Galbi

Posted by spots (Singapore, Singapore) on 26 September 2006 in Food & Cuisine and Portfolio.

I'm so happy that I met Jen. She's this friendly Korean lady who lives nearby and we got to talking yesterday about Korean food. The one dish that I've been trying to get right recently is galbi, Korean beef short ribs. I had already made this dish twice since I got to Palo Alto - using different recipes and different cooking techniques, but I wasn't fully satisfied with either of the finished products. So when Jen shared with me her simple home-style recipe, I was excited! This afternoon, I dragged my son across the Bay Area to Sunnyvale (a 1/2 hour drive away) to buy beef short ribs at a Korean supermarket. And this evening, I made delicious galbi! Absolutely yummy, juicier that my first two versions, and with just the right proportion of seasonings. Here it is - galbi, Jen style!

Galbi

2kg (or thereabouts) of beef short ribs - about 8 ribs *

1 cup soya sauce

1 cup water

1/2 cup sugar

1tb sesame oil

1tb minced garlic

1 spanish onion, slices

3tb roasted sesame seeds

* Compared to the ribs solds in American supermarkets, the ones sold in the Korean supermarket were meatier and had much more fat on them. This might explain why 8 ribs weighed in at 2kg! By the way, the ribs at the Korean supermarket were also much much much cheaper than the American supermarkets!

1. Mix the sugar, water, soya sauce, and sesame oil together. To allow the marinade to soak into the ribs, put ribs into a large ziplock bag and pour all the marinade in. Seal the bag and shake the bag moving the ribs around so that the marinade is evenly spread out. Refrigerate for at least an hour, preferably overnight.

2. Fire up oven to 200 degrees C on grilling/broiling function. Cover a baking tray with foil and spread the garlic and onion slices on the tray. Lay out the ribs, meaty side facing down, on top of the garlic and onion slices. Grill by placing tray on the rack closest to the top for 10 minutes. Then, flip the ribs so that meaty side faces up. Take this opportunity to spoon the remaining marinade over the ribs and sprinkle the sesame seeds on top. Grill for 12 to 15 minutes, or until the meat is cooked thoroughly. **

3. Serve up with steaming hot rice. Use the gravy created at the bottom of tray as lovely gravy. The onions and garlic should be nice & fragrant and soft, a lovely complement to your ribs. Don't forget to cook a dish of veggies to even out the proteins and carbs! Enjoy your lovely Korean meal!!

** All times given are approximate as it really depends on the thickness of the meat. The ribs I had were really thick - about 8 to 10 cm thick if you can believe it! This were no sissy ribs man! The thinner your ribs, the shorter the grilling time. Just designate one of the ribs as your "test" rib and keep poking at it or slicing it to check for doneness!