On my recent trip to Hawaii, I experienced some delicious food that I hadn’t had the pleasure of eating before. I looked forward to replicating them in my kitchen. Here is the first – Kalbi Beef.
Kalbi Beef is grilled and, because it is thin, cooks very quickly. It is a perfect weeknight meal! This could also make a great appetizer by taking kitchen shears and cutting apart the three boned sections after they have been cooked.
To begin, you will need about 2 1/2 pounds (more or less) of the thin-sliced beef short ribs, also referred to as “Korean Ribs.”
Rinse them with cold water to remove any bone grit from the cutting process. Pat them dry with a paper towel and spread them out on a platter or baking dish.
Sprinkle a cup of brown sugar all over the ribs and let it sit while you prepare the marinade.
Eventually, you are going to finish this marinade in a blender. If you want to combine these all in there to begin with, that is perfectly acceptable. I prepared most of it in the bowl just because it was easier for you to see.
You will combine a cup soy sauce and a half cup of water.
Add a quarter cup of mirin sauce – you can find it in the Asian section of the grocery store.
Add 2 tablespoons of sesame oil.
And a half a teaspoon of fresh-ground black pepper
Set that aside for the moment.
Chop up 8 cloves of garlic. You don’t have to mince these too fine as they will be going in the blender.
Dice up about a quarter of a red onion. They tend to be rather big and you don’t need that much.
Next, you want an Asian pear – if you can’t find Asian pears, just use what you can find. Remove the stem and core and cut it into half inch or so pieces.
Put everything (except the ribs of course) into a blender and buzz it until the solids are a pulpy consistency.
Place your ribs into a gallon sized zip-lock bag.
Pour in your marinade, press out as much air as you can and close the bag. Place it in a dish (in case of leaks) and set it in your fridge overnight.
The next day, grill your ribs over medium-high heat to the doneness you prefer…about 3-4 minutes per side. This will also depend on how thick your ribs are cut. Thinner will take less time, of course.
Top with some sliced scallions.
Enjoy!
I love trying new foods. Have you tried anything new lately?
