- Country of origin
- 🇰🇷 South Korea
- Category
- Main Course
- Difficulty
- ●○○ Easy
- Preparation
- 40 min (incl. marinating)
- Cooking
- 10 min
- Servings
- 4 servings
History
Bulgogi (literally “fire meat” in Korean) is thought to trace back to neobiani, a grilled skewered meat dish served at the royal court during the Joseon dynasty, itself heir to older grilled-meat traditions going back to the kingdom of Goguryeo — a lineage generally accepted but hard to establish with certainty over such a long span.
The name “bulgogi,” describing thin marinated beef slices grilled to order, is thought to have become popular in the 20th century, and has since become one of the most recognized Korean dishes internationally, often the dish restaurants around the world choose as an introduction to Korean cuisine.
Ingredients — serves 4
- 1.3 lb (600g) beef (flank or sirloin), thinly sliced
- 1 grated Asian pear (or kiwi)
- 1 onion
- Soy sauce, sugar, sesame oil
- Garlic, ginger
- Scallions, sesame seeds
Bulgogi, step by step
- Slice the beef very thinly (a brief spell in the freezer beforehand makes this easier).
- Blend the grated pear with soy sauce, sugar, garlic, and ginger to make the marinade.
- Soak the beef in this marinade for at least 30 minutes.
- Slice the onion and scallions thinly.
- Grill or sear the marinated beef over high heat with the sliced onion for a few minutes.
- Sprinkle with sesame seeds and scallions before serving with rice.
Cooking method
Technique: a tenderizing pear marinade followed by a quick sear or grill over high heat, which lightly caramelizes the marinade’s sugars against the heat.
Traditional equipment: a Korean charcoal grill, or a domed skillet (butgae).
Signs it’s ready: the meat should stay tender and lightly caramelized on the surface, without drying out from overcooking.
Nutrition, per serving
Calculated from the raw ingredient quantities above, divided by four servings.
The marinade is where the carbohydrate comes from. With sirloin as the cut, bulgogi is comparatively lean for a beef dish; most of the 16 g of carbohydrate per serving comes from the grated pear and added sugar in the marinade rather than from the meat itself. A plain rice portion served alongside adds roughly 260 kcal and 58 g of carbs on top of these figures.
Economic context
At $6.68 per person per day, South Korea sits among the higher end of the countries covered in this atlas, reflecting its overall cost of living. Within that context, a beef dish like bulgogi is a step up from the vegetable- and fermented-side-heavy staples of daily Korean home cooking, without being reserved for special occasions the way some other beef dishes in this collection are.
Source: World Bank / FAO, Food Prices for Nutrition database (Cost and Affordability of a Healthy Diet) v4.0, 2024 data, CC BY 4.0, DOI 10.57966/41AN-KY81. Retrieved 29 July 2026. This figure describes the cost of a healthy diet in South Korea generally — it is not a costing of this specific recipe.
Who this dish suits
Fits well with
- High-protein eating patterns — 34 g per serving before rice
- Diets favoring leaner cuts of beef over fattier ones
- Meals built around a grilled protein plus rice
Worth knowing
- Soy sauce is the main source of sodium and typically contains wheat, a gluten source
- The marinade contributes measurable added sugar via the pear and added sugar
- Sesame oil and seeds add a small but real amount of fat, mostly unsaturated
- Traditionally served with rice, which roughly doubles the carbohydrate count
What about you?
Where do you think is the best place or restaurant to enjoy a great bulgogi?