

Saute carrots, sugar snaps, mushrooms, and green onions in sesame oil, each separately with a  dash of soy sauce and a touch of water to keep the flavor moving. You still want a little crunch so be careful not to overcook.

Steam spinach in same pan so it picks up the flavor and add a little more sesame oil and soy sauce for flavor.

Arrange a bowl with rice pressed in bottom and all ingredients in their own section on top. Place fried egg on top. You can either flavor with the chili pepper paste and sesame oil or just use soy sauce.

Mix and enjoy!


One time we literally ate this for an entire week for dinner. We ended up losing weight. My husband actually lost 5 pounds total. And when we have bi bim bap we don't eat a small amount, we stuff ourselves.

If you can't find the chili pepper paste in regular grocery stores ( I haven't been able to) see if you can find an asian market near you. If you can, see if they also sell homemade kimchee, its got more spice than the one you can buy in regular grocery stores. I like to mix it in with my bi bim bap and have some on the side, but the taste is not for everyone. My husband doesn't care for it or the chili paste but still thoroughly enjoys bi bim bap.





Here is a picture of what the chili paste looks like: