Bibimbap Recipe
November 9th, 2009 | Korean Recipes | 26 Comments
Last week, I published the first ever Korean recipe on Rasa Malaysia and confessed to the world that I am a total klutz when it comes to Korean food. Debra Samuels, coauthor of “The Korean Table” came to my rescue. She encouraged me to learn about Korean cooking and sent me her beautiful cookbook. I invited her to share her bibimbap recipe with us and she kindly accepted. Welcome Debra, it’s great to have you here!
Thanks for inviting me to be a guest. I couldn’t resist telling you how happy I was to see your posting on Korean seaweed salad. Finally Korean cuisine on your beautiful blog! I am the coauthor of The Korean Table, (Tuttle Publishing 2008) with my good friend Taekyung Chung. Everyone knows how tasty and tongue-tingling Korean cuisine can be. We all love going out for delicious bbq kalbi ribs or a bowl of jap chae and dipping into the myriad of little plates of banchan and kimchi that make up the landscape of the table. But the next step is making these dishes at home. I thought I would start with the iconic dolsot bibimbap, a mixed vegetable and rice dish, served in a hot stone pot. A collection of those seasoned side dishes attractively arrange atop a mound of rice sizzling from the heat captured in the stone. We use what the cook might have at home—a cast iron pan, but a Teflon skillet will work as well…(get Debra’s bibimbap recipe after the jump)
This bibimbap recipe looks long but is really many recipes folded into one. The tasty toppings are arranged on the rice like the spokes of a colorful bicycle wheel, topped with a sunny-side up egg and a dollop of spicy red pepper paste (gochujang). Mix it all together just before you eat—but not before everyone admires you culinary art project!
Learn more about Korean Food and check out these photos to see how the dish is assembled.
Serves 4
This can be served at room temperature on top of hot rice in individual bowls. Korean Markets typically have many varieties of side dishes in their refrigerator cases. You can buy some and make some of your own.
The Toppings
Use 1 cup of each of the vegetable toppings for the rice.
Seasoned Bean Sprouts
About 1 1/2 cups
1/2 cup water
1 teaspoon fine-grain sea salt
12 oz soybean sprouts
4 tablespoons minced green onion (scallions)
1 tablespoon toasted sesame seeds
1 tablespoon dark sesame oil
1. In a medium-size saucepan, with a lid, combine the water, salt and soybean sprouts. Bring to a boil. Reduce to low heat, cover with a lid, and steam the sprouts for 5 minutes.
2. Strain the sprouts and transfer to a mixing bowl.
3. Mix the sprouts with the green onion, toasted sesame seeds
and sesame oil.
Seasoned Carrot Salad
About 1 cup
4 carrots, peeled and cut into 2-inch matchstick strips
1/２ teaspoon fine-grain sea salt
1 tablespoon dark sesame oil
1. In a medium size skillet heat the sesame oil on medium heat. Add the carrots and salt.
2. Stir-fry the carrots for 2 minutes.
Spicy Cucumber Salad
About 1 cup
4 Armenian or mini cucumbers or 1/2 English cucumber, sliced in 1/4 – inch rounds
1 teaspoon fine-grain sea salt
2 tablespoons Tangy Red Pepper Dressing
1 tablespoon toasted sesame seeds
1. In a large bowl, toss the cucumbers and salt. Set aside for 5 minutes. Gently squeeze the liquid from the cucumbers. Transfer to a serving bowl.
2. Combine the Tangy Red Pepper Dressing and cucumbers. Sprinkle on the sesame seeds.
Seasoned Spinach Salad
Makes 1 1/2 cups
1 pound (500 g) spinach, rinsed carefully
2 tablespoons toasted sesame seeds
2 tablespoons dark sesame oil
1 teaspoon fine-grain sea salt
1. Fill a large pot with water and bring to a boil. Add the spinach and cook for 1 minute.
2. Strain the spinach into a colander and rinse with cold water. Take one handful of spinach at a time, and squeeze the water from the spinach. Lay the spinach on a cutting board and cut into 2-inch (5 cm) pieces.
3. Transfer the spinach to a bowl and add the sesame seeds, sesame oil, and salt. Mix well.
Seasoned Beef
2 oz rib eye cut into strips (or ground beef)
2 teaspoons soy sauce
1/2 teaspoon sesame oil
1 teaspoon brown sugar
1. In a small bowl, mix together the beef, soy sauce, sesame oil and brown sugar. Let marinate for 15 minutes.
2. Heat a small skillet and stir-fry for 2 minutes. Set aside.
3 cups cooked white rice
2 tablespoons sesame oil plus extra for drizzling
1 fried egg, sunny-side up
3 tablespoons Tangy Red Pepper Dressing
Tangy Red Pepper Dressing
2 tablespoons Korean red pepper paste (available at Korean grocery)
1 tablespoon rice or cider vinegar
1 teaspoon honey
1 tablespoon apple juice or water
2 teaspoons sesame oil
1. In a medium bowl whisk the ingredients together
To Assemble
1. Have the seasoned salads and beef prepared in individual bowls.
2. Place a cast iron skillet or pot on medium heat and add 2 tablespoons of the sesame oil.
Heat the oil for 1 minute. Add the rice and spread it around the bottom of the pot to form an even layer. Cook the rice for several minutes or until the rice begins to brown on the bottom. You will hear the rice sizzle.
3. Carefully arrange each of the seasoned salads on top of the rice grouping each one like the spoke of a wheel. Place the beef in the center. Continue heating for 2 minutes.
4. Transfer the casserole to a heatproof pad. Set one fried egg in the center on top of the beef.
5. To serve: fold together the egg, vegetables, rice and 2 tablespoons of the Tangy Red Pepper Sauce. Make sure to scrape the bottom of the pot to distribute that crunchy crust throughout the dish.
6. Serve in individual bowls with a drizzle of sesame oil and extra Tangy Red Pepper Dressing.
*You can make one fried egg per person to mix into individual servings.
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Yay, I love seeing Korean recipes popping up online, so thank you!
the perfect carb dish to have!
I find Korean food extremely complicated to prepare – it’s not hard but there are soooo many ingredients – but you look you’ve done a fantastic job! It looks delicious!!
Thanks, We worked hard to make this accessible to home cooks and to find ingredients that retains the integrity of the dish without a lot of difficult to find ingredients. You can choose just a few things to put on top of the rice if you like. These little namul (seasoned vegetables) are also great scattered over fresh greens to make a delicious salad that won’t need any dressing. I suggest trying this with the bean sprout dish.
Cheers,
Deb
Dolsot Bibimbap is one of my favorite food.
bibimbap may be my ultimate comfort food. i especially love the crunchy rice bits along the bowl. i never cook korean food at home, i’m spoiled since my mom is korean :) this looks amazing, i have to stop being so lame and actually cook the food of my people…ha.
Hi It’s funny that you write that. Many people who are happy with our recipes are daughters and sons of Korean moms who can’t get measurements for anything!
Taekyung, my coauthor, is a cooking teacher like myself, and we know how important it is for people who are new to a cuisine or just have mom’s and granny’s recipes! Even when Taekyung and I were doing these recipes together, I had to push for meaurements. Some people use recipes as suggestions and guides others as the Gospel! We have to be there for both.
You make your mom happy!
Cheers,
Debbie
I am so glad that you are posting Korean recipes. I just recently discovered Korean food and it is amazingly good stuff. Have you ever tried Galbi (or Kalbi) JJim? Its really really tasty. I am very lucky I liev close to a Korean supermarket as they have the best short ribs in town.
I love, love, love bibimbap! So delicious! I’m only just now starting to understand Korean food, so this is a wonderfully timely recipe. And what a tempting book! I’m totally adding it to my Amazon wish list. (I have to ration myself how many books I get to purchase, or I’d be so broke!)
One of my all time faves! Still haven’t sprung for the dol sot bowls, but man I love this stuff!
Hi Ivy,
You don’t need a stone pot — find a cast iron one or even a non-stick. The important point is to get the pan hot and put in the cooked rice. Keep it cooking long enough to get the crispy crunchy bottom!
Cheers,
Debbie
Oh my, that looks amazing. Especially that perfectly fried egg topping the whole dish! I always order this when having Korean food, and am really craving for some right now. :P
i love korean food, itsful of flavour and colour, so good for you! cheers from london
I bought the cookbook and really want to make Kimchi but I’m having a major problem finding Korean Red Pepper Flakes in the U.S. One of the ingredients “resources” in the book, Kgrocer.com now only goes to a clothing website and the other resource, koamart.com does not carry it. Anyone find a place in the U.S. to get these flakes?
John,
You absolutely can get red pepper flakes. Where are you located?
KOA certainly carried it when I put the list together. Go to http://www.hmart.com
It is a mega store and they absolutely have it. Do you live near any Asian markets? If you are still having a problem I will send them to you!
Please contact me directly and let me know how it goes.
my email is debrasamuels@yahoo.com
I love the recipes I’ve tested from the Korean Table and my favorite is Bibimbap and kimchi!
Hi,
I am so glad that you are enjoying using our book. What recipes have you tried.
Debbie
This is my all time favorite Korean dish, it’s deliciousness in a hot bowl
i didnt know that there was an actual recipe for bibimbap lol
im korean, and since i was little, we just put whatever vegetables and stuff into it and mix it all in the rice pot and eat it with kimchi.
now that i think about it…. we eat everything with kimchi! lol
I love korean food especially bibimbap but here in Brunei there’s no such korean supermarket to get some of korean ingredients. But wt ur help maybe i might learn some
Deb, I’m so glad you mentioned how Korean mom/grandmas don’t have measurements for anything. It frustrates me to no end when I’m trying to bum off a recipe from my mother.
At home, we usually throw in whatever banchans we have left unless we’re expecting company. No stress needed!
It’s very good.
I want to eat “DOLSOT BIBIMBAB”.
I’m in Korea .
Is the Tangy Red Pepper Dressing the usual thing to go with bibimbap? The ones in Korean restaurants which they serve (in squeez bottles) with the bibimbap are not tangy but mildly spicy. Are those red pepper paste straight from the tub or are they a variation of your dressing?
Hello, do you know any Korean bloggers? Thanks!