Pork Bulgogi: Recipe, Tips, and Serving Ideas

Pork bulgogi, or “fire meat,” is a popular Korean dish consisting of thin slices of pork tenderloin marinated in a sweet, salty, spicy sauce. In Korea, many bulgogi recipes include grated apple, Asian pear, or kiwi to help tenderize the meat.

Common marinade ingredients include soy sauce, nutty sesame oil, grated ginger, minced garlic, and gochujang and gochugaru (red pepper flakes) for spiciness. Sweeteners, like brown sugar, honey, or maple syrup, help the edges of the meat turn crispy and caramelized when seared in a cast-iron skillet, wok, or grill pan. You can serve pork bulgogi just as you would beef bulgogi: over steamed rice, mixed with assorted stir-fried vegetables, or wrapped in lettuce or perilla leaves.

The most labor-intensive part of making pork bulgogi is the waiting you’ll have to endure while marinating—a small price to pay for a bold, versatile dish. Here’s what to know about making pork bulgogi:

1. 1. For roasting, choose fattier cuts. Pork bulgogi typically features pork shoulder or tenderloin—lean cuts that cook up fast—but you can use bulgogi sauce to marinate any cut. Try it on slow-roasted or grilled pork belly or pork butt.
2. 2. Buy pre-sliced pork from an Asian grocery store. Korean markets often sell thin slices of pork and beef for easy stir-frying and searing. If you can’t find the meat pre-sliced, ask the butcher to slice it for you into two-inch long strips, about half an inch to one inch thick.
3. 3. Make the marinade in advance. If you like to plan ahead, combine the bulgogi marinade and meat the day before cooking. If you’re in a hurry, thirty minutes will still result in flavorful, tender pork.

There’s no wrong way to serve pork bulgogi. Here are a few ideas:

• With ssamjang: Ssamjang is a Korean dipping sauce built on the dual flavors of fermented soybeans (doenjang) and chili pepper paste (gochujang) accented with sesame oil and finely minced alliums like garlic, onion, and scallion. The flavor of this “sauce for wraps” is the perfect complement to spicy grilled pork. Learn how to make ssamjang.
• With lettuce wraps and steamed rice: For a dynamic, flavorful bite, tuck pieces of pork bulgogi into handheld lettuce wraps along with a scoop of fluffy white rice, a drizzle of ssamjang, and a few pieces of kimchi or other banchan (side dishes).
• In a rice bowl: Bulgogi, whether pork, beef, or tofu, is often the star ingredient of bibimbap, a Korean rice bowl served with an assortment of meat and vegetables. The word “bibim” refers to a mix of various ingredients, while “bap” refers to rice. Traditionally, this rice dish comes in a hot stone bowl or stone pot (dolsot bibimbap), the contents of which you mix just before eating.