recipe: bulgogi, steamed veg, white rice

The best thing I can think of to say about this dish is, it's a keeper. I'll be eating Bulgogi again, soon; cooking it often from now on, too. In my quest  to cook-a-cow, joint by joint, this bulgogi was made using beef sirloin; pork & chicken versions are out there, by all accounts very popular. The process is simple enough; marinate the meat, grill it & use the marinade to make a sauce, serve it with rice & some tasty vegetables...an easy dish for a wok.

Ingredients: the bulgogi, incl marinade

onions, garlic, nashi pears
garlic chives, parsley stalks, spring onions
honey, saki, soy sauce, salt

method:
*peel & finely slice the veg/fruit then puree them
*slice chives stalks & sprouts on the slant, fold in to the pureed pulp
*add seasonings to taste
the marinade is ready to use now, so place yr meat & cover it well, mixing it all together with yr hands, letting it sit at least 2hrs, but preferably overnight, in the fridge

Ingredients: the vege garnish

leeks, carrots, capsicum, courgette,
 celery, daikon radish, bok choy

method:
*slice vege into small bite size, julienne looks good
*blanch in boiling water or steam 2mins, refresh in iced cold h2o, strain dry
*to reheat, plunge back into boiling h2o or nuke for 1or2mins in the microwave
I whipped up a quick dressing from finely chopped ginger/fresh coriander&mint/honey/s'n'p/sesame oil 

 Ingredients: the meat
marinating beef sirloin, finely sliced onion
toasted seeds, spring onions, parsley
sesame oil, olive oil

method:
over a fire on the embers would be a nice way to cook the meat for this dish, but in absence of a bbq, a good heavy pan would do, or a wok on a gas hob would be otherwise perfect
*get the pan super hot, strain the meat, fry in oil quickly, in batches, put aside in a bowl
*let the sauce develop between each batch, reducing whats left in the pan & adding to the meat
*fry a little sliced onion to add to the meat
*fold in chopped spring onion&parsley, toasted seeds

To serve this dish, cook some white rice, medium grain, I added a little wakame as they do in Japan, but this isn't necessary. I also used watercress, leaves only, tossing them with the rice at the last minute.   In a bowl, the bulgogi sits on the rice, your vege salad on top, the reduced bulgogi sauce should provide a good moistness to the dish, but if need be the marinade can be strained & reduced for this purpose.

As an extra little something on the side, when I was playing round with ideas this week, I threw together a wanton garnish: a whole segment of roasted elephant garlic rolled in chopped coriander&sesame, stuffed with a whole honey toasted cashew, a splodge of plum sauce for good measure. Deep fried they sit nicely in the bowl...& it's good to have an excuse to fry something tasty.