Galbi Jjim

Seeing as the holidays are here and everywhere you look is food food food, I decided to veer off the topic of nakedness for the next couple of posts and instead, do some foodie stuff.

Growing up, one of my favorite Korean foods to eat was Galbi Jjim. It's pretty much braised beef (usually chuck short ribs) in a delicious, garlicky, sweet-ish, but still salty sauce. Think teriyaki sauce but more garlicky and salty. Anyway, each time I would ask my mom about how to make it, she said it was very difficult, not to mention labor and time intensive. But my mom cooks old school way, with a pot on the stove for 12 hours over night on super super low to achieve the depth of flavor this dish needs as well as the meat that is so tender it falls off the bone and melts in your mouth. Me, I take advantage of more modern tools like the Dutch oven or even better for this recipe, a slow cooker! Also, beef chuck ribs can be more pricey than I would like to spend on meat that I have to cook the heck out of. So, I go for chuck roast instead. When it's on sale, I buy it for $1.99/lb and Galbi Jjim is essentially Korean pot roast anyway. Lastly, the in the more traditional Galbi Jjim recipes, you will see that it uses ginger roots, dates, pine nuts, etc. I'm not going to complicate my life, or yours, with all that fancy schmancy stuff. This recipe is your no-nonsense, uncomplicated, quick(er) and easy version of Galbi Jjim.

Here's what you'll need:

Marinade:
5Tbsp sugar
6Tbsp soy sauce
2Tbsp Mirin (Japanese rice wine vinegar)
5 cloves of minced garlic
1/2 large onion, grated or pureed in a blender
3 green onion stalks, chopped
1Tbsp sesame oil
1Tbsp sesame seeds (optional)
1/2 Asian pear, peeled and grated or blended with the onion (you can use 1 kiwi instead if that's easier than running out to get an Asian pear)
*half a cup of beef stock
*half a cup of water

Other:
2 1/2-3lbs beef chuck roast
2 medium potatoes, cut to large cubes
2 carrots, cut into thirds and then halves again if you don't like chunky carrots

*Recommended if using Dutch oven. Not required.


You can see in this pic that I used a regular apple instead of an Asian pear or kiwi. I regretted it because the meat didn't come out as tender as I would like, so don't be like me. Go get the pear or kiwi. Also, the picture is missing the potatoes. Just pretend it's there. ;)

Ok, to start off with, you want to score your meat in a criss cross fashion so you can get all the seasoning into the deep dark secret places of the roast.


Next, mix all the marinade ingredients together.



Place your roast into the Dutch oven and pour the marinade on top. At this point, I would recommend pour the 1/2C beef broth and 1/2C water around the roast. I didn't do this to mine and I think it also prevented the beef from being as "melt in your mouth" as possible. Although if this extra step is too inconvenient for you, then just omit it. I did and the husband still devoured the dish.


For this recipe the night I was taking these pics, I used a Dutch oven, but I've used a slow cooker before and I think that having tried both ways, the dish turns out better in the slow cooker. But it could also be because I cheated and didn't use the right fruit this time around -_- If you use a slow cooker, just put it on LOW for about 6 hours and move on with your day. Go shopping, get your nails done. :)

Place the lid on top and let it come to a boil. Once it starts boiling, just lower the heat to a slow simmer. If you're in a hurry, you can cook this about 45 minutes this way and still eat it. BUT Galbi Jjim just gets better the longer you cook it, so I put the heat on low, walked away, watched a movie, took a shower, read a little, and about 4 hours later, I decided it was time to end the torture... or at least part 1 of the torture.


**IMPORTANT NOTE** Technically, you should put the potatoes and carrots into your pot, about half an hour before you think your food is done. Then you can eat it right then and there after the half hour, BUT the reason it isn't in this pot now, is because I am embarking on a bit of old school Korean style cooking technique using-ness... (yeah, you read that right. technique using-ness). This next step isn't required and if you're hungry, just go ahead and start eating.

BUT FOR ME...

Instead of wrapping this baby up, I decided to prolong the waiting agony and make the meal HEALTHIER too. I know I know.. it's strange to think of combining comfort food, which is pretty much what Galbi Jjim is, and HEALTH but I did it anyway because that's the way my grandma and my mom do it. SO I let the pot cool down and fished all the meat out of the pot, putting it into a separate bowl. Then I placed both the meat and the Dutch over into the fridge. Let it sit there overnight. The next morning, you will be gratified for waiting to eat this dish by seeing this in turn, waiting for you in the pot...


See all that white stuff? FAT FAT FAT. Floated to the top and solidified like it would have done in your hips and butt, FAT.

Start chipping at the fat and scoop that nastiness OUT!



After the purging, you can place all the meat back into the pot with a guilt free conscience and add the carrots & potatoes too! Put the pot back onto the stove, wait for it to come to a boil, lower the heat to a slow simmer and give it about 30 minutes. You can make a pot of rice while you wait. Serve the beef together with rice and when all is said and done, you will have delicious (not quite like mom used to make, because no one but her can make it with that exact special something, but close enough) Galbi Jjim. YUM.



**LEARN FROM MY MISTAKES** I regret:
Not using the Asian pear
Not using 1/2C beef broth and 1/2C water
Not using my slow cooker