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http://www.nytimes.com/2011/06/05/magazine/mark-bittman-bulgogi-for-the-backyard-grill.html
Backyard Bulgogi
Yunhee Kim for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Stephana Bottom. Prop Stylist: Deborah Williams.By MARK BITTMAN
Published: June 1, 2011
In looking to create a menu for an early-season barbecue that would appeal to everyone — meat lovers, vegetarians,
culinary thrill-seekers and whoever else might show up — I realized
that such a menu already exists. It’s just that it isn’t what we think
of as “American food.”Yunhee Kim for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Stephana Bottom. Prop Stylist: Deborah Williams.
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Share your thoughts.
Still, it is American to not fuss about the origin of recipes,
especially when the menu spotlights both intensely flavored grilled
marinated meat and a bunch of quirky, flavorful and mostly meatless side
dishes.In this case, the source is Korean. And with a little planning and
advance work, you can make beef bulgogi and banchan (the name for the
little tidbits either served first or as accompaniments) at home. And
you’ll make them as well as or better than you’ve eaten them on 32nd
Street in Manhattan or wherever your local joint might be. In other
words, you’ll kick off the grilling season with an appealing, exotic,
even exciting menu that will make most others seem dull.The exoticism and excitement derive from both the ingredients and the
techniques. Many of the ingredients you’ll need can be found at any
halfway decent grocery store, but there is one important exception:
gochujang, or Korean chili-bean paste. This combines the salty, complex
tang of miso with a mild fire, and it’s an absolute must as a condiment
for the beef. (If you’ve eaten Korean barbecue, you’ve been offered it.)Gochugaro, Korean chili powder, which contributes heat to the kimchi and scallion-salad
recipes, is also difficult to find in most supermarkets, but a
substitute of red-pepper flakes or not-terribly fiery ground chili
powder will give you a similar effect. Depending on where you live, you
may well be able to find mung bean sprouts (which star in a simple
salad), daikon radish (pickled along with cabbage in kimchi) and hijiki
(which is soaked and then stir-fried in what is quite possibly the best
seaweed preparation I’ve ever had) in your local supermarket.The instantly recognizable profile of Korean food, however, comes not
from obscure ingredients but from the relatively mainstream ones: sesame
(both seeds and oil), garlic, soy sauce, garlic, rice vinegar, garlic,
sugar and scallions. And garlic. I’ve more than once called Korean food
“Japanese food with guts,” not as a slight against Japanese food
(wonderful in its own right) but as an endorsement of Korean cuisine’s
vigorous, muscular, completely unsubtle flavor profile. Korean food’s
aggressive seasoning is really just right for grilling, where attempts
at nuance are usually in vain.Some elements of this barbecue are familiar but tweaked. (Some of that
familiarity comes from the American presence in Korea, now going on 60
years.) Korean potato salad, for instance, is similar to American potato
salad in that its dressing is mayonnaise-based, but the Korean version
sometimes uses julienned rather than chunked potatoes and also contains
carrots, peas, scallions and chives. It’s far from conventional and far
from bland.I will not (and cannot) claim that every element of this menu is
legitimately Korean. In fact one recipe, the plum-and-herb cocktail, is
plain made up: a sangrialike concoction of white wine, gin,
rosemary-infused simple syrup and fresh plums. I see it as a tribute to
the sweet plum wine so often served in Korean restaurants. (If you want
to be authentic, drink soju — it will get you drunk in a hurry — or
beer.) But if my cocktail isn’t authentic, it is good and, like the rest
of the menu, very potent.Beef Bulgogi
Time: 45 to 150 minutes1 bunch scallions, roughly chopped
8 or more garlic cloves, peeled and roughly chopped
1 tablespoon sugar or honey
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1/2 cup soy sauce
1 tablespoon sesame oil
2 pounds sirloin, rib-eye or skirt steak, thinly sliced, or 3 to 4 pounds beef short ribs, boned and thinly sliced
Boston or loose-leaf lettuce leaves for serving
Gochujang (Korean chili-bean paste) for serving.
1. Combine the scallions, garlic, sugar, pepper, soy sauce and oil in
blender and purée, adding water as needed to form a smooth mixture. Toss
the meat with the soy mixture and marinate for 15 minutes to 2 hours.
Heat a grill with the rack 4 to 6 inches from the flame; the fire should
be as hot as possible.- 1
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