This recipe for grilled beef (soegogi-gui: 쇠고기구이) is Korean barbecue at its most essential! You probably experienced this kind of meal if you’ve ever been to a Korean barbecue restaurant. There is a blazing tabletop butane burner, sizzling beef (or pork) on a grill pan, a few side dishes, a little booze, and soup (or stew) and rice to finish!
Today I’m showing you how to prepare a Korean BBQ table and grill beef and how to enjoy it. I’ve been eating this way with my family at home for a long time. I usually prepare these 5 things for BBQ night: of course meat but also green onion salad (pajeori), a bowl of sliced garlic and green chili pepper, ssamjang, and sesame oil dipping sauce. I also add other side dishes on the table (like kimchi), and we eat ssam-style, wrapping the meat in lettuce leaves with the pajeori, garlic, sliced green chili pepper, and ssamjang.
The meat is precut into small pieces so they cook quickly and can be easily wrapped in lettuce. Ssamjang can be made a little in advance but the pajeori and sesame oil dipping sauce have to be made right before you eat. You can also serve with cucumber and carrot sticks for dipping in the ssamjang.
Korean barbecue is traditionally cooked and eaten at the table, but if you don’t have the setup like I have in the video, you can cook the meat in the kitchen and then bring it to the table. I can guarantee that whether made on the stove or at the table, Korean BBQ at home is better and cheaper than at any restaurant. The best part of Korean barbecue is sitting around the table cooking, talking, drinking, and telling stories!
I prepared spicy stuffed cucumber kimchi (top right) and potato side dish (bottom right) in the video.
Ingredients
Makes 2 servings.
For the beef & marinade:
- 1 pound rib eye steak (or tenderloin, sirloin, skirt steak), cut into bite sized chunks (about ½ x 1 inch pieces)
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil
For ssamjang:
- ¼ cup doenjang
- 1 tablespoon gochujang
- 1 garlic clove, minced
- 1 green onion, chopped
- 2 teaspoons sugar (or Swerve sweetener)
- 1 tablespoon toasted toasted sesame oil
- 1 teaspoon toasted sesame seeds
For the sesame oil dipping sauce:
- 2 tablespoons toasted toasted sesame oil
- kosher salt
- ground black pepper
For the green onion salad (pajeori):
- 7 to 8 green onions, cut into 3 inch long crosswise and shred thinly lengthwise, soaked into cold water
- 1 tablespoon hot pepper flakes (gochugaru)
- 2 tablespoons soy sauce
- 1 teaspoon sugar (or Swerve sweetener)
- 1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil
- 2 teaspoons toasted sesame seeds
- 2 teaspoons white vinegar
On the side, for the Ssam wraps:
- Green lettuce, washed and drained
- 5 to 6 large peeled garlic cloves, cut into 1 or 2 times lengthwise
- 2 green chili peppers, cut into ½ inch long
Directions
Marinate beef:
- Place the beef in a medium-sized bowl. Add salt, ground black pepper, and sesame oil. Mix well and gently by hand.
- Cover and refrigerate until ready to use.
Make Ssamjang:
- Place all the ingredients in a bowl. Mix them well with a spoon until the sugar is well dissolved.
- Cover and refrigerate until ready to use.
Make the green onion salad (pajeori):
- Drain the soaking green onion through a strainer set in your sink.
- Rinse the green onion under running water, turning it over by hand for 10 seconds.
- Drain well and transfer to a bowl.
- Add the hot pepper flakes, soy sauce, sugar (or Swerve), vinegar, sesame oil, and sesame seeds. Mix all together with a spoon.
- Serve right away.
Prepare the garlic and peppers
- Put the sliced garlic and green chili pepper in a small and shallow bowl.
- Cover and refrigerate until ready to use.
Make the sesame oil dipping sauce
- Place 1 tablespoon sesame oil, a pinch of salt, and a pinch of ground black pepper in a small bowl.
- Make another dipping sauce like this for the other person eating with you. Serve right away.
Set the table
- If you’re cooking at the table, put your gas burner and grill pan (or grill plate) in the middle. Put the marinated beef, lettuce, ssamjang, green chili pepper and garlic on the table, too.
- Divide the green onion salad between 2 small plates, and place one plate at each place setting.
- Place 1 bowl of sesame oil dipping sauce at each place setting.
- If serving rice and side dishes, arrange them in bowls on the table.
Cook and eat
- If you’re cooking at the table, turn on the gas burner and heat up the grill pan. If you’re cooking on the stove heat up a grill pan or a skillet over medium-high heat.
- When the pan is hot, add the beef and cook for about 1 minute until the bottom is lightly browned. Using tongs, turn the meat over and cook another minute or more depending on your taste.
- If you want your garlic cooked, you can add it to the grill pan and cook until lightly browned. Transfer the cooked beef and garlic to a plate and serve. If grilling at the table, you can also take the meat off the grill with your chopsticks when you see a piece that is done to your liking.
- Put a lettuce leaf in your hand. With chopsticks in your other hand dip a piece of beef into the sesame oil dipping sauce, then place it on the lettuce. Add some green onion salad, raw (or cooked) garlic, sliced green chili pepper, and ssamjang. Fold the lettuce leaf over to wrap it all up. The wrap should be small enough to eat in one bite, just pop it in your mouth.
- Eat the rest of the meat this way, with the rice and side dishes.
Maangchi's Amazon picks for this recipe
It's always best to buy Korean items at your local Korean grocery store, but I know that's not always possible so I chose these products on Amazon for that are good quality. See more about how these items were chosen.
Hi. My name is dian. From indonesia. I love watching video memasakmu: ) and i watched them in the order. Because i did not want any video passes. Although i have only ever cooking kimchi, but i believe that other korean food is very delicious. If i had more money, i want to go to korea. And i certainly to the taste of food korea directly: ) i ‘ m sorry if my english bad: (. But I LOVE KOREAN, I LOVE KOREAN FOOD, N I LOVE MAANGCHI ^^
Hi Maangchi,
I found you in youtube when I was researching for korean food recipes. It’s a good thing there’s a Korean store in Manila so I was able to buy ingredients and cooked your grilled beef, emergency kimchi, bibimbap and pajeon for my family and they loved it! Thank you for sharing your recipes. Keep up the good job!
wow you have made all delicious Korean dishes! Congratulations! A list of Korean grocery stores in the Philippines: https://www.maangchi.com/shopping/philippines
Thank you for another great recipe video Maangchi! I love having korean bbq night with my boyfriend. We eat beef brisket and even drink strawberry soju! I have been studying korean food and cooking a lot of your recipes so that I can prepare to make a mukbang youtube channel. I must get your cookbook so that I can make more recipes! I have made so many, but I would like to learn so much more. Thank you! ❤
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Dear Maangchi, i have a question about ssamjang. Can i substitute doenjang paste with japanese miso paste? All our family can’t have gluten, but all doenjang that i saw in our shops contains wheat flour :( Thank you for your reply!
Japanese miso sounds great to me!
Ssam jang is pretty much the favorite sauce around my house now. It is divine on any meat, or even fried tofu. I add a little cooking wine to mine (Chinese style since that’s what I have) and use brown sugar most of the time, because that’s all we usually keep in the house for coffee.
Hi Maangchi! I recently discovered your youtube videos and now your blog and I love them!
I was wondering what size and brand your chopping board is? I’ve been looking for a chopping board but having a hard time figuring out what size and brand I should get. You’re looks like a perfect size.
Thank you!
can I know where you get the grill pan? It looks cast iron pan to me? Does it have two parts. One part for collecting oil? I am looking for a korean barbecue pan now. Is it good? THank you for sharing your wonderful recipe with us. I love korean food.
You can get this at a Korean grocery store. https://www.maangchi.com/kitchenware/bbq-grill-plate
Can i use chicken instead of beef? Thanks!
I would marinate chicken before grilling.
hello! i found your site because i am looking to see what i can use ssamjang (haechandle’s “sagyegeol ssamjang”) for.
in english it says it is “seasoned soybean paste” and i was told by the person who gave it to me it is like miso, but from what i’ve read i’m not so sure about it… i’m a little confused on what exactly it is (i know it’s soybean paste and red pepper paste right?) and what i can use it for. thanks!!
hi, ssamjang is mixture of soybean paste(miso) and hot pepper paste. Homemade ssamjang is much better by the way. I posted the recipe on this page. I’m copying and pasting it for you here.
“Make ssam Jaang (dipping sauce) by mixing the following ingredients: 1tbs of hot pepper paste, 2 tbs of soy bean paste, ½ tbs of sugar, 1 clove of minced garlic, 1 tbs of chopped green onion, 1 tbs of sesame oil, ½ tbs of toasted sesame seeds.
That’s it! You made a very nice dipping sauce!”
Hello there, I love korean food..Im so excited to ake some of your dishes.my grandmother is korean and I remember always asking her for some of the same dishes. But I thought you should know that my dad is the one who told me to look up your website because you ave some of the best food. So here i am. Im oing to e cooking for my “new Mexico” family who are used to green chilie and different kinds of spice’s of that nature..so im excited to introduce them into my korean heritage.
one more thing..how many people does 1 lbs of beef serve? Im Cooking for 4 people including myself. But my bulgolgi is going in my bibimap.everyone else is eating it with sides..?
2-3 pounds will be ok for 4 servings.
Hi Maangchi,
I love Korean foods so much, I’ve been cooking these Korean foods since I found your videos on Youtube…
I live on Yonge St., I’m used to shopping at the Korean market nearby my house… Those ingredients’ pictures you have posted are very helpful for me to look for it in the market… :)
I wish I could meet you somedays…
Thanks alot for your hardworks…
wow, we could have run into each other! Yes, I want to meet you, too! Happy New Year!
hi Maangchi!
I really enjoy your videos and recipes, thank you so much for all the information! I wanted to ask you about a kind of dukk (rice cake) that’s cut into very thin square slices. We had it at a restaurant in LA. It’s used like lettuce to wrap the meat and eat directly. I was wondering what it looks like in the store – is it already cut square? Should I boil/cook it before eating?
Thank you in advance!
I had the dish “Dduk bossam” on my LA meetup. It was delicious, but I don’t know where to get the thin and square shape rice cake. Maybe we should discuss this rice cake with others.
https://www.maangchi.com/talk/forum/general-discussion
I just made the sauce for the seasoned green onion and it is really good! I’m using the sauce for a mixture of romaine lettuce, green onion, and finely shredded carrots. I ate this salad at a Korean restaurant the other day and is searching for the recipe. Out of 3 recipes I fouund, your recipe is the one I followed. The other recipes had minced garlic and the ratio of soy sauce, sesame oil and vinegar was way off your recipe, plus water is added to the dressing. I don’t remember tasting any garlic when I ate the salad at the restaurant. The sauce taste so good that I can probably just eat sauce and rice byitself…or even with noodles. Thanks for your post.
yes, you are right! You can use this sauce for cucumber, too! Slice cucumber and mix it with this sauce right before serving.
Even though I loved the sauce for the seasoned green onions and thought this tasted just like the salad dressing used for their green lettuce and green onion salad, it was not the same after a taste comparison. Their dressing is lighter in color and more thinner in consistency. It seemed to coat all the leaves of the lettuce and tasted salty and not too spicy at the same time. Do you know what I am talking about…if you do, what do you suppose is in it?
HI Maangchi,
I’ve watched almost all your videos and every time I do I have the sudden urge to go to Galleria Supermarket and get the ingredients! Galleria has all of the ingredients so far that you mentioned! I’ve seen posts of people where they can’t get some of the food that you’ve said. I am soo lucky!!! I love Korean food and I’m so glad that you are helping so many people like me that don’t know how to cook it. Thanks so much for your videos and please make more!!
oh, my! I hope all of my Torontonian readers should read your comment!
Hello Maangchi,
I write from Hungary,Budapest and just want to say that i followed you in your sogogi gui recepie when i invited my friends yesterday.It was amazing dinner.Kamsa Hamnida!!!!:)
I can say that I’m professional in pulgogi and kimchi….also followed your videos….many many thanks for this to you:)))
I’m very glad to hear that!
yes, grilled beef is very good for party.
https://www.maangchi.com/recipe/grilled-beef
Thank you for your update and congratulation on your successful Korean cooking!
Thanks for your wonderful recipes, I’ve tried several now. I am planning to do Korean beef bbq for my husband’s birthday next week, and was wondering if you have any suggestions for 1 or 2 side dishes that go well with bbq besides the green onion salad?
Also, we’re not good at eating spicy food–is there a good replacement for the dipping sauce on this recipe?
Thanks!
Happy birthday to your husband in advance!
For this recipe, the dipping sauce is very important. Make it without using hot pepper paste. Use soy bean paste, honey (or sugar), garlic, chopped green onion,sesame seeds, and sesame oil.
I recommend a few side dishes here:
soy bean sprout side dish (kongnamul muchim)
https://www.maangchi.com/recipe/kimchi-chigae-kongnamool
spinach side dish (sigeumchi namul):
https://www.maangchi.com/recipe/sigumchi-namul