Hi All! It’s Friday…yay! Well not really bc i’m working tomorrow, BUT I’m heading up to Carmel on Sunday for a few days with the bf and the pooch and I’m so excited! We’re staying at a bed n’ breakfast that serves fresh cookies everyday (the part my bf is most excited about), which is super cute. We’re driving and not flying this time to take advantage of the scenic/ocean view route up PCH, which I’m only half excited about. Im sure the view will be great, but to me “road trips” usually mean lots of bathroom stops, unavoidable antsiness and constantly feeling like it’s stuffy. There is a definite upside to this long drive though…I’m making kimbap for the ride!
Kimbap is basically korean-style sushi rolls with really no fish involved. It’s pretty much a marinated beef, veg and rice roll with many many variations. This is just my favorite kind to make. I love love love kimbap…it’s a great Korean snack that can really be eaten as a meal because it’s so filling. If you don’t want to go through the hassle of marinating meats and seasoning spinach etc just head to your local Korean market bc they usually have that stuff pre-marinated/seasoned for you, making this already easy recipe that much faster to put together! If you’ve never had kimbap, I urge you to make this, it’s really quite a tasty little snack/meal and you can just pop the pieces into your mouth…OR you can be like me dad, not cut it into slices and eat the whole roll like a burrito…yea, my dad’s incredibly awesome like that :) Anyway, I hope everyone has a great weekend! Enjoy!
xx Jenny
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Kimbap
INGREDIENTS
Korean-style marinated beef ribeye
- ⅓ cup low sodium soy sauce
- ¼ cup Asian pear, peeled and freshly grated
- 2 tablespoons sugar
- 1 tablespoon sesame oil
- 2 teaspoons rice wine vinegar
- 1 teaspoon honey
- 1 teaspoon fresh ginger, grated
- 3 garlic cloves, roughly chopped
- 1 green onion, sliced
- 1 pound beef ribeye, thinly sliced
sigumchi namul (marinated spinach)
- 1 bunch spinach, cleaned
- 1 ½ tablespoons low sodium soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon rice wine vinegar
- 1 tablespoon sesame oil
- 1 tablespoon toasted sesame seeds
- ¼ teaspoon sugar
- 1 garlic clove, minced
- 1 green onion, thinly sliced
- pepper to taste
sushi rice
- 1 cup cooked white rice
- ¾ tablespoon rice wine vinegar
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- 2 eggs, lightly beaten
- 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
- ¼ yellow pickled radish, sliced into long, thin strips
- 4 sheets nori
INSTRUCTIONS
- For beef: place all marinade ingredients into a food processor and process until smooth. Pour marinade over sliced ribeye, in layers, and marinate for 12 to 24 hours. Grill meat in a grill pan, on high heat, with a small amount of nonstick cooking spray.
- Grill on each side for 3 minutes or until the meat has cooked through completely. Set aside.
- For spinach: fill a large pot with water and bring to a boil. Blanch spinach for 2 minutes, then drain and rinse under cold water. Squeeze excess water from spinach and roughly chop. Set aside. Place remaining spinach ingredients into a bowl and whisk together. Pour marinade over spinach and stir together to completely coat. Place in refrigerator until ready to use.
- For “omelet”: pour oil into a nonstick skillet and place over medium heat. Pour beaten eggs into skillet and cook like a crepe, about 3 minutes on each side. Remove from skillet and slice into long, thin strips. Set aside.
- For sushi rice: place rice, rice wine vinegar and sugar into a large bowl and gently fold together until fully combined. Set aside.
- To assemble: place a sheet of nori onto a sushi mat/roller and carefully spread 1/4 cup of the prepared rice onto a thin layer over the nori.
- Spread 4 ounces of beef atop the rice followed by ¼ of the spinach, 2 strips of daikon, and 2 strips of egg omelet.
- Carefully roll the kimbap as tightly as possible, without tearing the nori.
- Once the sushi has been rolled slice the roll into 10 to 12 even pieces, depending on desired thickness.
- Repeat with the remaining ingredients until all four rolls have been made and sliced.
- Serve accompanied with the remaining pieces of yellow pickled daikon.
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Yum! I’ll have to try the beef filling. I’m not Korean, but I have come to love kimbap. It’s fun to make! I also blogged about it: http://foodflavorfascination.wordpress.com/2012/10/19/black-beauty-kim-bap/
Bulgogi kimbap is one of my favorite kinds of kimbap! Nice work!
Ah! Hold on a second, upon a closer second reading I see the distinction. Sorry for the trouble!
This is a great tutorial with clear photos! I’m really excited to try it, especially after a friend of mine shared her mum’s kimbap with me, it spurred my craving. I had one question about your instructions, however: what do you mean by the “spinach ingredients”? I’m not sure where the division is between your beef marinade ingredients and the spinach [marinade]? Thanks for the clarification!
I was really glad to find your post. During a year in Korea, I came to love kimbap, among other foods. In January I finally tried my hand at making some. But I remembered seeing ladies mix something into the rice in Korea, and none of the recipes I found added anything to the rice. So when I wanted to make it again (today), I looked online again and found your post with the sugar and rice wine vinegar mixed into the rice. I substituted regular white vinegar and also added some salt.
Thanks for the recipe.
I think referring to them as Korean-style seaweed rolls might be better. Korean kimbap is prepared differently from Japanese sushi after all.
True, but it’s what my mom calls them, so I’m sticking to it!
These look great…love the photos!
yum! my mom used (and still does whenever i fly back to SF from visiting her) to make these for my lunch as a kid. love love love your posts on korean food!
This may be too late for you, but the cheese shop in Carmel is fantastic. Lots of samples of the best cheese! Hope you had a fun trip! and the Korean sushi looks great!
Thank you so much for making these and posting the recipe!!! I used to babysit for a Korean family who would make kimbap and it was so perfect and delicious, but I could never remember the name so whenever I tried to recreate it or buy/order it, I was always at a loss. Not anymore!! Thank you!! :)
I’ve always wanted to make my own sushi, now I’ve got something else to add to the list – this looks absolutely delicious and is completely new to me. Thanks for sharing!
These look delicious. I have not tried Korean Sushi. My sister in law is Korean and she makes the marinated Rib Eye. It is devine. I will have to try this.
I love Carmel. I lived there for 5 years and miss the area. The Farmers Market was heavenly. I now live in Colorado and miss the year round farmers markets.
super yummy! i always like bringing these on planes :)
looks great. that’s something i’ve never tried!
Jenny, I love these photos! What a great road trip snack. I’m driving down to Miami in a couple weeks. Maybe I’ll give this a go instead of the usual sandwiches. Have a great trip!
This is an amazing road trip snack! I know I always pack kimbap on road trips. Kimbap, and ddukboki!
thanks for the kimbap making tutorial. Making my own sushi rolls with a real roller, sushi rice, and the whole she-bang is on my bucket list of projects to tackle.
And have fun at the B & B that that serves fresh cookies, in Carmel no less. ENJOY!