Bibimbap

I don't know if it's mere coincidence that I prepared this for lunch on the same day I started watching Jewel Bibimbap.  Just like the drama, the dish is something you will never get tired of because of its different components.  Steamed brown or white rice, topped with carrots, spinach, bean sprouts, shiitake mushrooms, fernbrake and ground beef- each one seasoned and cooked separately; the sauce is a mixture of savory, sweet, nutty and spicy so assemble these together and you have a symphony of all the wonderful flavors and textures  in a bowl.  I love to top it with fried egg and chopped green onions too.  Yum yum! 

Bibimbap

Ingredients:

steamed brown rice

ground beef-recipe follows

2 medium carrots, julienned

3 cups cooked bean sprouts, sautéed in a little sesame oil and seasoned with a little salt

2 bunches of spinach, sautéed in a little sesame oil and seasoned with a little salt

4 shiitake mushrooms, sliced thinly and sautéed in vegetable oil and seasoned with a little salt
a bunch of dried fernbrake, soaked in cold water to soften then sautéed in vegetable oil, garlic and seasoned with a little salt

eggs, cooked over easy

2 tbsp sesame seeds

2 tbsp sesame oil

Ground Beef

Ingredients

2 lbs ground beef- I used 80% lean

1 small onion, chopped

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 tbsp grated fresh ginger

1 tsp kosher salt

1 tsp freshly cracked black pepper

2 tbsp hoisin sauce

1 cup water

2 tsp sesame oil

soy sauce to taste

Directions: 

Place ground beef in a skillet over medium high heat and let the fat render.

Add onion when it starts to brown and sauté

Add the garlic when onion becomes translucent

Add grated ginger, salt and pepper and keep sautéing

Add hoisin sauce and mix well

Add water and simmer occasionally stirring

Add sesame oil when it’s but moist

Remove from heat and transfer to a serving bowl

To serve:Arrange prepared vegetables nicely in a platter, fried eggs in another if serving and the gochuchang sauce and ground beef in separate bowls.

To assemble: Put cooked brown rice in a bowl. Arrange ground beef and veggies on top of rice separately so you can see each ingredient beautifully. Top with fried egg and sprinkle with sesame seeds or chopped green onions and drizzle with gochuchang sauce.  Mix everything together and add more sauce to taste. Bibimbap should be moist so it's important that the ground beef is not cooked dry and the veggies should still have some crunch in them and not overcooked,