The Bulgogi & Kalbi Topic

[ZenKimchi]

It's the same brand of SsamJang I have in my fridge in Korea. I love the stuff. I sometimes eat it straight out of the bin with my finger like peanut butter.

[torakris]

These recent pictures by Jason have made me really hungry for kalbi!

So I picked some up and we will be BBQ'ing them for lunch today along with some freshly made keilbasa....

pictures to come!

[Soup]

I grilled some Daegi Garbi (pork spare ribs) on the grill using the Kochu Jang sauce tonight. The sauce was good (the part that I didn't burn, I got a bit agressive with the heat). I cooked it and the flavor was good but the meat took a bit of work too get off the bone. Has anyone tried the slow and low method used in american BBQ w/ the korean sauce? Most koreans seem to grill in stead of BBQ.

[torakris]

I grilled some Daegi Garbi (pork spare ribs) on the grill using the Kochu Jang sauce tonight.  The sauce was good (the part that I didn't burn, I got a bit agressive with the heat).  I cooked it and the flavor was good but the meat took a bit of work too get off the bone.  Has anyone tried the slow and low method used in american BBQ w/ the korean sauce?  Most koreans seem to grill in stead of BBQ.

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Can you share the recipe?

I was going to make some kochujang flavored pork belly for a BBQ party we are having next weekend. The recipe I used last time was ok but I am looking for something better.

[Soup]

Here is the recipe I use and the family seems to like it.

The sauce is for 3 LBS of pork spare ribs.

2 TBL of kochu jang

1 TBL of Soy Sauce

1 TBL of Seseme oil

1 TBL of cooking wine

1 TBL of Honey (could use sugar but I like the taste of honey)

1 tsp of red pepper powder (I skip if kids are eating)

3 cloves of garlic diced fine

1 inch of ginger finely ground

some fresh BLK pepper

hand full of dices green onion

zip lock bag is my fav implement for marinating. I put it all in and marinate for about a hour. I've done over night and also few days. I like about an hour. I also like to score the ribs a bit but only if they are thick and meaty.

Good luck.

[ZenKimchi]

I grilled some Daegi Garbi (pork spare ribs) on the grill using the Kochu Jang sauce tonight.  The sauce was good (the part that I didn't burn, I got a bit agressive with the heat).  I cooked it and the flavor was good but the meat took a bit of work too get off the bone.  Has anyone tried the slow and low method used in american BBQ w/ the korean sauce?  Most koreans seem to grill in stead of BBQ.

←

Can you share the recipe?

I was going to make some kochujang flavored pork belly for a BBQ party we are having next weekend. The recipe I used last time was ok but I am looking for something better.

←

Someone correct me, please. I think the slow American method uses a rub during the cooking process, and the sauce (if there is any) comes on at the end or as a condiment. My guess is that it'd be darn good.

Also, if you're just doing pork belly, I've eaten, bought, and made gochujang samgyeopsal with just gochujang or ssamjang smothered on it. The trick is to avoid flare ups, which is hard because of the fat. Samgyeopsal over charcoal is one of the more dangerous restaurant foods. I pan fry my samgyeopsal at home. If you're concerned about flare ups, how about doing them in a pan on the grill? Also do a kimchi jjigae or dwinjang jjigae on the grill.

Soup's marinade sounds great.

Ack! I guess it's time to eat breakfast, huh.

Edited April 30, 2006 by ZenKimchi (log)

[jschyun]

That's nasty, Zen.

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I've done that before. I dont' use my fingers though.

[nakji]

Just before I left, the latest rage in Samgyeobsal restaurants was to use a slanted flat stone to cook the meat. The pork fat would run to the bottom, where canny diners such as myself would lay strips of kimchi or mushrooms, garlic, etc. The kimchi cooks up incredibly in the pork fat (what doesn't?), and tastes ....divine. The highest culinary elevation of kimchi, for me.

Now I'm dreaming of Samgyeobsal...in Hanoi! Drat!

[Soup]

The kimchi cooks up incredibly in the pork fat (what doesn't?), and tastes ....divine. The highest culinary elevation of kimchi, for me.

Now I'm dreaming of Samgyeobsal...in Hanoi! Drat!

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Pork fat is by far the best (although I've never used duck fat) to stir fry kimchi (kimchi bokum).

As for Samgyeobsal, I love it it all its forms. I love it when the edges get slightly burnt and crisp. I wish is wasn't sooo bad for you.

As for dreaming of korean food in hanoi, it can't be all that bad. Vietnamease food is fantastic!!!

[Renn]

Does anyone know how to cut kal bi? I'm no so interested in the "LA cut" done across the ribs, since they're readily available from most markets in that form. What I'm trying to figure out is how to make the beautiful roll cut Kal Bi that I see from time to time. It's basically a long sheet of the short rib with a single bone attached.

I've played with zig zag butterfly cuts, but looking at the grain structure, I don't think I'm on the right path.

Can anyone tell me the secret?

Edited July 2, 2008 by Renn (log)

[Renn]

okay, so I jumped with both feet in and figured it out myself! Mostly pushing down on the meat with my free hand and making parallel cuts with my knife hand.

Edited July 3, 2008 by Renn (log)

[rooftop1000]

okay, so I jumped with both feet in and figured it out myself!  Mostly pushing down on the meat with my free hand and making parallel cuts with my knife hand.

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The first time I had Korean food the meat was cut like that but presented folded back up against the bone. I was so bummed that my dinner was going to take so much longer to cook than everyone elses till the waitress lifted the meat up and cut pieces off with some shears

nicely done

T

[echocolate]

Regarding kalbi, I have seen some recipes that say "grill for 5 minutes" and others that say "stew for 1.5 hours."

To me, this seems like such a wide gulf. Which is it? A quick-cooking type of meat, or one that benefits better from a long, slow cooking?

Tell me quick, I have some kalbi ribs from H-mart.

[nakji]

I think you might be looking at two different recipes. Grilled galbi is just that - put it on the grill, cook to your preferred level of doneness, and served with deonjang, sliced garlic, and lettuce leaves for wrapping. It should be cooked in small pieces. If you have a long strip, like the one pictured above, roll it out on the grill, and after a minute or so of cooking like that, cut it into small pieces using scissors, and finish cooking them. The pieces should be small enough for one person to manage with chopsticks.

The recipe that calls for stewing is probably "galbi jjim", which is another delicious recipe, although it yields a much different product than grilled galbi. In this case, it's braised with some vegetables, and soy and sugar. It's the sort of dish that I was often served in Korean homes, but rarely found a restaurant making.

If you've got a lot of beef on those bones, I'd go for grilled galbi. But galbi jjim is less likely to smoke out your house.

[jkim]

The soupy bulgogi is usually done (in Korea, at-least) in a Dduk Bae Gi... a black ceramic pot, and not a frying pan. Frying pan / skillet is actually considered the worst choice when cooking bulgogi, and just a "convenient alternative" when nothing better is available.

It is called Dduk Bae Gi Bul Go Gi, but is also often called the slang "dduk bul". Usually dduk bul will have ingredients not often seen with the bbq counterpart: i.e. mushrooms, spring onions, even poached or boiled eggs!

Best way to cook the "dry bul go gi* is by using the grated "wide" tongs (tongs that sort of resemble 2 tennis racquets stuck together at the top/opposite side of the handle), to dip it into the charcoal or wood fire and grill directly in contact with the fire.

Subsequent alternatives include (in order): grill on a weber, grill on the dome thing, using the oven grill, and last would be the frying pan.

[Chris Amirault]

Found incredible beef short ribs on Arthur Ave in NYC this weekend, and immediately thought of making kalbi.

I was planning to marinade them for the work day, and I like them sliced pretty thick anyway, so I cut the ribs into pieces and then started in on the accordion cuts:

Some were too thin at one end, so I just created a 2-part flap:

Ground up some ginger, garlic, onion (no scallions...):

A couple of chiles from the back yard:

Added soy, sesame, simple syrup, a ton of black pepper, and roasted, ground Thai chile:

Marinating now; I'll grill tonight. More pix then.

[Chris Amirault]

Using ChryZ's recipe for ssamjang for tonight:

2 T gochujang

2 T water

1 T minced scallion

1 T rice wine

1 T sesame oil (pressed from roasted seeds)

1 T doenjang

1 T chili flakes

1 T garlic powder

2 T roasted sesame

Frying some garlic slices, have some kimchi, making quick cucumber pickles. Didn't grab any bean sprouts, stupidly, but have the lettuce (and a bit of excellent-looking baby octopus salad). Also be grilling some red onions and shiitake.

Anything else I should consider?

[nakji]

I always like shredded daikon in my galbi ssam. Take half a nice-sized daikon, peel and cut into matchsticks, then salt for about 10-15 minutes. Briefly rinse and squeeze out as much water as you can, then dress with 2 tablespoons each sugar and rice vinegar, and one tablespoon each sesame oil, roasted sesame seeds, and gochugaru. Or, skip the oil, sesame seeds and gochugaru, and add wasabi to taste. They really jazz up a ssam.

[Chris Amirault]

Here's dinner. Unless I have soju around (which I rarely do), I usually make myself a Caipirinha to sip while I'm prepping and tasting. It goes great with this meal:

The short ribs out of the fridge and getting ready for the grill:

Lettuce washed and dried:

Grilling the meat:

Grilled scallions:

Grilled red onions:

Some other inauthentic stuff, too. Grilled poblanos:

The shiitake:

Kimchi -- a brand I'll never buy again. It's strange to say that it was bland, but bland it was:

Fried garlic:

Pickles:

Ssamjang:

Finally, the meat itself, which I cut using a knife instead of the traditional scissors:

Service:

The beef was fantastic, as I had hoped. I noted the kimchi disappointment above; the ssamjang was a bit too salty for my tastes, but I'm not sure which ingredient contributed too much of that. Gotta go retest it, though.

[Joon]

For me, Galbi is never the same without some scallion salad. (sliced scallions, vinegar, salt, red pepper, sesame oil)

And I like minced garlic in my ssam jang

[Soup]

For bugogi, I used to go for the quick grill or saute. But I tried a longer cooking method in the saurce, midium braise, and the meat came out much tastier and certainly more tender. Got the insperation from a youtube recipe video.

As for Kalbi, I like a very light seasoning and marinate (ginger, garlic, soy, very little sugar, blk pepper, seaseme oil and bit of white wine). A very quick 1 hr or less soak and then move to the grill. I like it medium rare. The key to this is very good rib. I find most of the kalbi I get at the korean grocery not all that great (Flanken cut), lot of gristle not much meat. I run for the butcher for this meal. Cost 2 to 3x more but the better quality meat makes all the difference on this dish.

Per other post, accompiments is a big deal. sliced raw garlic, ssamjang, lettice leaf (red), shredded green onion salad are all good and easy to prepare.

[Chris Amirault]

For bugogi, I used to go for the quick grill or saute. But I tried a longer cooking method in the saurce, midium braise, and the meat came out much tastier and certainly more tender.

What cut do you use? And do you braise it until it is tender? Or just before? Or...?

[Soup]

Most of the time I get the thin pre sliced bulgogi beef at korean store (I believe it comes from the eye round part). I've also done rib eye, hanger and shoulder but I like the convinance of the pre-sliced.

I have braise the beef now until fairly tender. My kids like it that way. I used to cook it until it a bit more of a resistance but my family seems to preferr a much more tender version.

[Chris Amirault]

Just made a big kalbi ssam meal last night and this ssamjang recipe from Saveur was really good.

[powerplantop]

When I make ssamjang I don't really follow a recipe but the one that Maangchi has posted with her 쇠고기 구이 / Soegogi gui recipe is close to what I do.