What is bibimbap?
Bibim means mix, bap means rice. Koreans eat bibimbap for lunch and as a leftovers meal after holidays, when namul side dishes are left over. The city of Jeonju is considered the home of the best-known version with soybean sprouts and raw egg yolk. When plating, Korean cooks arrange the toppings side by side by color: white, yellow, green, red and dark brown.
The right ingredients
- Rice: Korean or Japanese short-grain rice sticks together easily and holds the toppings. Cook it without vinegar and without salt. Wash it until the water stays clear.
- Vegetables: Spinach, soybean sprouts, carrot, zucchini and shiitake are classic, about 100 g per person. Season the spinach like sigeumchi namul with sesame oil, garlic and salt instead of frying it.
- Meat: Thinly sliced beef from ribeye or rib roast. Marinated like bulgogi, it tastes sweeter and stronger.
- Gochujang: The fermented chili paste is thick and salty straight from the tub. You can read more about the paste under Gochujang. Stir it smooth with sesame oil, sugar and a little water. The exact ratio is in the recipe for bibimbap sauce.
How to get bibimbap right
Organize the work like an assembly line. While the rice cooks, cut the vegetables. Then fry them one kind at a time in the same pan, the light ones first, meat and egg last. Wipe the pan out with paper towels between batches so the colors stay clean. Season each kind with a pinch of salt and a few drops of sesame oil.
Put the rice in deep bowls and arrange the vegetables around it in groups, color next to color. Place the egg in the middle. At the table the gochujang sauce goes on top, and you mix vigorously with a spoon until the rice turns red.
Dolsot bibimbap in a stone pot
Dolsot means stone pot. You serve bibimbap in it sizzling hot, and at the bottom the rice forms a golden brown crust, called nurungji in Korean. Brush the inside of the pot with 1 tsp sesame oil and preheat it on the stove over medium heat for 5 to 8 minutes. Fill it with the rice, put the toppings on top and leave the pot on the flame for 3 to 5 more minutes, until it crackles at the edge. For dolsot, use a raw egg yolk instead of a fried egg, which cooks in the hot rice as you mix.
You can buy granite stone pots at an Asian grocery store. Before first use, fill a new pot with water, put it on the stove and heat it slowly, or it will crack. Handle the hot pot only with oven mitts and set it on a wooden board. Without a stone pot, use a small cast-iron pan: add sesame oil, press the rice flat, fry for 5 minutes over medium heat and put the toppings on top. As you mix, loosen the crust from the bottom with the spoon.
Vegetarian bibimbap
For vegetarian bibimbap, replace the beef with 200 g firm tofu or 200 g shiitake. Cut the tofu into cubes, pat it dry and fry it crisp in sesame oil. Fry the shiitake in slices with a splash of soy sauce, and you will find tips under Preparing shiitake. For a vegan bowl, leave out the egg.
Common mistakes
- Rice seasoned with vinegar: Vinegar belongs in sushi rice. In bibimbap the rice stays neutral, and the seasoning comes from gochujang and sesame oil.
- Vegetables fried together: Everything in one pan makes a brown mush where everything tastes the same. Fry the kinds one after another.
- Cold rice: The toppings can be lukewarm. The rice needs warmth so the sauce and egg yolk spread as you mix.
Put a bowl of kimchi and a clear soup on the table with it.
