An easy and delicious weeknight favorite: Korean Ground Beef Bulgogi Bowls. All the traditional flavors of bulgogi made with ground beef. Lots of protein and lots of flavor. And there’s no need for Asian pear! Make this easy Korean rice bowl and top with a fried egg for a complete quick meal. The best kind of 15-minute simple dinner!
What are Ground Beef Bulgogi Bowls?
Ground Beef Bulgogi Bowls is a Korean-inspired rice bowl made with ground beef. All you need is a pound of ground beef and pantry ingredients. Marinate the beef and cook in a hot pan for a fast and easy weeknight dinner with BIG Korean flavor!
Traditional beef bulgogi is not made with ground beef. Instead, thinly sliced beef (ribeye or flank steak) is marinated and cooked over a hot pan. But sometimes, it’s hard to make an extra trip to the Korean grocery store. Making bulgogi with ground beef is easier and more accessible. And still tasty!
The secret to the BEST ground beef bulgogi is to cook it long enough. Then the mince beef becomes deliciously crisp and caramelized. Lots of protein, too!
If you love Korean flavors, you’ll love these fast and easy Korean beef bowls. Perfect for busy weeknights. A satisfying and easy ground beef recipe for the whole family!
What is Bulgogi?
Bulgogi is a popular Korean dish made with thinly sliced meat that’s marinated and cooked over intense heat. At Korean restaurants, it’s often brought out sizzling hot on a cast iron plate. The savory sauce comes from a simple marinade that is garlicky, savory, sweet, and sometimes spicy.
In Korean, Bulgogi translates as “fire meat.” It’s cooked quickly at high heat. As the meat sears, it stays juicy and tender. The quick marinating time plus the fast cooking time makes it a weeknight friendly option for Korean cooking at home.
More bulgogi recipes: Spicy Pork Belly Bulgogi, Chicken Bulgogi, Spicy Squid + Pork Belly Bulgogi.
Ingredients:
- Ground Beef (Mince Beef). Extra-lean ground beef works best. Otherwise, the final dish will be too greasy. Can be swapped with any ground meat (ground chicken or ground turkey), if you prefer.
- Onion. You’ll need 1 large onion. Half is grated to a juicy pulp and placed directly into the marinade. The other half is diced and sauteed in the wok.
- Garlic. Fresh garlic is essential for the flavor. Don’t skimp on the amount!
- Soy Sauce. Lots of salty umami flavor. Regular soy sauce works best.
- Sugar. Regular white sugar works fine. Swap with brown sugar, if you like.
- Mirin. Sweet Korean cooking wine. Look for it at Asian grocery stores.
- Sesame Oil. Fragrance and nutty flavor.
- Green onions (scallions) + Sesame seeds. Optional garnish.
- Rice. Serve with white rice, brown rice, or Korean Purple Rice. For a low-carb option, swap with cauliflower rice or quinoa.
- Egg. A fried egg on top add more protein and lots of flavor. Make sure the yolk is runny. A classic Korean rice bowl topper.
How to make Korean Bulgogi Bowls:
- Prep the onion. Grate half an onion on a box grater into a juicy pulp. Dice the remaining half onion.
- Marinate beef. In a medium bowl, make the bulgogi sauce: add grated onion, garlic, soy sauce, sugar, Mirin, and sesame oil. Add ground beef. Mix until well combined.
- Cook. Heat a wok or large skillet over medium heat. Add a little oil and the diced onion. Cook onion until soft and translucent. Crank up the heat to medium-high heat. Add the marinated beef. Cook the meat mixture until most of the juice has evaporated and the beef has taken on a lovely, caramel-brown color with crispy edges.
- Serve. Garnish with green onion and sesame seeds. Heap into rice bowls with a fried egg on top. Add toppings of choice. Enjoy!
PRO Tips:
- Use a wok or cast iron skillet. For that charred, smoky flavor.
- Cook until caramelized. Ground beef releases a lot of water. For best results, cook until crispy and caramelized with a dark-brown color. It will take a few minutes.
- Make in advance. Reheats well. Good for meal prep. Store leftovers in an airtight container.
- Make it spicy. If you’d like more fiery heat, add 1-2 Tbsp of Gochujang to the marinade.
To Serve:
For an easy dinner, add a fried egg. With kimchi or steamed veggies on the side, it’s a complete meal!
Or, drizzle with Gochujang Sauce. And serve with lettuce wraps or red or green leaf lettuce. Or perilla leaves or roasted seaweed snack (gim).
Add more sides: Korean Cucumber Salad, Korean Lettuce Salad, or Gamja Salad.
FAQ
Store leftovers in an airtight container. Transfer to the fridge where it should keep for 3-4 days.
Yes, Ground Beef Bulgogi freezes well. Cook the beef and store separately from the rice. Can last up to 1 month in the freezer.
More rice bowl recipes:
- Ground Pork Gochujang Rice Bowls
- Spicy Chicken Bibimbap with Corn + Cheese
- Korean Tuna Rice Bowls
- Japanese Butadon (Pork Donburi)
Easy Ground Beef Bulgogi Bowls recipe
Equipment
- wok or cast iron pan
Ingredients
In a bowl:
- 1 lb extra lean ground beef
- 1/2 large onion, grated
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 3 Tbsp soy sauce (not the low sodium kind)
- 1 1/2 Tbsp sugar
- 1 Tbsp Mirin (Korean sweet cooking wine)
- 1 Tbsp sesame oil
- 1-2 Tbsp Gochujang *optional ingredient (for more spicy flavor)
In the wok:
- 1/2 large onion, diced
Assemble into bowls:
- 4 cups (cooked) rice
- 4 sunny side up eggs
- 2 green onions, chopped
Instructions
- Cook rice, according to package directions.
- Prep the onion. Grate 1/2 onion on a box grater so that it becomes juicy, onion pulp. Dice the other 1/2 onion in a medium dice.
- Marinate ground beef. In a large bowl, add ground beef, grated onion, garlic, soy sauce, sugar, Mirin, and sesame oil. Mix until well combined with hands or a fork. Set aside.
- Cook. Heat a wok or cast iron skillet on medium heat. When the pan is hot, add 1-2 Tbsp neutral oil (I use grapeseed oil) and swirl around in the pan. Add onion and saute until soft and translucent, about 2 minutes.
- Increase the heat to medium-high heat. Add the marinated ground beef and keep cooking, breaking apart big chunks with a metal spatula or wooden spoon. Initially, a lot of liquid will release from the meat. Keep cooking until most of the liquid has evaporated and the meat has turned dark brown in color with crispy edges, about 8-10 minutes.
- Garnish. Remove from heat and add green onion and sesame seeds.
- Assemble. Evenly divide rice among 4 bowls. 1 cup cooked rice is a generous portion so feel free to adjust, according to your preference. Evenly divide ground beef bulgogi over the rice. Top with a fried egg. Enjoy!
Notes
-
- Use a wok or cast iron skillet. For that charred, smoky flavor.
-
- Cook until caramelized. Ground beef releases a lot of water. Cook until crispy and caramelized with a dark-brown color.
-
- Make in advance. Reheats well. Make once and organize into separate portions for easy lunch meals all week long!
- Make it spicy. If you’d like more fiery heat, add 1-2 Tbsp of Gochujang to the marinade.
Hi,
I’ve made your pork mince bowl quite a few times, it’s easy and definitely a favourite of mine.
I think there’s some errors with this bulgogi recipe however.
First, there’s nothing hot in the recipe as it stands. The recipe doesn’t include gochujang or gochugaru.
Second, the grated onion is used twice in the instructions. It’s in the marinade and it’s also used at the start of the cooking step where it is sautéed. I expect that the intent is to sauté the garlic and onion, and not have it in the marinade.
Thanks for posting your recipes.
Cheers,
– Mark
Hello! Thanks for your feedback and it’s nice to hear you enjoy the pork mine bowl. For this recipe (Ground Beef Bulgogi Rice Bowls), you are right — the onion is used twice. One half of the onion is used in the marinade and the other half is sauteed at the beginning of the cooking process. Adding grated onion to the meat marinade and also while it cooks is a classic Korean preparation. Also, this is not a spicy bulgogi recipe. Not all bulgogi is spicy! This on has a salty-sweet flavor. However, if you’d like more spicy flavor – I’ve listed an optional ingredient: you can add 1-2 Tbsp of Gochujang to the beef marinade. I’ve listed it as an option but I will make sure to include that option in the recipe card – thank you!
Easy to make and guaranteed great flavour. My kids are mastering this recipe too. Garnishing with green onion and sesame seeds makes it look like a restaurant dish!
My family and I love this recipe! I have to double it for my family of five. I serve it with white rice or will also use quinoa. This is an easy weeknight dinner – as long as I remember to thaw the ground beef!
Absolutely fabulous! Made with ground turkey. Cooked the meat as the recipe suggested until it turned a little brown and crispy (took more like 15-18 minutes) and that made a huge difference in the texture and flavor.
Served with green onions, kimchi, toasted sesame seeds, chili garlic paste. Next time will pickle some carrots and daikon.
Great recipe!!!!
Delicious! This is now on my bi-weekly meal plan! It feels so comforting and there are endless toppings to add!
This was so easy and tasty to make! I never thought I would be able to make the bulgogi sauce with ingredients I already have at home. I typically buy the pre-made jars! I will use this future again for the future 🙂
This was such an easy, fast, last minute meal. A really homey dish that I’ll definitely make again.
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