Bulgogi: Korean Grilled Beef in Lettuce Wraps

I have always wanted to learn how to make this dish since watching Anthony Bourdain visit Korea in one of his "No Reservations" episodes. Korean food is usually served with little side dishes called "banchan" - little dishes of kimchee, bean sprouts in sesame, cucumber kimchee, potatoe, korean pancake (panjeon).

For the Beef Marinade:
1 lb (450g) thinly sliced rib-eye, flank or skirt steak
1/2 Nashi pear, thinly sliced
1 tsp. sea salt
3 TBL toasted sesame oil
2 tsp. raw sugar
1 finger of ginger, peeled and sliced
5-6 cloves garlic, minced
2 tsp. light soy sauce

Combine meat with all seasonings for marinade in non-metal bowl or zipper plastic bag, and marinate at least 8 hours or overnight. The pear is added less for flavor than as a natural meat tenderizer. If nashi pear is not available, you can use 1 kiwi or a slice of papaya to accomplish the same thing, but June warns not too marinate more than 3-4 hours if you use these fruits because they are much more potent tenderizers than the pear, and will turn the meat to mush! (Sounds like a great science experiment, doesn’t it?)


Have ready at the table:
Small container of oil for grill
Washed and dried green and/or red lettuce leaves, torn into 4” pieces
Banchan dishes
Bowls of cooked medium grain rice, 1 for each diner


- Remove meat from refrigerator and let come to room temperature. Drain marinade and discard. Gently pat meat dry.
- If using butane stove and grill at table, pre-heat grill over medium-high, and add about 1 TBL oil to grill plate. Carefully add slices of meat using tongs or long chopsticks to keep yourself away from hot oil. Oil may sputter, so take care — we seated the children present at the heads of the table so they were farthest away from the grill and stove. Turn heat down to medium-low, and turn meat over once to brown both sides. Diners can help themselves directly from the grill as the meat cooks. Using clean tongs or chopsticks, remove meat to serving plate if it cooks faster than people are eating.
- Let each person assemble their own wraps:
* Lay a piece of lettuce on your plate
* Add a mouthful of rice, about 1 TBL or so, on top of the lettuce
* Add a couple of slices of cucumber kimchee, bean sprouts, and kimchee
* Top with one slice of bulgogi
* Wrap lettuce around fillings
* Munch, swallow, repeat!

I have also had this dish at Korean restaurants where you place a mouthful shredded lettuce dressed in a sesame vinaigrette on your plate, add a slice of grilled beef and top with thinly sliced, pickled daikon radish rounds. If you pick eveyrthing up with your chopsticks, it will naturally (or not so naturally) fold like a mini soft taco.

Possible accompaniments:

PICKLED RADISH/CUCUMBER
Use this basic method and dressing for either daikon or cucumber


If you want both pickles, repeat recipe for each vegetable
1/2 small daikon radish OR 1 English of other long cucumber
2-3 TBL sugar


Peel daikon and cut lengthwise, then thinly slice into half-moons or thin strips. If using cucumber, peel leaving thin stripes of green peel for contrast, then cut in half cross-wise on the diagonal, then lengthwise. Thinly slice cucumber on the diagonal.Place vegetable in colander set over a bowl or plate. Sprinkle sugar evenly over and through vegetable. Set aside for 30-45 minutes to just wilt veggies (cucumber will take longer than daikon).

Meanwhile make dressing:
3 TBL rice vinegar
1/2 tsp. raw sugar
1/2 -3/4 tsp. sea salt
1/2-1 tsp Korean red pepper flakes (can substitute Aleppo pepper)

Combine vinegar, sugar and salt in medium bowl. Taste for tartness — salt will mellow the sharpness of vinegar, but it should still be tart. Add pepper flakes and mix through.Do not rinse vegetable! Add lightly sweetened, wilted vegetable to dressing and set aside for about 1 hour for flavors to infuse. Divide pickles into 2-3 small serving bowls and place bowls around the table to allow each diner to easily reach the pickles as they assemble their bulgogi rolls.

Memories of My Mom: Che Chuoi

Che chuoi is bananas simmered in coconut milk and tapioca pearls. The end result has the consistency of tapioca pudding (with slices of banana). Though sweet, it is not really considered a dessert as Vietnamese people really don't eat desserts. If necessary, they will cap a meal with a dish of tropical fruit over ice. Ches are more commonly served as a sweet snack. Growing up, I was usually the only person in my family who really liked this dish...so when my mom made it, it was all for me!

In Viet Nam, there a quite a few different types of bananas. chuoi xiem (Lady's Fingers bananas or King Bananas) are 3-4 inches in length with a very thin peel. They are much more delicate than an American banana with a sweeter taste and honey-like aroma. These are my favorite bananas to use in this recipe.

3 c water
3 c coconut milk
3/4 c small tapioca pearls, soaked in warm water for about 15-20 minutes
3/4 - 1 c sugar (or more, depending on your preference for sweetness - I use vanilla sugar that I made with vanilla beans buried in a jar of baking sugar)
1/4 t salt
1 bunch of chuoi ngu, peeled and quatered (or 4 or so chiquitas, halved lenthwise then cut into 2 inch pieces)

- Heat the water in a sauce pan to boiling, turn the heat down to simmer and add the coconut milk. Drain the tapioca pearls and add them to the coconut, stirring frequently to keep them from clumping and burning.

- When the mixture has thickened slightly, add the sugar and stir.

- Once the pearls have taken on a clear look and a soft in texture, add the bananas. At this point, you'll want to be extra careful when stirring to keep the bananas from breaking up or mushing. Let it simmer until the bananas are warmed through.

Note: you can add colored tapioca threads for a little more aesthetics, or top with chopped roasted peanuts or sesame seeds. You can also add one pandan leaf (tied) to the simmering pudding for flavor (it has a fragrant banana-like scent). I would actually do this if I knew where to find pandan.