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K-popped! Kitchen: Every Day Bibimbap

Bibimbap has got to be one of my favourite Korean dishes. 비빔밥 (Bibimbap) literally means “mixed rice” or “mixed meal”.

It is simply a bowl of rice that is mixed with various kinds of vegetables, mushrooms, a fried egg, ground meat and red pepper paste (
gochujang). There are many variations of the dish and a unique taste can be created depending on the ingredients added. But I have noticed that the signature ingredient would be the gochujang.

A variation of the dish, “dolsot bibimbap” (돌솥 비빔밥) is served in a sizzling hot stone bowl in which a raw egg is cooked against the sides of the bowl. Before the rice is placed in the bowl, the bottom of the bowl is coated with sesame oil, making the layer of the rice touching the bowl golden brown and crispy. Ah, i remember eating the “dolsot bibimbap” at Saveurs de Corée in Beijing. It was delicious.

There are many stories of the origins of bibimbap, but one that i remember the most clearly is this… Housewives who did not want to waste left-over dishes created this dish by combining everything into one bowl and serving it. Do you know of any other stories?

Staying true to its origins, here’s how to make simple “
Every day bibimbap“. I call it “Every day Bibimbap” because if you are Asian, and eat rice with dishes daily, you could prepare this practically every day!

Gochujang (고추장) is the only special ingredient you need. It is a hot paste made of soy, and is used in many Korean dishes and can be purchased at any Korean mini mart.

Gochujang which i purchased at a Korean mart in Koreatown.
This 500g tub cost RM14.50.

 

This is what the hot pepper paste looks like

Method:

Add rice and left-over dishes into a large bowl. I used a steel bowl simply because i see it used a lot in Korean dramas. That night, i had stir-fried brinjal with shrimp and meat balls which i added into the bowl. Scoop one full teaspoon of gochujang (more if you want) and add it to the mix.

 

Brinjal (eggplant), shrimp, meatballs with rice and gochujang


Mix everything together thoroughly and then dig in.

It was yummy. The gochujang was not over-powering but adds some spiciness to the dish. It also binds the rice together and while eating it, i thought of my favourite Korean drama “My Lovely Sam-soon” (MLSS) as i remember Sam-soon eating it late one night. =)

Every day Bibimbap – a simple way to add a
touch of Korean to your every day meal


More K-popped! Kitchen
Pajeon
Japchae
Su jeong gwa (Persimmon Tea)
Tuna Kimbap
Kimchi Jjigae

 

5 thoughts on “K-popped! Kitchen: Every Day Bibimbap

  • Blue8ple

    I went to Korea and my tourguide told me that in the past, the daughter in-law had to serve her husband and in-laws first before she got to have her own dinner. So after everyone had eaten, what's left of the dishes are normally very little. The daughter in-law would then mix everything together and ate silently while crying.. at her hard life..

  • blinkable

    I cant eat anything hot at all but still I took a chance on dolsot bibimbap! Worthy of my gastric XDDD
    Now thanks to this post I can make one that is less hot?? *haha*

  • ladida

    bibimbap looks like a very simple dish to make…too bad, i’m currently on a low carb diet 🙁

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