We are obsessed with Bibimbap and this recipe is one of my favorite to make for a small intimate gathering of friends and family. You prep everything in advance, cook last minute and everyone builds their own bowl. It’s a fun recipe to make. There’s so much to say about this recipe, firstly the focus is on an array of vegetables and very little meat. Secondly the flavor and texture is outstanding if you enjoy Korean/Asian flavors, a combination of sweet, hot, spicy, salty, sesame oil, ginger, garlic is a rollercoaster ride of flavors in your mouth.
The term “bibim” means “mixing” and “bap” refers to cooked rice. And thats exactly what this recipe is all about. Many of the Korean recipes I know, I learned are from Maangchi. She’s the internet queen of all things Korean cuisine, very knowledgeable, entertaining, fun, and loves to share her cuisine with the world. This recipe inspired by her, I tweaked a few things specially some veggies only because its not widely available, and my blog community is spread across the world. If you love Korean flavors and want to cook authentic, approachable Korean recipes I highly recommend you check her blog out.
Ingredients For Bibimbap
- Meats: My preference is chicken breasts thinly sliced. You can choose higher-quality cuts of beef traditionally used for bulgogi, like sirloin or ribeye, or you can go with ground meat for easy mixing..
- Sauce: Bibimbap sauce has a few special ingredients that are easily available in Asian section of a grocery store, Asian food markets or online. This sauce can be made a few days ahead of time.
- Vegetables: Classic bibimbap veggies are carrots, bean sprouts, zucchini, spinach, shiitake mushrooms along with some not so easily available veggies like fernbrake. I choose the regular, easily available veggie combo for this recipe. You can experiment with what ever veggies is available in your area. Vegetables can be prepped in advance for convenience.
- Toasted Sesame Oil: Toasted sesame oil is needed in all 3 parts of this recipe.
- Gochujang Paste: This umami rich chili paste is the ketchup of Korean cuisine and an essential part of this recipe. Available in the iconic red tubs, it’s sold in various sizes and heat levels. The tubs are resealable, but remember when left in the fridge for several months tend to dry out, buy the size you think you can use up within 2-3 months.
- Eggs: Bibimbap is topped with a fried egg, always, and the yolk is left runny. The heat from the rice will cook it slightly and produce a little sauce which can be mixed with everything. Feel free to cook the way you like them.
HOW TO MAKE BIBIMBAP
- Marinate the protein of your choice. (Can be made in advance)
- Make the sauce. (Can be made in advance)
- Chop and prepare the veggies. Place them in separate bowls for quick cooking. You can also cook bean sprouts and spinach in advance and reheat just before. (Can be made in advance)
- Cook the rice
- Cook the marinated meats.
- Once ready to eat, cook each prepped veggies and place them in bowls seperately.
- Cook the meats and the very last thing to make is the fried eggs sunny side up.
- Assemble everything on hot steamed rice, mix with sauce and enjoy!!
- This recipe is nice to make when you have a small informal crowd of friends or family, where everyone can build their own Bibimbap bowl.
Bibimbap
Equipment
- Skillet
- Wok or Frying Pan
Ingredients
Bulgogi
- ½ cup diced apple or pear 1 small
- 1 lb thinly sliced boneless skinless chicken breast (or go traditional and use sirloin or ribeye beef)Â
- 1 medium onion
- â…“ cup light soy sauce
- 2 tbsp sugar
- 4 medium cloves garlic minced or grated
- 1 tbsp sesame oil
- 2 tbsp  toasted sesame seeds
- 2 stalks scallions, sliced into 4-5 pieces
- ½ tsp cracked black pepper
- 1 tsp gochugaru red pepper flakes (optional)
 Bibimbap Sauce
- ½ cup gochujang paste
- 2 tbsp toasted sesame oil
- 1½-2 tbsp soy sauce
- 1½ tsp sugar or honey
- 1 tsp minced garlic
- 1 tsp minced ginger
- 1 tsp sesame seeds
- 2-3 tbsp water to thin the sauce
Vegetables
- 2-3 medium  julienned carrots
- 1 medium onion, thinly sliced
- 2 cups thinly sliced shiitake mushrooms
- 2-3 medium zucchini, juliennedÂ
- 2 cup mung or soybean sprouts Asian style
- 4-6 oz fresh spinach
- 1 tbsp  minced garlic, divided
- 2-3 tbsp sesame oil
- 2-3 tbsp toasted sesame seeds
- salt and black pepper as needed
- 6-8 fresh eggs about 1-2 per person
- any neutral oil for sautéing veggies and frying eggs
Add Ons to Serve
- 6-8 cups cooked steamed rice
- kimchi as needed
- seasoned shredded seaweed for garnish
Instructions
Marinade
- To marinate the meat or chicken of your choice, combine pear (or apple), onion, soy sauce, sugar, sesame oil, and garlic in a food processor and blend until smooth. Combine with sliced scallions, sesame seeds, red pepper flakes, and black pepper in a sealable container, taste and adjust seasonings. Add the meat you choosing and massage in the marinade. Seal the container and refrigerate overnight, or at least one hour.
Bibimbap Sauce
- The bibimbap sauce can also be made in advance. Simply mix all the sauce ingredients together until well-combined, taste to adjust. Thin it with a bit of water to make it easier to mix. Keep in a sealed container refrigerated.
Stir Fry Veggies
- Heat a little of oil in a skillet, sauté the vegetables (separately, one type at a time) with salt and pepper until tender. Carrots will take about 3-4 minutes.Zucchini 1-2 minutes.Onions 5-7 minutes.Mushrooms 5-7 minutes. You can add a tsp of soy sauce to the mushrooms for extra flavor.Finally sprinkle each cooked vegetable with 1-2 tsp sesame seeds.
- For the soybean sprouts and spinach, bring a large pot of water to boil. Add the sprouts and simmer for about 10 minutes, or until softened. Remove the sprouts and rinse them with cold water to stop the cooking. Toss the sprouts with 2 tsp sesame oil, 1 tsp soy sauce, salt, pepper, and 2 tsp sesame seeds. Set aside. Bring the water back to a boil and add the spinach. Cook the spinach briefly, just 30 seconds or less, until soft. Again, drain and rinse with cold water to stop the cooking, then toss the spinach with 1 tbsp minced garlic, 2 tsp sesame seeds, 1 tsp soy sauce, salt, and pepper. HACK: Cooled water can be used for watering your houseplants.
Bulgogi
- Heat a skillet over medium-high heat, add just a little sesame oil, and cook the meat in batches, taking care not to over-crowd the pan and to prevent steaming. Cook until meat is cooked through. Depending on the thickness it may takes about 3-4 minutes per batch.
Assembly
- OPTIONAL STEP: Just before eating, heat 1 tbsp sesame oil in a cast-iron skillet over medium-low heat. Add the rice to the skillet in an even layer. Let cook, without stirring, for 15 minutes, or until the bottom layer of rice forms a golden, crisp crust. This step is optional but worth trying.
- The last thing is to fry the eggs. Best is sunny-side up with the yolk slightly runny for bibimbap.For sunny-side up, heat one tbsp oil in a non-stick or well-seasoned cast-iron skillet over medium-low heat. Crack the eggs gently into the skillet and let cook, without moving them, for about 1-2 minutes, or until whites are opaque, crispy around the edges and yolk slightly firm..
- Serve in shallow bowls or go traditional and use Dolsot( hot stone bowl). Place the rice first, followed by the proteins, vegetables, topped with eggs and seasoned seaweed to top, finally the gochujang sauce. Wide shallow pasta bowls or high rim plates are ideal, but serve in whatever you have—Enjoy!
Tried this recipe?Please Click & Share @nourish_deliciously or tag #nourishdeliciously!
This is such a fun and tasty meal!
Thank you, a bit of work but so delicious and nutritious.Happy you like it.
What. A George our meal. The recipe is perfect.
What. A George our meal. The recipe is perfect.