Like so many others I am in love with Bibimbap. It really is the perfect meal. When heating a stone bowl directly on the stove top the rice on the bottom of the bowl gets crunchy and is utterly delectable. Along with the colorful vegetables layered over the rice and savory Korean style patties this is beautiful dish. And any meal with a fried egg is at the top of my list.
I had never eaten Bibimbap until a few months ago when I had lunch with a friend at a local restaurant here on Maui. We decided to share the Bibimbap and a lemon grass chicken sandwich. The sandwich was tasty, but the Bibimbap was a revelation! Once that stunning Bibimbap arrived at our table I think we both secretly wished we didn’t have to share it. I did not realize the rice on the bottom of the stone pot would be crispy. It really made the dish stand out. It was a real dilemma when we had to split the fried egg! We vowed that if we ever shared a serving of Bibimbap again, we would order it with two fried eggs. So as you can see above, I had to have my own Dolsot stone bowls so that I could make Bibimbap at home.
Colorful vegetables are quickly cooked and seasoned.
These marinated bean sprouts are delicious.
Heat your stone bowl on the stove top, add a bit of oil, swirl and add some rice. You’ll hear the rice sizzle as it hits the bowl. Pat the rice gently against the heated bowl. Let it go for a while then add more rice and your prepared vegetables and meat or tofu to warm up.
Lastly, fry an egg sunny side up and place on top of your heated Bibimbap. Serve with kimchi on the side. Most recipes call for gochuchang sauce but I love Sriracha so I used it instead.
The crunchy rice is addicting!
Bibimbap with Korean Style Hamburger Patties
Serves two as a side dish or one hungry appetite
Ingredients
1 cup uncooked short grain white rice
Bean Sprouts
1 bag (10 ounces) bean sprouts – rinsed
1/2 teaspoon minced garlic
dash of salt
2 teaspoons soy sauce
1 teaspoon sesame oil
1/2 teaspoon Korean chili flakes (optional)
2 teaspoons roasted sesame seeds
Mushrooms
4 large shiitake mushrooms
1/2 teaspoon minced garlic
1/2 teaspoon sesame oil
1 teaspoon roasted sesame seeds
salt to taste
Zucchini
1/2 medium green zucchini
1/2 medium yellow zucchini
1/2 teaspoon roasted sesame seeds
salt to taste
Spinach
3 ounces fresh spinach
1 teaspoon soy sauce
1 teaspoon sesame oil
1 teaspoon roasted sesame seeds
Carrot
1/2 small carrot
1/2 teaspoon minced garlic
1/2 teaspoons sesame oil
Toppings
1 – 2 large eggs
Korean style hamburger patties (optional)
Preparation
Cook the rice and set aside until ready to use.
In a medium saucepan (3 qt. works well) bring 6 – 7 cups of water to a boil. Add rinsed bean sprouts and blanch for 3 minutes. Drain and run under cold water to stop the cooking. Place sprouts on paper towels or a kitchen towel and press out some of the water. In a medium bowl add bean sprouts, minced garlic, salt, soy sauce, sesame oil, Korean chili flakes if using and roasted sesame seeds. Stir to combine. The sprouts can be made earlier in the day and stored in the refrigerator.
Remove the stems and wipe the mushrooms clean. Slice into thin strips and sauté in a bit of canola oil until the mushrooms become soft. Add the garlic, sauté for another minute and remove from the stove top. Stir in sesame oil and sesame seeds and season with salt.
Julienne the zucchini into long, thin strips using only the outer, colorful portion. Heat a bit of canola oil in a small skillet and cook for just a minute to slightly soften the strips. Stir in sesame seeds and season with salt.
In a small skillet blanch the spinach for 1 minute until wilted. Squeeze out the excess water and stir in the soy sauce, sesame oil and sesame seeds.
Julienne the carrot into long, thin strips. Briefly sauté with garlic and sesame oil. Season with salt.
The first time I used the bowl I soaked it in room temperature water for 5 minutes then placed it on the stove on medium heat to warm up. I slowly adjusted the heat higher (between medium and medium high) and once hot added about 1 teaspoon of canola oil and coated the bottom and lower sides of the bowl. (Please follow the heating instructions that come with your specific stone bowl).
Add enough rice to the heated bowl to cover the bottom of the bowl. Press gently with a spatula. You should hear the rice sizzle on the hot bowl. Cook the rice for about 5 minutes and check to see if the rice is crunchy by lifting up a portion with a spoon. The rice should have a light golden toasted color to it. Once this happens, add more rice and top with vegetables and Korean style patties if using. Placing the vegetables in alternating colors makes for a gorgeous rice dish.
Fry your egg sunny side up. Place on top of the heated Bibimbap and serve with kimchi and Sriracha.
***There are so many variations of this dish. You don’t need to stick with specific vegetables or meat and can easily adjust the recipe to your liking. Make it vegetarian by using tofu instead of meat.
When are we coming over for the meal?
Aloha Lawrence ~ Very soon! The problem is I only have two dolsot stone bowls so you might have to share your bibimbap with a friend but I promise to fry an egg for each of you!
I am printing this recipe to make ASAP! 🙂 Beautiful food, mmmm.
Aloha Shanna ~ There are so many variations for this dish. Some use spinach but you could also use Swiss chard or kale. Whatever veggies you choose to use, it’s nice to have a bit of color in the dish so I always add carrots. Oh, and a fried egg! You can use tofu in place of meat. Hope you give it a try.
I will absolutely give it a try. I have already bookmarked the recipe! Thanks for the nice tips! Do you think that I need to purchase the stone bowl – or is there something I could use at home?
Hi Shanna ~ The stone bowl is wonderful and allows the rice to become crispy because it is placed directly on the stovetop. I’ve seen many bibimbap recipes that don’t use the stone bowl and serve the rice in a regular dish but to me, the crispy rice is one of the highlights of this recipe. You might try making this in a small cast iron pot or very small pan.
I agree – the crispy bottom of the rice is essential. This is going to sound crazy, but I have a Persian rice cooker that might do the trick. It is from Iran and makes the rice crispy on the bottom – LOVE that golden crust. I will give it a try and also look into the lovely stone bowls… Thanks, Kiyo!
I never heard of a Persian rice cooker before. I Googled it and wow! I might need to buy one. I checked out a blog called My Persian Kitchen and saw photos of the rice being made. Looks great. I want to make Tahdig! Maybe it could work for bibimbap?! I do like the stone bowls though, they go right on the stove burner and the rice and vegetables stay hot. Try your Persian rice cooker!
I love, love, LOVE making Tahdig to go along side a Khoresh. SO, SO, SO good – especially if it has brewed saffron. I am a sucker for a crispy rice bottom. These cookers are as hot as a stove – so I hope it works – but I am feeling that a nice stone bowl (set!) is necessary. I’ll let you know how the results of a Persian rice cooker turns out, of course. Thanks for your research and intelligent thoughts. Gosh, I love your blog. And I wish that I had unlimited space to hold all the culinary gadgets on the planet – *sigh*. Have a great night (Aloha from New Mexico!)
Kiyo, your bibimbap looks delicious & those stone bowls look amazing! I have never had bibimbap before & would love to try it. Can you recommend a restaurant on Maui that serves this wonderful dish? Mahalo!
Hi Sharon! Give Dazoo in Paia a try (on Baldwin Avenue). They make pretty good bibimbap. They only serve bibimbap at lunch time (not Sundays). I see some recipes and restaurants that don’t use a stone bowl which means no crispy rice, but that’s one of the best parts of the dish, along with the assortment of vegetables, and a fried egg. Let me know if you try the bibimbap at Dazoo, and if you like it. Aloha!