This is a super simple marinade for grilled beef in the Korean style of Galbi – using Flank Steak instead of the typical Flanken Short Ribs. A sweet and savory flavor results via typical Galbi ingredients of brown sugar, honey, soy sauce, garlic, onion and ginger.
Where did this recipe come from?
This recipe has a story. And, it’s a good one. We were having dinner at Casa Lampert with the ‘usual suspects’ and one of the crew offered to bring the main dish – which is not typical as I usually call the menu (i.e. Mexican or Italian or BBQ etc.) and make the main dish. Then the rest of the crew bring in appetizers and vegetables etc. This way dinner is easy and I don’t have to cook for 2 days and the crew can get together more frequently as it’s much less work and much more fun. However, this time the offer was for the crew to bring the main – Korean beef ribs. I didn’t know what the heck they were – but I was surely game.
I distinctly remember these ribs, the tin pan they came over in and the fact I COULD NOT stop eating them. They were amazing. They were incredible. I’d never eaten a beef flanken rib like that in my life and knew for sure positive there was more of that in my future. So I begged for the recipe and began hunting down these flanken ribs. (The flanken cut of short ribs is beef cut thin – across the bones so you have usually 3 or so sections of ribs in each thin piece of beef.).
I got some flanken ribs, I marinated, we grilled, and 4 of us demolished 3 lbs of beef ribs in about 10 minutes.
Searched and Compared and Generated a Final Recipe
Ok – the prior recipe / ribs were good – don’t get me wrong – but they were not quite what I remembered. I remembered devouring ribs one after the other basically uncontrollably non stop. The prior recipe was good for sure, but I don’t think it was quite right…yet. So off I go to the big recipe book in the sky (google) and I do the ol’ recipe compare. Research a handful of reputable recipes / chefs and line up the ingredients. Think about why each ingredient is included, what one recipe has that the other doesn’t, what each ingredient brings to the party and then determine how to meld it all into amazing-ness. Of course, keeping track and comparing to the prior recipe used. With many taste testers, a couple who were around for the original rib-fest and we decided THIS was it !!! I’d recreated the original umami bomb diggity scrumpdilicious marinade!
Changed from flanken ribs (hard to find) to flank steak (less fat / no bones / easier to find)
Next up – I had another situation that needed to be fixed. If I was going to eat beef like a lil ol piggly wiggly – it ought to be less fatty, and easier to eat. The bones and the fat was getting in my way of straight yumminess. So I said – self – we need to make these with a different cut of meat. And, here we are.
We are beginning with 6 lbs of flank steak – scoring the meat into a grid like pattern and then definitely marinading overnight. This recipe goes together super quick – using your blender to do all the work – and then all you have to do is flip around your marinating meat a couple of times over 24 hours. Take the beef out about 45 minutes before grilling – so it has time to come to room temp before you put it on the grill.
Amazing doesn’t even begin to explain this dish. Grab some veggies, some rice and a handful of friends and you are going to have an awesome dinner.
Easy Marinated and Grilled Korean Beef (Galbi)
Ingredients
- 6 Lbs Flank Steak
Marinade – Mix up in your Blender or Finely Chop / Grate and Mix
- 2 Asian Pears Cored and rough chopped
- 4 Tbl Garlic Cloves
- 2 Tsp Fresh Ginger
- 1.5 C Soy Sauce
- 1.5 C Water
- 3 Tbl Brown Sugar
- .5 Cup Mirin
- 6 Tbl Sesame Oil
- 4 Tbl Honey
- 1 tsp Ground Pepper
Garnish
- 4 tsp Sesame Seeds
- .5 C Green Onions
Instructions
- Get your ingredients out / ready / rough chopped.
- Combine marinade ingredients in your blender and blend until smooth. (Yes, I know – "vintage" blender. This blender has been with me since my first apartment! It still works!) #KeepingItReal
- If you make 6 lbs of meat worth of marinade the marinade is about 7.5 cups, which would not all fit into my blender… So I got out my X-Large measuring cup and blended a portion – poured it into the XLG container and then blended the rest – in 2 batches.
- Score the meat in about 1 inch squares so that the marinade gets deep into the beef. (checkerboard) Note: you don't have to score deeply – just slit the surface so that the marinade can get further into the meat.
- Use a zip lock bag or other marinade appropriate container to hold the meat + marinade for 24 hours. Flip the meat / marinade several times throughout the day. (If you pass the refrigerator consider giving the meat a toss.) I have two tupperware marinade containers – which get a lot of use in our house. Two flank steaks in one container and one in the other (for 6 lbs)
- Take the meat out of the fridge at least 45 min before grilling – to let it come to room temperature.
- Grill the meat on direct at appx 400 degrees for 3 minutes per side. Then move the meat to indirect until the internal temperature reaches 125 – 130 degrees F. On a piece of meat this large there will be varying thicknesses so use your best judgement to balance the thinner section of the meat vs. the fatter sections. You also can consider whether you have people that like rarer meat vs. more well done meat. This cut of meat and preparation stands up to being more well done without getting dry and losing flavor.
- Let the meat rest for 5 minutes once taken off the grill. Dave recommends tenting the meat while you wait (with tin foil).
- Slice the meat against the grain and sprinkle on the garnish to serve.
