Bibimbap is a South Korean dish that is easy to prepare and really tasty. It’s essentially a bowl of rice with meat, usually beef and vegetables topped with an egg. It is really bold in flavors with the soy, ginger and gochujang getting the credit for that.
I love mixed bowls as they offer a balance between your favorite carbs and vegetables with an optional sauce. One of my favorite is probably burrito bowls which are quite popular in this region.
This bibimbap bowl is quite easy to replicate using just a couple ingredients. Even though you don’t have to spend all the time making it authentic you can still accomplish the same flavors at home.
The first step is marinating the beef in a soy ginger marinade and letting that sit for about 15 minutes. Plain rice is typical for this recipe but I decided to go with crispy coconut rice. You can tweak this as you like but you definitely want to have a mix of vegetables. This recipe uses julienned carrots, cucumber and bean sprouts to keep it simple.
The cook times on the vegetables depend on what you use and how thick or thin you cut them. So vegetables like brussel sprouts might go in this but it takes longer to cook. Finally, you will need to prepare the dressing which is really easy. All you need is a little bit of mayonnaise, gochujang paste and some rice wine vinegar.
Beef Bibimbap Bowl
Crispy coconut rice, vegetables, fried eggs and a gochujang sauce
- ½ lb angus beef (cut into strips)
- ½ cup coconut aminos or soy sauce
- 4 tbsp sesame oil
- 1 carrot
- 1½ tbsp gochujang sauce
- 3 tbsp maple syrup
- 1 tbsp rice wine vinegar
- ⅔ cup uncooked jasmine rice
- 1 cup coconut milk
- 2 eggs
- ¼ english cucumbers (thinly sliced)
- 1 stalk green onion (cut in half separating white from green)
- ½ cup bean sprouts
- ¼ tsp ginger paste (optional)
- pinch shichimi togarashi (optional)
- ¼ cornstarch
- 2 tbsp mayonnaise
In a small mixing bowl, add the ginger paste, half of the coconut aminos (save the other half for later), half tablespoon of the gochujang sauce, 1 tbsp of maple syrup, white portion of green onion and a half tablespoon of the rice wine vinegar. Combine and add in the beef strips allowing it to marinate for about 15 minutes.
Wash and dry all produce then start making the coconut rice. Since the coconut milk is replacing the water, follow the instructions to make the rice according to instructions on package. While the coconut rice cooks, julienne the carrots and set a cast iron pan over medium to medium high heat.
Add half or 1 tbsp of sesame oil to the cast iron pan and cook the eggs (sprinkle the togarashi if using and some salt) for about 5 minutes or to your liking. Remove and set aside on a plate keeping it warm. Add the julienned carrots to the same pan and stir frequently until crisp for about 3 minutes. Remove and set aside next to the eggs. Add in the bean sprouts and stir for about a minute. Remove that and set aside keeping it warm also. The rice should also be done around this time or prior so set that aside
Add 2 tablespoons of sesame oil to the cast iron pan and add the coconut rice using a spatula to press it flat into the pan. Leave it alone for about 5 minutes allowing the rice to crisp then stir and carefully remove the rice from the pan and set aside.
Remove the beef strips from the marinade and place it in a ziplock bag with with cornstarch. Shake until the beef is fully coated. Add the last tablespoon of sesame oil to the pan and add in the coated beef strips allowing it to brown without turning for about 2 minutes. Meanwhile, grab a small bowl and mix the leftover coconut aminos and maple syrup. Stir the beef for an additional 3 minutes until it's just cooked through and add in the combined coconut aminos/maple syrup. Stir for about a minute and set aside.
Make the creamy gochujang dressing by mixing the left over gochujang sauce, mayonnaise and leftover rice wine vinegar. Begin plating the bowls with a layer of rice on the bottom, carrots, bean sprouts, sliced cucumber, beef strips and top it with an egg. Finish by topping with the creamy gochujang dressing. Dice the green of the green onion and sprinkle on top.
