Introduction to Bulgogi
Bulgogi, literally means “fire meat” in Korean, is one of the most popular Korean dishes among foreigners. Usually, when there is the word “bul” which means “fire” in Korean, the dish is hot and spicy like Buldak ramyeon. But interestingly enough, bulgogi is not a spicy food. Rather, it is sweet and savory. It has gained huge popularity in recent years for its sweet and savory flavor that is easy to love. Bulgogi is one of the most-known Korean dishes outside of Korea, and it has been featured in many restaurants, cookbooks, and media. When I lived in L.A., there was a pretty popular restaurant that sold Korean bulgogi Putin (Canadian-style fries with meat on top and it was the restaurant’s signature dish! It is also easy to make at home so I make this vegan bulgogi often.
Bulgogi Taste and Flavors
Bulgogi has a soft texture and sweet, savory, and flavorful taste. Traditionally, bulgogi was beef with lots of other vegetables marinated in a sweet and flavorful sauce. You can also put some Korean glass noodles or rice cake if you like. I will talk more about that in this post later. Bulgogi has its signature flavor from the bulgogi sauce which is soy sauce based with aromatics, sweeteners, and some toasted sesame oil. Bulgogi can be eaten with rice, lettuce, kimchi, or any other side dish like the spicy Korean cucumber salad I shared on my blog.
Bulgogi / Korean BBQ / Spicy Bulgogi
Before we go deeper into the topic of bulgogi, I want to go over the terminology to make sure we are on the same page 🙂 It seems like outside of Korea, people mix the terms bulgogi and Korean BBQ. But in Korea, these are two different kinds of food. And there is another spicy version of bulgogi that is usually made out of pork instead of beef as in regular bulgogi.
Bulgogi
When the word “bulgogi” is used in Korea, it generally means thinly sliced beef or pork (but mostly it means beef unless it specifically says “pork bulgogi”) with vegetables marinated in sweet and savory soy sauce-based sauce and amazing sesame oil. It is important to use some good quality toasted sesame oil for the bulgogi recipe. I wrote a blog post dedicated to sesame oil here.
Best Sesame Oil | Tips & Top 3 Recommendations as a Korean
Korean BBQ
Korean BBQ also gained huge popularity in the world in recent years like bulgogi, and maybe that’s why these two terminologies got mixed up. But Korean BBQ is a barbeque in Korean style which involves grilling meat and vegetables and usually wrapping it with some lettuce and serving it with Korean sauce and other variety of side dishes. People like to finish the barbeque with some hot Korean soybean paste stew called Doenjang-jjigae or Korean cold noodles. It is a big feast!
Spicy Bulgogi
So bul means fire and it usually means spicy when used in food names. But not in Bulgogi! The normal “bulgogi” has a sweet and savory flavor, but there is Korean red chili-paste-based spicy bulgogi called gochujang bulgogi. And this one is spicy! I didn’t really grow up eating this dish because my mom didn’t make this at home, so this hasn’t been my favorite. But my husband loves this spicy bulgogi. So I shall make it for him one day and share the recipe here on my blog.
Bulgogi Putin is a very interesting fusion food!
Modern Twist to Bulgogi
As bulgogi became popular around the world, there are many modern versions of bulgogi or fusion dishes that use bulgogi in their ingredients. Here are some modern twists that became a new favorite for many people in the world.
Bulgogi with Cheese
Like the bulgogi putin that was very popular in L.A., putting mozzarella cheese on top of bulgogi became popular in Korea too. A sweet, salty, and savory combination of bulgogi and cheese was a new thing people fell in love with.
Bulgogi pizza
So if bulgogi with cheese tastes great, what about we put bulgogi on pizza? That must have been a question someone had. And it became a successful fashion dish. Nowadays, there are many pizzas with bulgogi on top, called Bulgogi pizza. There are many interesting types of pizzas in Korea including this one. If you are interested, I wrote a blog post on this amazing pizza blog Pizza Heaven. 🍕
All About Korean Pizza | History, Characteristics, and Types
Vegan Bulgogi
Last but not least, there is vegan bulgogi! As the vegetarian and vegan community is growing, there are people who are looking for vegan bulgogi… like you and me. I love my bulgogi, so I’m going to find a way to eat my bulgogi as a vegan. I’ve tried countless versions of vegan bulgogi honing my vegan cooking skills and trying to perfect the flavor and texture of the bulgogi I grew up eating. And so I’m so happy to be able to share that with you now. In vegan bulgogi, one of the most important parts of the recipe is looking at the vegan “meat” options.
Vegan meat has evolved so much in recent years, and some plant-based meats are hard to tell.
Vegan Bulgogi Meat Options
Here are some of the vegan meat or protein options I found. Each of them has unique qualities and can be so amazing depending on what you are looking for.
1. Plant-Based Meat
Beyond Steak Meat Plant-Based Seared
If you want to make the vegan bulgogi that is the closest to the original one with meat, well, plant-based meat is the way to go! The plant-based meat has evolved so well these days that I can barely see the differences between plant-based meat and real ones. Especially this Beyond Steak Meat has the most similar meat texture to the beef used in bulgogi. This will make a great protein and main ingredient for your vegan bulgogi.
2. Soybits
Plant Basics – Hearty Plant Protein – Unflavored Strips
Soybits are the ingredients that I use often in many of my vegan meat dishes as a substitute for meat. First of all, they store forever unlike real meat which goes bad after a few days. So I like to buy several packages of them and put them in my pantry. Secondly, they are so high in protein and low in fat! It’s like choosing lean vegan meat. Lastly, soybits can absorb the sauce well which means it will absorb lots of delicious bulgogi sauce, making your vegan bulgogi flavorful.
3. Firm Tofu
House Foods, Organic Extra-firm Tofu, 12 oz
I would say this is the healthiest option for vegan bulgogi. And you’d have to call this tofu bulgogi as tofu is also a Korean ingredient. Marinate tofu instead of meat and you will have delicious tofu bulgogi! Use this extra firm tofu to get a good bite.
Vegan Bulgogi Recipe
Vegan Bulgogi Recipe
Ingredients
- 1.3 pound Vegan meat 600g
- 2 Shiitake mushrooms Dried or fresh
- 1 Onion
- 1/2 Leek
- 1 small Carrot
- 1 Red chili
Bulgogi Sauce
- 1/2 cup Soy sauce
- 2 tbsp Chopped garlic
- 1/2 cup Chopped leek
- 3/4 cup Ground pear One pear can work
- 3 tbsp Date paste
- 1 tbsp Sesame oil
- 1 tsp Ground pepper
- 1 tbsp Toasted sesame
Instructions
- In a small bowl, mix all the ingredients for the sauce.
- If you have plant-based meat or tofu, cut it into bite-size. If you have soy bits, pour hot water. Leave it for 30 minutes and squeeze the water out.
- In a large bowl, put the vegan meat of your choice. Pour the ready bulgogi sauce and mix. You can marinate overnight in the fridge or for at least 30 minutes. I recommend marinating for a few hours for the best result.
- Slice all the other vegetables – shiitake mushroom, onion, carrot, leek, and red chili.
- Heat a pan and start cooking carrots first. Then put the rest of the vegetables inside. When it starts to cook and ooze some water out, pour the marinated vegan meat and start cooking.
- Once all the vegetables are cooked thoroughly, take them out of the pan and serve!
Other Product Recommendations for Vegan Bulgogi
1. Glass Noodles
The Korean glass noodles are one of the most popular additional ingredients for bulgogi. It is chewy and soft, and it becomes so delicious when the noodle absorbs the sauce inside the noodle. The cooking method can be slightly tricky. If you have glass noodles for your bulgogi, just make sure to make more bulgogi sauce.
2. Tteok (Rice Cake)
Korean Sliced Rice Cake – Chewy Tteok, Rice Cake Soup, Vegan and Gluten Free Non-GMO 떡국떡, by Somshi
This would be the choice for my household because my husband is a rice cake killer! This is also a delicious chewy and savory additional ingredient you can put in your bulgogi. You can use either the thin tteokguk tteok or the cylinder-shape tteokbokki tteok depending on your preference. Just like the glass noodles, just remember to add more bulgogi sauce to your dish if you choose to add tteok. Oh! The most iconic dish you can make with tteokguk-tteok is of course tteokguk, which is a type of soup that you eat on Lunar New Year in Korea. I have a beautiful vegan tteokguk recipe on my blog.
3. Bulgogi Sauce
Since we are cooking vegan bulgogi, you don’t have to worry about over or undercooking the meat! That is one of the beauties of cooking a vegan meal. Therefore, the only thing in making vegan bulgogi is making the sauce and cooking the vegetables. But if you don’t have time or want to have a very simple bulgogi, you can buy the ready-made bulgogi sauce and vegan meat and boil them together. Voila! You made delicious bulgogi in no time.
Tips for Vegan Bulgogi
1. Ripe Pear to Sweeten 🍐
The main flavor for vegan bulgogi is sweet and savory. When making bulgogi or any kind of Korean food, people like to sweeten it with fruits and fruit extracts instead of using sugar. One of the most common sweetener ingredients for bulgogi is pear! In fact, pear is used as a natural and healthy sweetener in many Korean dishes. Use ripe pear to sweeten, it adds more depth to flavors and is way healthier than using sugar.
2. Use Beef-Like Vegan Meat
Bulgogi is usually made of thinly sliced beef. So if you can find any other vegan meat substitute that resembles thin beef, go for it! Making seitan by yourself from wheat gluten can be a good option too.
Summary of Vegan Bulgogi
I hope you enjoyed this blog post to learn about bulgogi and how to make delicious vegan bulgogi at home! Once you have bulgogi sauce, you can use it as a sauce for many different dishes too.
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