Bibimbap
15 November 2022Bibimbap literally translates to ‘mixed rice’. A Korean favourite, this has become a staple in my household. The mise en place is fairly extensive but the end result is well worth it. There are many variations of this dish but my favourite is the ‘dolsot bibimbap’ where the meal is served in a hot stone bowl. Mix all the ingredients together or pick each carefully arranged vegetables at your own time, the bibimbap always warms up my winter nights. This dish can be served in a standard bowl or you can choose to use a preheated stone bowl.
Image and styling courtesy of Blanco Australia
INGREDIENTS:
Steak600g flank steak
½ tsp minced garlic
½ tsp ground white pepper
½ tsp sugar
1 tsp sesame oil
2 tsp soy sauce
1 tbsp Shao Xing wine
Vegetables
2 medium-sized zucchini, cut into wide long strips, approx. 6-8cm in length
2 tbsp fish sauce
2 tbsp vegetable oil
2 tsp garlic
2 medium-sized carrots, julienned
1 ½ tsp salt
1 ½ tsp sugar
500g bean sprouts, blanched
10 fresh shiitake mushrooms, sliced
1 bunch spinach, blanched
1 tsp sesame oil
1 tsp white sesame seeds, lightly toasted
4 eggs
3 cups cooked short grain rice
Korean chilli paste
METHOD:
Steak
Marinate steak with garlic, white pepper, sugar, sesame oil, soy sauce and Shao Xing wine. Set aside for 30 minutes.
Heat a pan to high. Remove steak from the marinade, draining excess liquid, and cook steak to your liking (I prefer medium rare). Allow steak to rest before slicing it thinly.
Vegetables
Zucchini:
Combine zucchini with fish sauce and allow to marinate for 10 minutes. Heat up one tablespoon of vegetable oil and sauté 1 teaspoon of garlic for 30 seconds. Squeeze access fish sauce out of zucchini then fry zucchini in hot oil for 2 minutes. Set aside.
Carrots:
Gently rub the carrots with salt and sugar. Set aside for 30 minutes then squeeze and drain excess liquid. Set aside.
Mushrooms:
Heat remaining oil and sauté remaining garlic. Fry shiitake mushrooms for 2 minutes or until softened then set aside.
Spinach:
Combine spinach with sesame oil and mix in sesame seeds. Set aside.
To poach the eggs in their shell, bring a pot of salted water to boil. Gently lower the eggs into the water and when the water returns to a boil, reduce the heat and allow to simmer for 6 minutes. Drain and carefully peel the shells. Set aside.
To assemble your bibimbap, place a serving of rice in a bowl and carefully arrange all the ingredients around the rice and gently place the poached egg on top of the rice. Serve hot with a dollop of Korean chilli paste.
NOTE: If you are using stone bowls, heat them up in an oven preheated to 180C. Carefully remove them and place them on their trivets. Brush one teaspoon of sesame oil on the base of each bowl and start assembling your bibimbap as above.
