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Home » Recipe Index » Meat and Poultry » Korean Ground Beef

Korean Ground Beef

Published: Feb 27, 2019 · Modified: Oct 24, 2019 by Lalaine Manalo · This post may contain affiliate links

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top view of Korean ground beef rice bowl with green onions and sesame seeds

Korean Ground Beef has all the flavors of your favorite Korean BBQ but made budget-friendly with ground beef. It's delicious served over rice or wrapped in lettuce leaves.

Korean Ground Beef on a bed of steamed rice garnished with green onions and sesame seeds in white serving bowl
Korean Ground Beef

Korean BBQ beef is one of our favorite dishes to prepare at home, but when we want an easier, quicker, and cheaper alternative, Korean ground beef is the way to go. Made with ground beef and a simple four-ingredient sauce, it delivers the sweet and savory flavors we love in half the cost and half the time.

It's so yummy, G and I literally lick our rice bowls clean!

top view of Korean ground beef rice bowl with green onions and sesame seeds

Not only is this Korean beef dish an economical one-pan dinner, but it's versatile, too! You can enjoy it piled high over white steamed rice for a convenient one-bowl meal, and it's just as delicious wrapped in crisp lettuce leaves for a low carb option.

The seasoned meat can also be used to fill egg rolls and wontons or tacos and quesadillas for a unique fusion of east and west flavors. You can quickly turn it into a complete dinner by tossing in shredded carrots, fresh spinach, diced zucchini or chopped cabbage.

brown sugar, soy sauce, garlic, ginger, dried chili pepper flakes, green onions, and sesame oil on a wooden board

The recipe serves four, but you can easily double (or triple!) as needed. It makes great leftovers and is perfect for packed lunches to work (or school).

I usually cook a large batch and portion it out with a serving of steamed rice in Tupperware containers so on the days I am too lazy to cook (which is often), I thaw my make-ahead meals in the fridge for a couple of hours and heat them in the microwave for a few minutes until piping hot. It's a hack that has saved me the stress of figuring out what's for dinner and the high cost of eating out.

ground beef in a blue bowl with

Tips on How to Make Korean Ground Beef

  • Finely mince the ginger or better yet, grate it, extract the juice and stir the juice into the marinade. This way, you get all the flavor without having small bits to bite into. I prefer the taste of fresh ginger, but you can sub with ¼ teaspoon of ground ginger if you don't have any fresh on hand. Just stir the ground ginger powder with the soy sauce marinade, so it gets evenly distributed.
  • Half a teaspoon of red pepper flakes was just the right amount of spice for us, but you can always adjust accordingly to fit personal tastes or omit altogether to make the dish more kid-friendly.
  • If you 're adding vegetables, make sure to cut them into bite-size pieces, so they cook in tandem with the ground beef. Lightly brown the meat, add the sauce and give the beef a good few minutes to cook up and absorb the liquid. When the ground beef is about done, and most of the sauce is reduced, toss in the veggies and allow to cook for another minute or two until they're tender-crisp.

Korean ground beef and rice bowl

That's it, folks! Enjoy and please don't forget to leave a comment and rate the recipe in the comment form below to let me know what you think. I love hearing from you.

For more Asian recipes, you might want to try my Salt and Pepper pork chops. This copycat tastes just as good, if not better than at your favorite Chinese restaurant!

top view of Korean ground beef rice bowl with green onions and sesame seeds
Print Recipe Leave a Comment
4.27 from 42 votes

Korean Ground Beef

Korean Ground Beef has all the flavors of your favorite Korean BBQ but made budget-friendly with ground beef. It's delicious served over rice or wrapped in lettuce leaves!
Prep Time5 mins
Cook Time15 mins
Total Time20 mins
Course: Main Entree
Cuisine: Asian
Servings: 4
Calories: 304kcal
Author: Lalaine Manalo

Ingredients

  • 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
  • 2 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
  • 1 thumb size ginger, peeled and finely minced
  • 1 pound ground beef
  • ¼ cup low-sodium soy sauce
  • 3 tablespoons brown sugar
  • 1 tablespoon sesame oil
  • ½ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
  • ¼ cup green onions, chopped
  • sesame seeds, toasted
US Customary - Metric

Instructions

  • In a wide pan over medium heat, heat vegetable oil. Add garlic and ginger and cook until aromatic. 
  • Add ground beef and cook, breaking apart with the back of a spoon, for about 3 to 5 minutes or until lightly browned. Drain excess fat.
  • In a bowl, combine soy sauce, sugar, sesame oil, and red pepper flakes. Stir until sugar is dissolved. Add to the pan.
  • Continue to simmer until beef is cooked through. 
  • Add green onions and cook, stirring to distribute, for about 1 minute. 
  • Serve over steamed rice and garnish with green onions and toasted sesame seeds. Serve hot.

Video

Nutrition

Calories: 304kcal | Carbohydrates: 11g | Protein: 23g | Fat: 17g | Saturated Fat: 5g | Cholesterol: 73mg | Sodium: 647mg | Potassium: 421mg | Sugar: 9g | Vitamin A: 250IU | Vitamin C: 1.7mg | Calcium: 30mg | Iron: 3.1mg
Tried this recipe? I'd love to see what you made!mention @Kawalingpinoy and hashtag your photo with #kawalingpinoy

 

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Lalaine from Kawaling Pinoy

Hello! My name is Lalaine and welcome to Kawaling Pinoy where you’ll find Filipino and Asian-inspired recipes, cooking tips, and how-to videos. Read more...

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Comments

  1. tine says

    October 05, 2019 at 10:26 pm

    5 stars
    hi ma'am lalaine,
    do i have to wash the ground beef prior to cooking? i do usually buy ground beef from seafood city or walmart. thank you and hoping for your reply.

    Reply
    • Lalaine Manalo says

      October 07, 2019 at 10:12 am

      I don't wash ground beef 🙂

      Reply
  2. Ma. Jessica says

    July 08, 2019 at 7:13 pm

    5 stars
    Love your site, it's very helpful for a young first time mom here!

    Reply
    • Lalaine Manalo says

      July 08, 2019 at 7:26 pm

      Thank you! Glad to have you here with us!

      Reply
  3. Noah says

    May 22, 2019 at 3:24 pm

    Eating this right now! It's really good, sweet and a little spicy. Was looking for something quick to do with a pound of beef and what I had around the house, so I didn't have the green onions, but I can imagine it would only be better with them. Thanks for sharing!

    Reply
    • Lalaine Manalo says

      July 22, 2019 at 3:32 am

      You're welcome Noah. Glad you liked it!

      Reply
  4. Chanel says

    May 06, 2019 at 7:15 pm

    This was so good. Very easy to make. Thank you!!!

    Reply
    • Lalaine Manalo says

      July 20, 2019 at 3:53 am

      You're welcome, Chanel! We all need those recipes that don't take hours to make on certain days!

      Reply
  5. Molly says

    March 13, 2018 at 11:22 am

    Delicious! Will definitely make this again. I had everything but ginger on hand. Googled and found I could use Allspice as substitute. Turned out good and I can't wait to try it again with Ginger!!! I also left out green onions due to allergies.

    I'm looking forward to eating the leftovers today!!

    Thank you for sharing this recipe!

    Reply
    • Lalaine says

      February 27, 2019 at 12:05 am

      Thanks for the feedback, Molly. I am glad you enjoyed the recipe. And yes, this dish definitely make great leftovers 🙂

      Reply
  6. Twobacas says

    October 27, 2017 at 6:37 pm

    What does your comment waiting moderation mean??

    Reply
    • Lalaine says

      February 27, 2019 at 12:05 am

      The comment is on hold until I approve it 🙂

      Reply
  7. Twobacas says

    October 18, 2017 at 7:40 pm

    Very good. another keeper. I added some Yoshida Sauce to top it off.
    We had it with Green Leaf Lettuce and ssamjang sauce.
    Thank You...........Can't wait to try your Pork or Pork Belly Adobo.

    Reply
    • Lalaine says

      February 27, 2019 at 12:08 am

      I am glad you liked the recipe. I had to Google Yoshida sauce as I've never heard of it before. Will order it online as I'd like to try it 🙂

      Reply
  8. Isabel says

    May 03, 2017 at 2:15 pm

    This looks great! I have all the ingredients listed so I'll be making this for dinner tonight! Thanks for sharing.

    Reply
    • Lalaine says

      May 04, 2017 at 9:09 pm

      Let me know how it turns out. 🙂

      Reply
      • Isabel says

        May 05, 2017 at 3:48 pm

        It turned out so well that my brother asked me to make it again, except a triple recipe this time so he can pack if for lunch and have it for the next few days!

        Reply
        • Lalaine says

          February 27, 2019 at 12:08 am

          Lucky him to have a sister who cooks 🙂

          Reply
  9. AKitchenGuide says

    April 28, 2017 at 11:09 pm

    5 stars
    Ahh, beef with rice. What else could be better in lunch! Thanks for your wonderful recipe 🙂

    Reply
    • Lalaine says

      April 30, 2017 at 11:38 pm

      Best combo ever! 🙂

      Reply
  10. Mattie says

    April 24, 2017 at 11:14 pm

    5 stars
    Wow this is a Happy tummy recipe .This recipes is now a family favorite! We’ve made this many times.We usually add whatever fresh veggies we have that add some extra test 😀 Yummmyyyyyyy

    Reply
    • Lalaine says

      April 27, 2017 at 1:24 am

      🙂

      Reply
  11. Celeste says

    April 23, 2017 at 1:12 pm

    There's no measurement for water in the list of ingredients.

    Reply
    • Lalaine says

      April 27, 2017 at 1:29 am

      Hello Celeste,

      No water in the recipe, I don't know what I was thinking why I included water on the instructions. I corrected the recipe, thank you so much for letting me know.

      Reply

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