Food Beef Bulgogi with Grilled Onions Bulgogi is a beloved beef dish that hails from the Korean peninsula. Serve with fluffy jasmine rice and lettuce leaves for wrapping. You'll want a grill pan or basket to cook the ribeye strips, because you don't want to lose a single morsel of addictively sweet and savory steak between the grates. By Emily Paster Emily Paster A lawyer turned food writer and recipe developer, Emily Paster brings passion, a sharp intellect and attention to detail to her globally inspired cuisine. She is the author of four cookbooks, including the best-selling Epic Air Fryer. Her latest book Instantly Mediterranean: Vibrant Satisfying Recipes for Your Instant Pot, Electric Pressure Cooker & Air Fryer was released in 2021. Emily lives outside Chicago with her husband and two ravenous teenagers. Midwest Living's Editorial Guidelines Published on August 5, 2023 Print Share Photo: Carson Downing Hands On Time: 30 mins Total Time: 2 hrs 30 mins Servings: 4 Yield: 4 cups Ingredients 2 pounds boneless beef ribeye steak, top sirloin or beef chuck 1 Asian pear, Bosc pear or red cooking apple 6 tablespoons soy sauce 3 tablespoons packed brown sugar 2 tablespoons mirin (sweet rice wine) 2 tablespoons minced garlic 1 tablespoon grated fresh ginger ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper 2 tablespoons sesame oil 12 thick green onions 2 tablespoons canola or grape-seed oil ½ teaspoon kosher salt 1 ½ tablespoons sesame seeds, toasted* Korean chile flakes (gochugaru)** (optional) Hot cooked jasmine rice Large Romaine leaves or green or red leaf lettuce leaves Directions Wrap steak in plastic wrap and freeze until firm, 1 1/2 to 2 hours. (This will make the steak easier to thinly slice.) Meanwhile, for marinade: Peel and core pear. Grate half of the pear and place the grated fruit in a medium bowl. (Reserve the remaining half pear for another use.) Add soy sauce, brown sugar, mirin, garlic, ginger and black pepper to the bowl. Whisk to dissolve sugar. Slowly add sesame oil in a steady stream, whisking constantly, until mixture is emulsified. Remove steak from freezer and cut it very thinly across the grain into slices approximately 1/8 inch thick. Place steak in a glass baking dish. Add marinade; use tongs to turn steak to coat completely. Cover and chill at least 30 minutes or overnight. When ready to grill, brush green onions with canola oil and season with kosher salt. Preheat grill to high. Preheat grill pan or basket on grate. Drain and discard marinade from steak. Arrange steak slices in an even layer in grill pan. Place green onions on grate over direct heat. Turn steak frequently until the meat is no longer pink, 8 to 10 minutes. Grill green onions until lightly charred, 2 to 4 minutes, turning once. Transfer steak and onions to a platter. Sprinkle steak and onions with sesame seeds and Korean chile flakes (if using). Serve with rice and lettuce leaves for making wraps. * Ingredient Tip: To toast sesame seeds, cook them in a small dry skillet over medium until lightly browned, shaking the pan frequently to prevent burning. Transfer to a bowl to stop cooking. **Ingredient Tip: Gochugaru, or Korean chile flakes, is a signature ingredient in kimchi. It has smoky, fruity notes and is milder that the pepper flakes you'd sprinkle on a pizza. As a garnish, it adds a little kick and color to this dish, but isn't required. Nutrition Facts (per serving): 510 cal, 32g fat, 145 mg chol, 10 g carbo, 506 mg sodium, 3 g fiber, 3 g sugar, 47 g pro. Print