Korean Steak Rice Bowls & IPA

Korean Steak Rice Bowls

Servings – 2

·         8 ounces steak (I used rib eye, but lots of cuts would work here) - cubed

·         ¼ c soy sauce

·         3 T sesame oil (use peanut oil or another vegetable oil if you don’t have on hand)

·         2 T sugar

·         1 T sake or white wine

·         1 t onion powder

·         1 clove (1 t) of garlic minced

·         ½ carrot julienned

·         3 T white vinegar

·         ¼ t salt

·         ¼ t sugar

·         2 servings of rice (I used 5 minute brown, but white and jasmine are delicious here too)

·         4 ounces spinach (frozen or fresh will work)

·         ½ zucchini chopped into half moons

·         2 eggs

·         Korean red pepper sauce – Gochujang (you should be able to find this in Asian grocery stores, but I found it at Sprouts, it was the Annie Chun brand)

1.       Combine soy sauce, sesame oil, sugar, sake, onion powder and garlic.  Place into plastic bag with steak.  Marinade in fridge for at least 30 minutes, but all day is better.

2.       Combine white vinegar, salt, and sugar.  Add to plastic bag with carrots.  Let pickle for at least 30 minutes, but overnight is better.  You can also buy pickled carrots is you can find them.

3.       Cook rice according to directions, need 2 servings which is usually 1 cup dried and 2 cups cooked)

4.       Sautee beef on the stove about 5 minutes until cooked through.

5.       Sautee zucchini in a little cooking spray for about 5 minutes until tender.  Add spinach and a dash of salt and pepper until spinach is wilted and heated through.

6.       Fry the 2 eggs, want the yolk to remain runny.  (I used only an egg white for myself as I don’t like the yolks).

7.       To assemble: Split rice between two bowls.  Top with sautéed veggies and carrots (first drain pickling juice from carrots).  Top veggies with beef.  Top with a little bit of the Korean sauce.  Top with fried egg.  Serve with additional sauce.

My husband introduced me to Korean rice bowls at a restaurant near his work called B.B.Bop.  While I loved it and it’s quite far for me to go there and there are no similar restaurants nearby.  I had to learn to make it myself.  You can do tons of different veggies, fresh and pickled and different meats as well.  This is the combination we both like.

With the red pepper sauce and the pickled veggies, this is a flavorful and spicy dish, so you will need something to stand up to that bold flavor.  For those you who don’t like IPAs, I am sorry because they are my staple and well they go well with spicy dishes.  I also have been sick and unable to drink for awhile, so I am going off of memory as I haven’t tried many new beers lately.  This is a beer I had several years ago when my husband and I went on our first vacation together in Denver.  Our first stop when we got in was to go on a walking brewery tour.  It was awesome, I recommend it.  The rest of our trip was planned on the recommendations of other tourists and locals alike we met on that tour.  The first stop on the tour was the Great divide brewing company.  We got a tour of the facility as well as having tastings.  It has a small tasting room, but everyone there was so nice and knowledgeable.  This is the day I also realized IPAs were my favorite.  Their IPA is called Titan.  This is a smooth IPA with nice citrus finish.