I grew up in a relatively small city in the South. It’s big enough to have an airport, but small enough that that airport only has five gates (and one direct flight to NY that I never take because it costs approximately a billion million dollars) — big enough that some people have heard of it, but small enough that a nod and an “Oh, right, right,” is as much as they can muster. 🙂 (Occasionally, I’ll meet someone who actually drove through it.) It was also small enough that, growing up, I can remember the first restaurant of almost every kind of unusual cuisine opening up in town — the first Korean restaurant, Thai, Vietnamese, etc. — and I can also remember the first time I ever had any of those kinds of foods. The first time I had pork bulgogi, then known to me only as “Korean spicy BBQ pork,” I thought it was the most ridiculously delicious dish I’d ever tasted, and I thought that that one god-like restaurant must have been the only place in existence that could create such a magnificent mouth-party. Logical. (And thus began a lifelong love affair with Korean food.)
Since then, I’ve wised up and learned that it’s actually called pork bulgogi (or jeyuk bokkeum, depending on whether you marinate the pork), and that it’s a Korean staple that’s not at all hard to find. And it’s not difficult at all to make at home yourself, either! Like beef bulgogi, it’s one of my favorite bulk make-ahead meals — I divide the meat into gallon Ziploc bags and freeze them indefinitely. They should last for at least six months (but they never make it that long).
I never knew the difference between pork bulgogi and jeyuk bokkeum until I read it on Maangchi’s site several years ago — as she notes, the taste is very similar, but jeyuk bokkeum is pork stirfried in the spicy sauce without marinating the meat first, often with more vegetables, whereas the pork bulgogi is marinated and then cooked over a pan, grilled, or barbecued. I think I prefer pork bulgogi, because the taste seems a bit more well-rounded after it’s had time to marinate. If you’re in a hurry or haven’t had the chance to plan ahead, though, this doesn’t need to marinate long, if at all, and you can just stirfry right away if needed.
Lastly, like beef bulgogi, this dish depends enormously on the cut of meat. If you can’t find thin-sliced pork butt, pork shoulder, or pork belly (the Boston Korean markets actually labeled it “pork bulgogi cut,” which was convenient, but sadly the H-Mart in Manhattan does not), then it really will not turn out well. It makes such a difference that I generally don’t bother making it if I can’t find the right cut.
Pork Bulgogi (adapted from Maangchi)
yields 4 servings.
1/2 onion, sliced (feel free to add more later when you stirfry)
1/4 cup gochujang (Korean red pepper paste)
1/4 cup brown sugar (I like mine on the sweet side, so I usually add a bit more sugar than this)
2 tbsp rice cooking wine
1 tbsp soy sauce
1 tbsp sesame oil
1 tbsp sesame seeds
2-3 green onions, chopped
4 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 tsp ginger, minced
pinch of black pepper
1/2 cup pureed pear or apple
1/4 cup pureed onion (optional)
1 tsp Korean red chili powder (gochugaru) (optional, for extra spice)
2 tbsp fish sauce (optional)
2 lbs pork butt, neck, or shoulder, thinly sliced
1. Combine all the marinade ingredients in a large bowl. Add pork and massage thoroughly, making sure each piece is well-coated. Chill in fridge or freeze until you’re ready to cook.
2. When ready to cook, heat a skillet over medium-high heat with a bit of oil. Place meat in a single layer in the pan, taking care not to overcrowd, and let fry until meat is browned and begins to form a few caramelized bits. Serve over rice or in ssam.
Thanks to Ozmundaregalis for the inspiration on how to style my bulgogi — her blog is really something else. Styling with rice was definitely a new adventure (and frustrating — please ignore the red spots from rearranging the pork ;)!)
Ruthy Kirwan
I’ve never had pork bulgogi but I’ve heard how insanely delicious it is from so many people that I think it’s my time to try it! And hopefully NYC stores will do me a solid and label their pork “bulgogi cut” too, to help me out a bit 🙂
Your hometown airport sounds so much like mine! It’s so tiny that it costs an arm and a leg to fly out of, it drives me crazy.
tworedbowls
Ooh, you’re in New York too! If you have a car, I bet you could find some fantastic Korean markets in Queens — if you’re subway-bound like me, then I can tell you that the H-Mart on 32nd in K-Town has some stuff, but likely only label it “pork shoulder” or “thin sliced pork shoulder,” and it will be in a cooler in the way back with a bunch of frozen meat. It’s not amazing, but it works just fine. (And way better than if I tried to slice it myself.) They have pork belly too, and of course all the fixings you need, like the pepper paste and pepper powder, etc. Hope you like this if you get to try it! Thanks so much for commenting, Ruthy (and I love your blog, by the way! I’ve been on it before but I can’t remember when now… hopefully I commented then too).
saucygander
I love pork bulgogi, and still remember the really good version we had in our “little Korea” last year. Your idea for making ahead is great and will make it easier for weeknight meals. Thanks!
tworedbowls
Thank you so much! Yes, I expect to rely heavily on it once I start work in a few weeks. Hope you like this if you ever end up trying it out! 🙂
Matt
This looks amazing, cant wait to try it 🙂
tworedbowls
Ooh, hope you like it if you do! Thanks so much!
CateyLou
This looks so good! I am really into Asian food recently, but I still haven’t tried true Korean food. I really need to try it, and then try your recipe!
tworedbowls
Oh my gosh, you’re in for such a treat! I really think that Korean food — other than kimchi, which is definitely hard to get used to for some — is one of the most accessible of all the Asian cuisines. Especially if you like spicy food, but even if not. But it’s also one of my favorite kinds of food, so I’m probably biased 😉 Hope you enjoy it when you get the chance to try it!
gottagetbaked
Even though I love Korean food, I rarely ever eat it. This looks ah-may-zing – I need to try making it myself. I love your photos as always. I’m especially obsessed with the one showcasing your mise en place. I wish I were this organized when I cook!
tworedbowls
Hahaha Nancy, thank you so much, but if you could only see my kitchen normally, you’d take that wish right back!! Lol. This mise en place was definitely an unusual endeavor for me — I usually just measure and add. I read some interesting discussions about whether doing a mise is worth it after I did this one — omg, it took so long, and so many dishes to do afterward! — I have to agree with people who say that while it may be necessary for cooking where you’ll be adding things in a time sensitive manner (Chinese stirfries, for instance) or making sure you haven’t left out the baking soda in your cake, it’s usually just too time-consuming. Lord knows I won’t have time for this once I start work (a week from tomorrow!) But while I’m just being domestic these days, I figured it would be fun to do. Glad you liked it, it makes it worth it! 🙂
Anyway, thanks! I hope you get the chance to try this out — it’s so easy if you have the right ingredients (and you don’t bother to do a mise! ha)
Sugar and Cinnamon
This dish is so creative and beautifully photographed! I’m tempted to try substituting tofu and making a vegetarian version 🙂 Yum!!!
tworedbowls
Ooh, that would be interesting! I don’t see why it wouldn’t be equally delicious. Let me know how that tastes if you ever try it! I also like a Korean tofu dish called dubu jorim (seasoned tofu) that you might like — here are a few recipes for that: http://www.koreanbapsang.com/2010/03/dubu-jorim-korean-braised-tofu.html#.UlyapGQ9xjQ and http://ozmundaregalis.wordpress.com/2013/06/05/dubu-jorim/ ! And thank you so much for your kind comment!
Burp! Appetit
Nice shot! love the minimalist background
tworedbowls
Thank you so much! 🙂
Anonymous
This recipe sounded great & I wanted to print. However, when I click print, within your post, it printed 15 flipping pages & in full color. What a waste!!!!!!!!
Michelle T
Considering how much I have to travel to get good Korean and the expense when I get to the restaurant, I went about looking for something like what they Korean lady told was in the dish I was eating. This tastes spot on! I am so happy! I had this dish when I was stationed in Korea and have been looking for it since (that was 93-94). Thank you for posting. I made six recipes so that I don’t have to make it very often, but I have it on hand if I want it. I happen to have an international food store just up the street from me. Gochujang was hard to find in there though. Seems they are more bent toward Chinese, Japanese and Thai. I was pleased to see the cuts of meat I needed were there. I am using Boston Butt and pork belly in this recipe. I didn’t like all the fat that the pork belly had, but I didn’t want it entirely lean either. Again, thank you for posting.
Michelle T
I am cooking it right now and have determined that it works better with Boston butt sliced thin. The pork belly is too fatty. Just a note on my own post.
Michelle T
You can also make this with chicken. I had some extra sauce and some chicken so I gave it a whirl. I like it. Not nearly as fatty.
Anonymous
Great pix and dyno recipes. I’m always jonesing for bulgoki and don’t live close to any good Asian spots. Your xlnt fotos and clear text make it easy to taste the dish as I read the ingredients…and so multiply the anticipation of making this even more. Thanx.