I hung out with a girlfriend of mine the other day. We got our nails done, something which I rarely rarely do but glad I did, and then grabbed some dinner. She's in Saint Martin Island now, getting her tan on with a piña colada in her hand, lucky lucky her (no hating -- well maybe just a little).
When I got home, I greeted my fiancé with a hug.
He sniffed me and immediately asked, "Where did you go?"
"Hung out with Lisa", I replied.
He looked at me with a slight grin, "You had Korean barbecue".
I was so busted...
Of course, if I started to wear perfume, he would not notice, but the smell of juicy, grilled, marinated beef stuck on my winter coat... he could sniff that out like a bloodhound.
When I got home, I greeted my fiancé with a hug.
He sniffed me and immediately asked, "Where did you go?"
"Hung out with Lisa", I replied.
He looked at me with a slight grin, "You had Korean barbecue".
I was so busted...
Of course, if I started to wear perfume, he would not notice, but the smell of juicy, grilled, marinated beef stuck on my winter coat... he could sniff that out like a bloodhound.
I shouldn't feel guilty for having Korean barbecue without him, and I don't, but I will try to recreate the delicious Kalbi (Korean barbecued beef short ribs) dish that I had. 10% because I do feel a bit guilty, 20% because I want him to enjoy Kalbi as well, and 70% because Kalbi is just so darn good!
I heard from the waitress at the Korean restaurant that Kalbi needs to be marinated for hours. The chefs put the short ribs in a large pot, throw soy sauce, peaches or pear, lots of brown sugar, rice vinegar and some other secret ingredients and they let the beef marinate over night. I'm getting married in less than three months. Although short ribs are delicious, they are also quite fatty and the world does not give me enough excuses to justify dumping cups of sugar into my marinade. So I made some adjustments. Using sirloin steak rather than short ribs can help cut out some fat. I also swapped out a large chunk of the brown sugar with apple juice.
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I really like using sirloin steak when I cook at home. It's not an expensive piece so I don't feel bad if I destroy the steak (usually by over cooking it). Sirloin steak is a tougher piece of meat compared to cuts like filet mignon. Marinating a thick cut of sirloin steak overnight will really help tenderize it. Consider cutting a big piece of steak in pieces and marinading if you are tight on time.
When making the sauce for the steak, I encourage you all to add the garlic chili sauce towards the end and taste the sauce each time you add a little (maybe put half a tablespoon at a time). I like my food with a little kick. I can tolerate a little more spice than Eddie. He actually requested that I make two sauces next time (not going to happen).
Grilling the steak on a grill pan gives the steak a nice char but if you live in a New York City apartment like me, you can really smoke up the whole place. Make sure you open the windows before you start grilling or as an alternative, use your broiler.
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When serving, have green lettuce on the side. Take a piece of lettuce, put some sauce and a slice of sirloin on it, wrap it up and enjoy!
Marinated Sirloin Steak (Korean Style)
Ingredients:
Ingredients:
| Marinade: 2 pounds sirloin steak 1 1/2 cup apple juice 1/3 cup soy sauce 1 lemon, juiced 4 scallions, chopped 4 garlic cloves, minced 6 slices of ginger 1 tablespoon sesame oil Green lettuce as wrap when serving | Sauce: 1/2 tablespoon oil 1 shallot, sliced 4 cloves garlic, sliced 3 scallions, chopped 1/4 cup red miso 1-2 tablespoon chili garlic sauce (adjust to liking) 2 tablespoon mirin 2 tablespoon sesame oil 2 tablespoon sugar (or honey) |
Combine all the ingredients for the marinade in a bowl big enough to hold the marinade and the steak. Keep refrigerate overnight but no longer than 24 hours.
Take the steak out an hour before cooking and let it stand at room temperate. In the meantime, you can prep the sauce.
In a skillet, heat the oil. Add the sliced shallots and stir a few times until softened, about 2-3 minutes. Transfer the shallots to a blender.
Add the rest of the ingredients to the blender with the shallots and mix until all ingredients are incorporated. Transfer the sauce to a small serving bowl.
Preheat a grill pan. Before you put the steak on the grill pan, make sure there are no pieces of the marinade stuck on the steak. Grill the steak for 2-3 minutes on each side*. That would give you a piece of medium-rare steak.
Let the steak rest for about 10 minutes before slicing. Serve with green lettuce and a side of brown rice.
*Note: The amount of time you need to grill the steak for depends on how you like your steak cooked and how thick your steak is. My piece of sirloin steak was at least 1-inch thick. I cut the steak up into pieces so the marinade would soak in faster. I grilled each piece of steak for slightly under 2 minutes on each side for a total of 8 minutes. If you grill a whole steak that is 1-inch thick, grill the top and bottom side for 5-6 minutes for medium rare.
Take the steak out an hour before cooking and let it stand at room temperate. In the meantime, you can prep the sauce.
In a skillet, heat the oil. Add the sliced shallots and stir a few times until softened, about 2-3 minutes. Transfer the shallots to a blender.
Add the rest of the ingredients to the blender with the shallots and mix until all ingredients are incorporated. Transfer the sauce to a small serving bowl.
Preheat a grill pan. Before you put the steak on the grill pan, make sure there are no pieces of the marinade stuck on the steak. Grill the steak for 2-3 minutes on each side*. That would give you a piece of medium-rare steak.
Let the steak rest for about 10 minutes before slicing. Serve with green lettuce and a side of brown rice.
*Note: The amount of time you need to grill the steak for depends on how you like your steak cooked and how thick your steak is. My piece of sirloin steak was at least 1-inch thick. I cut the steak up into pieces so the marinade would soak in faster. I grilled each piece of steak for slightly under 2 minutes on each side for a total of 8 minutes. If you grill a whole steak that is 1-inch thick, grill the top and bottom side for 5-6 minutes for medium rare.
