Homemade Bibimbap.

The bibimbap is certainly the most well-known Korean dish in Europe. Complete meal made of rice topped with cooked vegetables, mushrooms, meat, it is served with a thick spicy chili sauce called gochuchang and a raw egg yolk. The vegetables are arranged in a way that their colours compliment each other. Aesthetic, health benefits and taste are really important to Korean cuisine. Usually found toppings are beansprouts, carrots, courgettes, radish, mushrooms, seaweed (kim), fern brackens (gosari), mushrooms, ...

When you order a bibimbap at the restaurant, you usually choose between two options : the first one, "Bibimbap" is served in an earthenware or metal pot. The second one, "Dolsot Bibimbap" is served in a very hot stone pot.

That the one I prefer. The stone pot is heated directly onto the stove, making it piping hot. It is then coated lightly with sesame oil before the rice and all the other ingredients are placed in it. When the dish comes to your table, you just have to add the gochujang (depending your taste) and mix everything together with your spoon !
The best part is to wait a little before mixing so that the bottom layer of rice becomes golden brown and crispy!

Bibimbap is quite easy to make at home, though you will need a bit of time to prep all the pre-cooked vegetables.

For 4 bibimbaps :

-       3 cups of uncooked rice (short grain rice works better)

-       a bunch of spinach

-       2 handfuls of beansprouts

-       2 small courgettes

-       some mushrooms (shiitakes or king oyster mushrooms)

-       200g beef (it's better if you can chopped it yourself)

-       1 carrot

-       some garlic cloves

-       4 eggs

-       Soy sauce

-       Sesame oil

-       Gochujang (available in all asian groceries shops)

1.      Start by cooking the rice. I recommend to use a rice cooker : the rice is always perfect and you just have to rinse the grains before cooking and then let the magic happen.

2.      Wash the beansprouts. Put then in a saucepan and cover with water. Cook for 20 min. When they are cooked, strain and then mix with one crushed garlic clove and a little sesame oil. Keep aside on a plate.

3.      Boil quickly the spinach (1 min maximum). Strain and then squeeze them strongly. Mix with a pinch of salt, a teaspoon of soy sauce, one crushed garlic clove and a little sesame oil. Keep aside.

4.      Cut the courgettes in little sticks (julienne), add a pinch of salt and then quickly pan fry them. Keep aside. Do the same for the carrot.

5.      Slice thinly the mushrooms and cook then in a pan with a little vegetable oil. Season with a little soy sauce, a teaspoon of sugar and keep aside.

6.      In a hot pan, cook the meat with 4 garlic cloves (crushed), one tablespoon of soy sauce, half a tablespoon of sugar and some sesame oil.

Now is the time to compose your bibimbap. Start with the rice, then add the other ingredients and finish with the raw egg yolk in the middle.

Serve with a good tablespoon of gochujang, mix and enjoy! If you have some kimchi at home, now is the time to put it on the table!

You can leave out the beef or replace it with fish, tofu or left-overs chicken.

And if you want to impress your guests, invest in some stone pots !

Retrouvez la recette en français dans le numéro de Novembre du magazine Ici Londres !