Bibimbap (비빔밥)

Bibimbap, which translates to mixed rice, is a traditional Korean dish that consists of steamed white rice, an assortment of mixed vegetables, gochujang sauce/paste (a sweet, salty and chilli paste), sliced meat typically beef, and an egg.

I have made three attempts at doing this dish and each time I would say it has improved a lot due to the praises I get from my diners (family). 

 

It was very obvious that this was my first attempt. The vegetable and meat slices were large and the arrangement was haphazardly done. In this 1st dish I used:

Cucumber & lettuce (for that fresh crunch)

Spring onion

Button mushrooms

Nori seaweed

Carrots

Paprika chicken breast

and a raw egg (don't worry it gets cooked by the steamed white rice underneath)

 

My 2nd attempt was arranged better and this time I sprinkled on some sesame seeds

The 3rd time's a charm. I arranged it so that the green vegetables were separated by other ingredients to create a colourful wheel. In this dish I used:

Carrots

Spring onion

Shiitake mushrooms (had a better flavour than button mushrooms)

Nori seaweed

Tofu

Cucumber

Beansprouts

Spinach

Strips of beef (rump)

Three egg yolks

Gochujang (substitute) 

& a sprinkling of toasted sesame seeds

Recipe:

Prep

• Marinate the beef strips in light soy sauce and sesame oil and set aside for half an hour
• Wash and drain the spinach and bean sprouts
• Slice the following into strips:

> Cucumber
> Carrots
> Spring onion
> Shiitake mushrooms

• Cut the nori seaweed into thin strips
• Cube the tofu as it's mostly impossible to have them sliced thinly as it will crumble
• Toast the sesame seeds

Cooking

1. Once you have all the ingredients prepared, cook the rice, as the 20 minutes to cook the rice is the same amount of time you'll need to cook the vegetables and beef.
2. Use a good cooking sesame oil to cook each ingredient separately and season each ingredient with a little salt/soy sauce and pepper
3. Start by cooking the vegetables with the spinach first and the carrots last (don't cook the cucumber)
4. Then cook the beef last and add a tablespoon of sugar to caramelise the beef slightly.
5. Arrange all ingredients on top of the steaming hot rice. Put the green ingredients at the 12, 3, 6, and 9 points first and fill in the gaps with the remaining vegetables. 
6. Place the beef in the centre with the three egg yolks on top, dollop the Gochujang paste around and sprinkle on the the toasted sesame seeds.
7. Viola! Done =D

 

Notes:

• The cooking time for this dish isn't very long, it's mostly the preparation that takes a fair amount of time
• Make sure you have a sharp knife when you attempt this
• Cook the carrots last as they tend to stain the other vegetables orange, you want to keep all the colours separate
• You don't have to use raw eggs, you could do a sunny side-up or eggs over easy! 
• No gochujang? Make a substitute

Gochujang substitute recipe:

• Miso paste
• Sesame oil
• Soy sauce
• Chilli powder
• Garlic powder
• Paprika
• Honey
• White wine

Mix the ingredients to taste

(nothing like the real deal, but a great alternative if you don't have any available options)

After you've taken your pictures of your artwork..... uhmmm food. The only thing left to do is mix it well and eat!

Till Next Time =D