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!

Korean grille beef table

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:

For the sesame oil dipping sauce:

For the green onion salad (pajeori):

shredded green onion

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:

  1. Place the beef in a medium-sized bowl. Add salt, ground black pepper, and sesame oil. Mix well and gently by hand.marinate bbq beef
  2. Cover and refrigerate until ready to use.

Make Ssamjang:

  1. Place all the ingredients in a bowl. Mix them well with a spoon until the sugar is well dissolved.make ssamjang
  2. Cover and refrigerate until ready to use.

Make the green onion salad (pajeori):

  1. Drain the soaking green onion through a strainer set in your sink.
  2. Rinse the green onion under running water, turning it over by hand for 10 seconds.
  3. Drain well and transfer to a bowl.
  4. Add the hot pepper flakes, soy sauce, sugar (or Swerve), vinegar, sesame oil, and sesame seeds. Mix all together with a spoon.
  5. Serve right away.

Prepare the garlic and peppers

  1. Put the sliced garlic and green chili pepper in a small and shallow bowl.
  2. Cover and refrigerate until ready to use.

Make the sesame oil dipping sauce

  1. Place 1 tablespoon sesame oil, a pinch of salt, and a pinch of ground black pepper in a small bowl.
  2. Make another dipping sauce like this for the other person eating with you. Serve right away.

Set the table

  1. 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.
  2. Divide the green onion salad between 2 small plates, and place one plate at each place setting.pajeori greenonion salad
  3. Place 1 bowl of sesame oil dipping sauce at each place setting.
  4. If serving rice and side dishes, arrange them in bowls on the table.

Cook and eat

  1. 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.
  2. 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.Korean bbq grillingsoegogi-gui
  3. 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.
  4. 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.korean bbq wrap
  5. Eat the rest of the meat this way, with the rice and side dishes.

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72 Comments:

  1. annyeong maanchi
    i’m gonna make this tonight for dinner :]
    ill send you some pics later ^^

    and doesn’t 싫어 mean “i dont want to”?
    aha
    well i want to eat this as soon as possible so bye lol.

  2. Hi,
    LOVE your videos! So simple and easy. My interest in Korean food started from Korean Dramas…how the actresses and actors make the food seem so good. Jja Jang Myun is my very first experiment and I’ve been cooking it once in a while. I LOVE the potato flavor and texture! I’m thinking about trying this recipe. I’m curious if your grill gives off a different flavor to the meat or not? Because I’m thinking about using a griddle. And also, what kind of lettuce are you using? It looks like a napa cabbage, but greener and the stems seem lighter or thinner.

    • Maangchi New York City joined 8/08 & has 12,045 comments

      Griddle is ok. no, it’s not napa cabbage. It’s romaine lettuce, but you can use any kinds of lettuce.

      • MUCH THANKS for sharing Korean food and culture with us! I LOVE learning about other cultures, especially if it’s about food!…I LOVE to cook, but don’t use and know much about many things(ingredients). I just basically use things that I’m familiar with, unless if I find recipes that interests me, especially something I think my family would like…MUCH THANKS again for your easy recipes!

  3. could u give me a recipie that is fairly popular in north korea that looks apitizing and tastes great too?

  4. i love how u cook and interpret different ways of cooking!! Iam going to cook the grilled beef recipe tonight!!!

  5. Hi! I love your videos. You’re so cute and funny. I live in Korea now and I always check out your website when I need help with a recipe.
    I have a couple questions.
    I’m really busy during the week so I would like to cook a lot of food (mostly side dishes) on Sundays. What are some side dishes that will keep well in the fridge for 4-5 days?
    Also, do you have a recipe for minari with gochugang. I’ve tried making it but it never comes out quite right.

  6. Maangchi New York City joined 8/08 & has 12,045 comments

    Jennifer,
    Mix sesame oil, salt, and black pepper powder. That’s what I’m doing.

  7. Jennifer& has 1 comment

    Dear Maangchi,

    Lately I’ve been addicted to eatting korean bbq! It’s quite expensive so I’d like to try making it at home. At the restaurant they serve the bbq with duk bo sam (rice paper?) and this sesame oil sauce. Do you know how to make the dipping sauce for that? I believe it’s salt mixed with something else in sesame oil. I’ve tried to make it at home but it doesn’t quite taste the same (so I keep going back to the restaurant instead lol).

    Please help me! and my wallet :)

  8. Maangchi New York City joined 8/08 & has 12,045 comments

    cooking neophtye,
    Wow, thank you for letting me know your successful korean cooking!

  9. cooking neophtye& has 1 comment

    Hi Maangchi,

    I cooked bulgogi jungol and Japchae for my husband. I followed your recipes to the letter and they turned out really really good. You’re an amazing cook and teacher. I’ve never been able to cook japchae before. Thanks again and keep up your amazing work!!!

  10. Hi Mangchi,
    Ilove you site… since Korean food is expensive here in Dubai your site is very helpful becauseI can make my own koren dish now.
    More power!

  11. Hi Mangchi,
    love your cooking videos, they look so easy, but its very difficult to find some of the ingredients here in schwäbisch hall germany, i will make some bulgogi for dinner on sunday, wish me luck

  12. Maangchi New York City joined 8/08 & has 12,045 comments

    albert,
    sure, eel bbq, someday I am going to post the recipe. Thanks,

  13. hi i’m ALBERT FRIAS from the philippines….i love your portion of teaching how to cook an korean food,i’m a big fan of korean food and i realy realy love it so much!i have a big favor to you can teach use how to cook a KOREAN BBQ EEL?its a big pleasure to be part of your website.THANK you and GOD BLEES you and your family….

  14. Maangchi New York City joined 8/08 & has 12,045 comments

    GuamGirl
    Now you can make green onion salad (pajeori:파절이) and ssamjang (쌈장), you will be able to enjoy grilled beef, pork, etc. You can replace beef with sliced pork belly. It’s called “samgyupsal gui” (삼겹살 구이).
    Thank you for letting me know about your successful Korean cooking.

  15. Maangchi,

    I just finished eating dinner… I made the grilled beef with the ssam Jaang and green onion salad. It was awesome! My husband is trying to stay away from red meat, but he ate half of the beef!!! And he doesn’t like onions, but he finished my green onion salad! We’re from Guam, so we’re used to picking up freshly made kimbap in the morning at the local stores or stopping by food courts and grabbing a 3-choice plate of spicy squid, chap chae, and korean bbq chicken–just to name a few! I’ve tried so many online recipes, but they never tasted as good as the food back home… But thank God I found you! I already made the spicy stir-fried squid (my favorite Korean dish) and the grilled beef! Awesome! Thank you so much for your wonderful recipes! I’m looking forward to more of your videos! Keep up the good work and thank you for sharing your culture with all of us!

    GuamGirl in Germany ^_^

  16. Dear Maangchi,

    I am surprised during all my research online looking for Korean recipes and purchasing books on Korean cooking, I came across your recipes on a Youtube link. What a blessing! I have watched a few of your shows and love them!!

    When I was growing up, my Korean mother had me focusing on other areas of learning and felt she had plenty of time to show me how to cook Korean food later. She was a wonderful cook and passed away at an early age. From that time, I was dependent on Korean restaurants, stores with ready made foods, and on my own memories of how she prepared and cooked our meals.

    Yes, I was raised in the US. My mom married an American and brought us to the United States. I have learned a lot of recipes since my mother’s passing, yet it was mostly from reading cook books. Because there were few Korean living here during the time I arrive, my mother was influenced that I need to learn to speak only English because this was going to be my new home. That was a sad decision because I was mostly raised on Korean foods. And many Koreans have relocated to live in the US later. To make a long story short, I didn’t have anyone that I could really communicate well enough in Korean to ask questions concerning how to cook or prepare certain foods I no longer had prepared for me.

    Your videos are wonderful and I appreciate that you allow those who view it to respond to you if something is not clear. Your videos are so helpful along with your written recipes on how to prepare and cook Korean foods. I’m now 53 years of age and am so excited that I finally have someone to show me and tell me how to make the recipes that I don’t know and yearn for.

    Thank you so much for sharing that gift to others. I am so grateful that you enjoy cooking and teaching others how Korean foods are made. I’m looking forward to making and tasting your recipes. You make them so much easier than what I tried to grasp in some of the cook books. I can see how you prepare the foods, what the list of ingredients are and what tools you use to cook them in and a sense of timing. You have brought my interest and learning to a whole new level!!

    Your new fan,

    Ahn Farr

  17. Maangchi New York City joined 8/08 & has 12,045 comments

    Jodi,
    yes, spicy samgyupsal recipe will be posted later. It’s called “doeji gogi bokkeum” or “je yook bokkeum”.
    Thank you for your interest in my recipes!

  18. Hi Maangchi!

    You’re recipes are amazing! I’m a Korean American Adoptee who has been to Korea twice and have always wanted to learn how to cook Korean food – it’s so hard since I grew up without a a Korean community to teach me and I am so grateful that I found your website! Your videos are so helpful! I love your ssamchang recipe! It’s so much better than the stuff I have been buying in the jars. Do you have a recipe for spicy samgyupsal? It’s the one food I’ve been craving since the last time I was in Korea and I would love to make it for my friends…

  19. Maangchi New York City joined 8/08 & has 12,045 comments

    Hi,TC,
    The song was sung by Pearl Sisters in 1970s and title of the song is “싫어(si ruh)”,which means “I don’t like it”. : )

    check this out http://music.imbc.com/RetrieveAlbumInfo.aspx?albumID=5000

  20. Hi Maangchi… i have a question that’s not cooking related, but i REALLY liked that song you used in the Grilled Beef Video.
    Can you tell me the Group & song title?
    you have really great taste in music, i notice it all the time in your videos!
    Thank you Sooo Much!
    TC

  21. It’s from a Korean store on Dundas in Mississauga and the pan has a screw in the middle. The picture on the box shows you can leave the screw in or take it out to drain the fat. It looks very cool. It looks like this http://mykoreankitchen.com/2007/01/08/bbq-grill-plate/ Thanks
    T in Toronto

  22. Maangchi New York City joined 8/08 & has 12,045 comments

    Hi,T,
    You are living in Toronto!
    Don’t forget to say hello if you see me on the street. : ) You know me, but I don’t know who you are.

    Does the grill you bought look like mine? You said there is something on the center of the grill. Does it look like a small cup? If so, you can put garlic in it while cooking meat.

  23. Hi Maangchi

    I bought a Korean grill today and planning to make bbq tomorrow night. I was wondering what the screw was for in the centre of the grill? Do I keep it open to drain or keep it closed? Great web site, I was in Korea in 1988, great food and friendly people.

    T in Toronto

  24. Maangchi New York City joined 8/08 & has 12,045 comments

    hi,anonymous,
    Korean style bbq grill is sold at a korean grocery store.

  25. what are you using to grill the beef on? I see it alot at korean bbq restaurants and I would like to buy one for home

  26. Maangchi New York City joined 8/08 & has 12,045 comments

    Hi,anonymous,
    Yes, once you open the hotpepper paste or beanpaste container, you need to keep it in the refrigerator and tightly seal by pressing the top with a spoon so that air doesn’t come into it. There is usally thin film right on top of beanpaste, so you use the paper to seal the paste. Then color of beanpaste wouldn’t change. Even if color changes, you still can use it. No need to worry because it’s fermented food.

  27. Does the red pepper paste and soybean paste (both in a rectanguler box with a flip top) need to be kept in the refrigerator after openning?
    And how long are they good for until they expire?

  28. Does the hot pepper paste and soybean paste (both in a rectangular flip top box) need to be kept refrigerator after it is open?

  29. Maangchi New York City joined 8/08 & has 12,045 comments

    hi,ginger,
    Thanks for sharing your successful cooking story. Yes, bulgogi is more delicious when it is sweet.

  30. I made the green onion salad and the spicy bean paste tonight and ate it with the bulgogi beef (from the other cooking video). It’s soooooooooooo good! A great combination of spicy from the salad, the salty paste, and the sweetness from the bulgogi. HMmmmmmmmmmMMMMMMMMMmmmmmmmmmm good! Yummy in my tummy!!

    Also made the spicy tofu soup *again* too!!

    Thanks again for another hit Maangchi!

  31. Maangchi New York City joined 8/08 & has 12,045 comments

    hi,
    check out this picture sent through e-mail by one of my youtube commenters, punkonthis.
    Bulgogi looks wonderful with other colorful vegetables and rice, doesn’t it?

    http://flickr.com/photos/samuraifiction/1018700251/

  32. Maangchi New York City joined 8/08 & has 12,045 comments

    juggy1337,
    Thanks for your compliment.

    Please let me know how your kimchi goes. I’m sure it will be delicious. The kimchi I made for my video is still left in my refrigerator. I eat my kimchi only for dinner sometime because of the strong smell : )

    My method of kimchi making is our very traditional way.

  33. Maangchi,

    You are very pretty and very talented. I’ve never made kimche the way you showed in your video and I am trying to make it tonight. I also want to make the Korean stir fry noodles.

    MW

  34. Maangchi New York City joined 8/08 & has 12,045 comments

    Hello,jj88,

    You are living in Torrance! My mom and sister are living in LA.
    Yeah, you can easily find a korean grocery store in California because lots of koreans are living there.
    Good luck with your korean cooking! If you have any questions, leave them here,

    from M

  35. Hi Maangchi!

    I’ve been watching all the cooking videos you have, I think there great. First thing this morning, I went to Freshia (a Korean market in Torrance, CA) and I stocked up on all the necessary staple ingredients (Koren Chili, hot chili paste, bean paste, sesame oil, etc..) I was really motivated to cook Korean food, since watching your videos. There entertaining and easy to follow instructions. Thank you and keep up the good work.

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