Bibimbap (Korean mixed rice with vegetables) Recipe

Another dish I like to order at korean restuarants is Bibimbap (mixed rice with vegetables).

Bibimbap is served as a bowl of warm white rice topped with vegetables, meat and gochujang (hot pepper/chilli paste). I love it with a fried sunny-side up egg and mixing everything together. It may look a little messy but the collision of the various tastes go surprisingly well together.

The beauty of having a mixed rice dish is that you can use the vegetables you like, or whatever you may have on hand. Putting together this dish is quick, with the main cooking done for the meat and mushrooms. The other vegetables are blanched and seasoned with salt and garlic. This is a healthy dish and you can customize it to your liking.

(serves 3)

Ingredients

Vegetables (bean sprouts, Japanese cucumbers/zucchini, toasted seaweed, kimchi, shiitake mushrooms)

Meat (I used minced pork and shrimp but you can use chicken, pork or beef)

1 cup short grain rice (I used Japanese Japonica rice)

Sesame oil

Salt

Pepper

Soy sauce

4 cloves garlic

Gochujang (hot pepper/chilli paste)
Sesame seeds (optional)

Method

1. Wash and cook rice

2. Bring a small saucepan of water to boil and blanch bean sprouts till almost done, takes about 2-3 minutes. Drain and toss bean sprouts with 1 clove of minced garlic and salt

3. Skin and slice cucumber into thin strips. Toss with 1 tsp of salt. In a heated pan, add in 1 tsp of cooking oil and cook cucumber for 1 minute. The cucumbers should soften but still retain some crunch

4. Cut mushrooms into thin strips. In heated pan, add in 3 cloves of minced garlic and cook till fragrant. Add in meat, mushrooms and season with black pepper, white pepper and 1.5 tbsp of soy sauce. Cook till meat is thoroughly cooked

5. Fry 3 eggs separately, sunny side up, with yolks still runny

6. In a big bowl, place a portion of rice in the middle. Arrange cooked vegetables and meat around rice. Top it with egg. Sprinkle some sesame seeds on top and serve with gochujang

 

 

Tips

If you are using dried shiitake mushrooms, soak them in water for half hour before use

You can cook the mushrooms separately from the meat but I like to do so together so that the mushroom can absorb the juices from the meat which will enhance taste