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Slow Cooker Beef Bulgogi
4.4 from 156 votes

Slow Cooker Beef Bulgogi

Slow Cooker Beef Bulgogi features tender flank steak cooked slowly with sliced onions, scallions, carrots, garlic, and ginger in a flavorful sauce made from soy sauce, rice wine, sugar, honey, apple cider vinegar, grated pear, pepper, sesame oil, and seeds. The meat is seared before slow cooking and sliced thin against the grain before serving with the saucy vegetables, producing a rich, savory dish with a balanced sweet and tangy profile. This method offers a hands-off way to achieve tender, sliceable beef infused with classic Korean-inspired flavors.

Servings: 4
Course: Main Course, Others

Ingredients

  • 1.5 to 2 pounds flank steak or brisket
  • 1 onion sliced 1/2-inch thick, medium
  • 3 scallions cut into 2-inch lengths
  • 1 carrot sliced, large
  • 7 to 8 garlic roughly chopped, cloves
  • 1- inch ginger thinly sliced
Sauce
  • 6 tablespoons soy sauce
  • 3 tablespoons rice wine or mirin
  • 3 tablespoons sugar
  • 1 tablespoon honey
  • 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar or lemon juice
  • 1/2 pear or apple, grated (about 3 to 4 tablespoons, Korean
  • ⅛ teaspoon black pepper
  • 1 tablespoon sesame oil
  • 1 teaspoon sesame seeds

Instructions

    Cup of Yum
  1. Clean the meat, and trim off any excess fat. Generously sprinkle with salt and pepper. Heat a large pan until very hot. Add a tablespoon of canola or vegetable oil, and sear the meat, about 2 minutes on each side.
  2. Place the sliced onions at the bottom of the slow cooker, and place the meat on top. Add the remaining vegetables (save a few scallion pieces for garnish). Mix all the sauce ingredients, except the sesame seeds, and pour over the meat. You can prepare ahead of time, up to this point, and keep it in the fridge.
  3. Cover, and cook for about 3 to 4 hours on high or 5 to 6 hours on low. Flip over once midway through the process, if you’re home. Cook until the meat is tender but sliceable. Once cooked, remove the meat to a cutting board. Drop the reserved scallion pieces into the hot cooking liquid. Transfer the vegetables to a plate.
  4. Thinly slice the meat against the grain. Run the sauce through a strainer, and pour over the meat and vegetables to serve.

Notes

  • The sauce can be reduced by boiling if a thicker consistency is preferred, but it works well as is for a lighter flavor.
  • Leftover beef kept in the sauce will reheat quickly and stay moist, especially when reheated on the stovetop.