Korean Beef Bowls

Necessity is the mother of invention, they say, and that's how this delicious Korean Beef Bowl came to be on my dinner table last night. We were going to grill, but it was raining cats and dogs, so I had to think of an alternative for the ground beef that was already thawed. 

We had chicken teriyaki poke bowls on Father's Day (that tells you how much our family loves bowl meals!) so I had all the ingredients on hand to turn a pound of ground beef into Korean style beef with all the accompaniments. And it was delicious!

It was also EASY and FAST, and if you've been around here at all, you know that's my weeknight trifecta. 

I like to make the pickled cucumbers at least a day before. Then while the rice is cooking you can fry up the ground beef. Add the sauce to the meat and then turn up the heat so the meat gets carmelized a little. It adds more flavor! 

Fry up a couple eggs, and then just put the bowls together. I used rice, matchstick carrots, and pickled cucumbers in addition to the beef, then topped with an egg and drizzled with sriracha mayo. Garnish with black sesame seeds and green onion. So good!

Korean Beef Bowls

Pickled cucumbers:
1 English cucumber, sliced thinly (use a mandolin if you have one)
1/4 cup white vinegar
1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
1/4 cup water
1 Tbsp. sugar
1 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. red pepper flakes

Siracha Mayo:
2 Tbsp. rice vinegar
2 Tbsp. lime juice
1 Tbsp. sriracha
⅓ cup mayonnaise
1 tsp. toasted sesame oil
2 Tbsp. water

Beef:

1 pound lean ground beef
4 green onions, white and green parts separated
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp. grated fresh ginger
3 Tbsp. soy sauce
1 Tbsp. brown sugar
1 Tbsp. rice vinegar
2 tsp. toasted sesame oil
2 Tbsp. gochujang sauce

For assembly:
4 eggs, fried sunny side up
1 cup matchstick carrots
2 cups cooked rice
black sesame seeds and green parts of green onion for garnish

For the cukes, put sliced cucumbers in a medium sized glass bowl. In a glass measuring cup, combine vinegars, water, sugar and salt. Microwave on high for 1 1/2 minutes. Stir to be sure sugar is dissolved. Add red pepper flakes to the mixture, then pour over the cucumbers. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

For the siracha mayo, combine all ingredients in a small bowl and whisk well. You can transfer to a squeeze bottle or leave in the bowl. Refrigerate until serving.

For the beef, in a large skillet over medium heat, brown the beef, breaking it up into bite sized chunks. After a few minutes, add the white parts of the onion and continue cooking until the beef is cooked through. Combine the sauce ingredients (garlic through gochujang sauce) and whisk well to combine. If your beef is fatty, drain the fat. Then add the sauce and stir well until all the beef is coated. Now turn up the heat to medium high and let the beef sizzle for about 2 minutes, then stir so all sides get carmelized. Remove from the heat.

To assemble the bowls, add rice to each bowl, then 1/4 of the beef mixture. Put 1/4 cup of carrots on the side and add as many cucumbers as you want (you'll have enough for at least another bowl dinner!). Top with a fried egg then garnish with the green parts of the green onion and black sesame seeds. Add siracha mayo as you like.