There are just too many things I could write about for this blog…seems like every new recipe I try and practically every place I go could be worthy of a write-up. This spring (if we can call it that!) has felt especially busy, with lots of cooking, dining out and fun experiences – probably because the weather has been so crappy!
Here’s just a sample of some of the things I’d love to share in more detail with you at some point:
When I sat down to figure out which post to write this morning, though, I pretty quickly landed on this Bulgogi-Inspired Instant Pot Korean Beef . Why? The ratio of effort to result is ON POINT – it’s just so incredibly easy, and the flavor is so good, that this is a no-brainer the next time you get stew meat or chuck roast at the store and don’t want to make the same old, tired beef stew you’ve been having for years.
Bulgogi-Inspired Instant Pot Korean Beef
Ingredients
- ~3 lbs chuck roast, trimmed of visible fat and cut into 3" chunks I prefer to buy a roast and cut it myself, rather than use the "stew meat" they sell
- 1/3 c soy sauce
- 2 tbsp gochujang This fermented Korean chili paste is essential in the recipe; if you like heat, feel free to double this amount
- 1 tsp toasted sesame oil
- 2 tbsp rice wine vinegar
- 1-inch piece ginger, minced
- 4 cloves garlic, minced or sliced
- 2 tbsp sugar
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 firm/unripe pear, grated I don’t recommend Bosc, but D’anjou or Bartlett work well. If you can find Asian pear, use that.
Instructions
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Trim your beef of visible fat, and cut it into 3" chunks (if you've started with a chuck roast rather than pre-cut stew meat). I like to keep this in bigger chunks than bite size, to ensure they don't fall apart or get too mushy.
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Combine all the marinade ingredients (everything after the beef) in a large bowl, whisking to break down the gochujang and dissolve the sugar and salt.
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Add the chunks of beef and stir to coat. Marinate in the fridge for at least an hour and up to overnight.
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Dump the whole thing into your Instant Pot, set to high pressure for 37 minutes, and do a quick release at the end.
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Serve with rice and top with garnishes like pickled radish, cilantro and black sesame seeds.
Recipe Notes
As with any beef recipe that uses chuck, there will be a fair amount of fat in the liquid after cooking despite your efforts to trim things ahead of time. What I tend to do is enjoy my dinner that night as-is - yup, fat and all! - and then refrigerate the rest in a tall enough vessel so that the chunks of beef mostly sit below the surface of the liquid. Then, the next day the fat will have solidified on the top and I can easily skim it off. I find that this is easier than wrangling a fat separator when everything's still hot.
Kristen says
Going to try this one. Sounds delicious. Thanks! 🙂