This Korean BBQ marinade is simple enough to make for a weeknight meal and tastes just like takeout!
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This Korean BBQ marinade has been one of my standbys throughout quarantine. All you have to do is toss the ingredients in a bowl big enough to marinate meat in and stir!
It’s so easy, and the fact that you need to marinate it in advance means that dinner is mostly sorted when it’s actually time to start cooking! Perfect for a weeknight.
While I’m not one to judge pre-bottled marinades, the nice thing about making your own is that you can make the flavor profile suit exactly what you like best! I find many marinades are too sweet for my liking, so this one has just enough salt and heat to balance the sweetness. You also get to skip over weird chemicals that tend to be included in bottled stuff!
I like Korean BBQ marinade with skirt steak, but most cuts of beef or pork will work beautifully here. The flavor improves with a long soak, so I will toss this together 24 hours in advance.
If you plan to make a stir fry like the one I show in photos here, double the marinade. In a hot pan, cook the marinated beef and remove from heat. Add the vegetables you want to the pan and pour the marinade over them, allowing them to cook together. Cooking the marinade means it doesn’t matter that it was touching raw meat, and helps it thicken to a great glaze for the veggies. Here, I used 2 carrots, 1 head of broccoli, 1 large bell pepper, and 1 small can of water chestnuts. Serve over rice.
Don’t want to do a stir fry? Pair with ginger snow peas and rice for a quick and simple meal!
Alternatively, Korean BBQ marinade would work really well for grilling! The smokiness of the grill will balance the sweetness of the marinade. If so, don’t pre-slice it. I slice before marinating if I’m cooking on the stovetop to allow for more flavor to get into every edge of the meat.
Tools you’ll need: bowl, large pan or skillet.
Korean BBQ Marinade
Ingredients
- ½ cup soy sauce
- ⅓ cup rice vinegar
- ¼ cup brown sugar
- 4 cloves garlic
- 1 Tbsp sesame oil
- 2 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
Instructions
- Combine all and stir.
- Add meat and marinate at least 4 hours, but better for 24.
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How many pounds of beef is this marinade good for? Also, what cut of beef do you marinade? Thanks.
Oooh good question! I typically go with flank or skirt steak for stir fry, and this amount of marinade is good for about 1 lb. After marinating, I cook the remaining sauce to make it safe to use over your final dish!