In Korea, we love to grill marinated meat (beef, pork, or chicken). There are two main flavors for marinated meat. One is spicy, which uses mainly red pepper paste. The other one is sweet & salty which is similar to a BBQ flavor. That type uses mainly soy sauce, pear, honey, sugar, apple, kiwi, and etc. Many restaurants have indoor grills at each table so that customers can grill their own meat themselves and enjoy the fresh cooked flavor. Today, I will show you a very popular marinated meat dish called GalBi. It takes time to marinate the meat, but otherwise, it is very simple and easy to make. You can freeze some of the marinated meat to grill at a later time. Enjoy! π
Yield: 3 Servings
Short Korean Lesson
- So (μ) = Cow
- Mahl (λ§) = Horse
Video Instructions
Main Ingredients
- 2Β½ lb. Beef Ribs (10 Pieces)
- 1 Asian Pear (10 oz)
- Β½ Cup Onion
Sauce Ingredients
- Β½ Cup Soup Soy Sauce
- 2 Tbsp Cooking Wine
- 1Β½ Tbsp Minced Garlic
- 1 tsp Minced Ginger
- 1Β½ Tbsp Sugar
- 1Β½ Tbsp Honey
- 1 Tbsp Sesame Oil
- ΒΌ tsp Black Pepper
- 3 Tbsp Finely Chopped Green Onions
Directions
Soak 2Β½ lb of beef ribs in water for about 2 or 3 hours to get rid of the blood.
Change the water every hour when some of the blood leaches out. 2 or 3 hours later, rinse the ribs and drain the water.
Cut 1 Asian pear and Β½ cup of an onion.
Grind the pear and onion together in a blender.
Pour the pear and onion mixture on to the beef ribs.
Mix the sauce with the ribs and set them aside for an hour. This will help get rid of the strong meat flavor and make the meat sweet and tender.
In a bowl, combine Β½ cup of soy sauce, 2 Tbsp of cooking wine, 1Β½ Tbsp of minced garlic, 1 tsp of minced ginger, 1Β½ Tbsp of sugar, 1Β½ Tbsp Honey, 1 Tbsp of sesame oil, ΒΌ tsp of black pepper, and 3 Tbsp of finely chopped green onions. Mix everything until the sugar and honey dissolves.
1 hour later, pour the sauce mixture on the beef ribs and mix again.
Cover the ribs with plastic wrap and marinate them for a day in the refrigerator. Flip over all the ribs once or twice while it is marinating.
The next day, grill some of the marinated beef ribs with a little of the extra sauce on a heated pan or grill.
Cook them until the ribs are well done.
We enjoyed eating this GalBi. My husband had tried Beef GalBi once in very popular restaurant in GwangJu, Korea. He told me my GalBi tastes similar to the one from that restaurant. ASSA! π I hope you can enjoy this GalBi as much as we did. Thanks!
i could eat this everyday for the rest of my life! ahaha
Hi, james
haha.. everyday for the rest of your life ? hut ~~~ Try this recipe someday !!! I want to see more your Korean food pictures and videos.. hehe π thanks !!
I sure will enjoy this. Thank you! ^^
Hi, Sua
hehe… thank you !!!
by the way.. your real name is Sua ?? or it’s just nick name?? I think it’s unique and cute name !!!
Really??? You like it?? Hehe…yeah, Sua is my real name and thank you for the compliment. Aeri is a pretty name too!! ^_^
Hi, Sua
wow.. so that’s your real name.. very good !!! feel thanks you to your parents who gave you such a pretty name. π Have a great week !!
Once I visited KwangJu for business and the suppliers took me to traditional Korean restaurant there and it was very good..all the food was good…
Hi, Mario
Oh~~~ you’ve been Kwangju before. hehe cool ~~~~ Yes, espeically kwngju is known for a city that has lots of delicious food in Korea. thank you for sharing your experience with us. π
oh my goodness! this is sosososo GOOOD!!!!
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Hi, ChuiYew
haha~~~~~ yep.. it was good !!! thank you … have a sweet dream, sister ~~:D
!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
i love this dish! here in hawaii, we always grill this on a bbq at the beach. it smells so good! π
Hi, farleen
Oh~~ really ?? yep.. you can make your neighbor hungry with the delicious smell easily. hehe.. I love this too. π
Hi Aeri, nice to meet you! I found your blog when I was searching for Jae Yook Bokkum recipe. I loooove Galbi.. Galbi is definitely our favorite whenever we order from korean restaurants here. π Thanks for the recipe!
Hi, Ivana
Oh~ Nice to meet you too !!! Hehe, yep I and my husband love galbi, bulgogi also. hehe.. I’m happy you found my blog. thanks !! Hope to see you often.
I made this tonight, just now. But, um, I didn’t have honey so I used maple syrup and extra sugar. I hope it turns out fine, heheh, I can’t blame you if it’s not delicious coz I changed it >.<
Hi, james
wow ~~~ you made it. I really wonder how it turned out. Oh.. I question about maple syrup since it has own flavor in it. I hope it worked. I saw the picture on your bolg, they looked yummy. thanks !!
I’ve been looking for a good recipe for Beef Galbi, I think so far this is the best one I’ve come across can’t wait to try it…
Hi, jhny69
I hope the taste is as good as you think. I enjoyed eating it. hehe..
try it someday ~~~ π
and tell me your opinion or advice~~~
Tried this recipe today, the taste was good… But the ribs were tough maybe it was the kind of beef i bought… oh well I’ll give it another shot next time. Thanks! π
Hi, jhny69
Thanks for trying this recipe. π
I can see you are really into Korean food and cooking..hehe great !!!
Yes..it shouldn’t be that though. I hope next time you get better result. Thanks !! π
Well I love to cook just about any cuisine. I love to eat as well… hehehe
Hi, jhny69
haha.. love to eat as well..
I like that..and same with me… π
Thanks !!
hello aeri!
the same question as in youtube
is soju ok to use for the cooking wine?
have a great day!
thanks for ur help!=)
Hi, back2thegoodtimes
Good to see you here also.
I already answered your question in youtube..right ?? yep you can use so ju also. I hope you enjoy your galbi.
Thanks !!
Hi. I just found your site today and I love it! One question about this recipe–why is it filed under seafood? Is seafood ever used in Korean barbecue? If so, please post recipes when you get a chance! Thanks!
Hi, Dawn
Nice to meet you !!!
Oh.. actually.. I realized that I put it in the wrong category..It shouldn’t be in the seafood.. I thought I will fix it..and forgot.. oops.. sorry..and thank you remind of it. ^^ Korean barbecue in seafood ?? I will think of it.. π
I absolutely love galbi and your recipe looks really good. I was wondering about the ribs. Do you find them cut like that in the store or do you have to ask them to cut it for you? Thanks.
Hi, Jason
Yes.. please try this recipe someday. You will like it. Actually, it was a gift from my Korean friend. She got it at sam’s club..and it was already cut like this. Thanks π
p.s btw haha your name is same with my husband’s… =P
hi~! It looks so delicious!!^^
I am trying to make this food, but i couldn’t find cooking wine and pear juice..Is there any ingredient that i can use instead of them?
Hi, hae yeon
Oh~~~ both cooking wine and pear juice..especially pear juice is important ingredient for delicious galbi.. oh well… to make it work… hm… skip cooking wine… instead.. marinate a little longer .. (to make the beef tender…) instead of pear juice.. use apple or kiwi… thanks π
oh , i found cooking wine at the American grocery store! but there are many kinds of cooking wine, like white, red,,etc,,, i have no idea which one should i buy..do you know which one is similar to korean cooking wine? and i also found asian pear! can i blend pear instead of pear juice? oh, and i am going to make bul-go-gi instead of so-gal-bi..thank you for answering my question!!! π
Hi, hae yeon
Oops.. sorry but I’m not familiar with American ingredients yet… so can’t tell exactly what you should get.. What I can say is.. if they have any asian cooking wine… (clear liquid like mine..) that will be the safest to get.. like Chinese … Japanese.. (or.. at least I will say clear cooking wine not red wine..for American brand ) good that you found a asian pear… yep.. you can blend it.. actually that’s better for flavor.. π If you have any more question..please let me know ~~~
hi aeri, try to help you out on that…
there isn’t any western cooking wine closest to asian’s. h’ever, the closest to that will be sherry. still, it’s best to get asian cooking wine if you can ^_*
Hi, layping
hehe.. your answer was very helpful. Thank you ~~~ π I will ask you this kind of help more often later …hehe =P
hey guys i just want to recommend everyone to try this food. this is awesome everyone loved this.
we got the rib from korean market (in case…)
thanks aeri we love u all
Hi, rosie
hehe.. thanks for sharing us your experience. of course I’m very happy you liked it. π
My sis has sent me gochugang so I can make some of the food I loved when I visited her. Would you recommend it to use in kalbi & bolgogi?
Hi, mary
Oh~~` you have gochujang now.. assa .. kalbi or bulgogi use mostly soy sauce not gochu jang.. I will recommend you try my fried pork recipe or spicy chicken recipe. I will give you links for them. π
http://aeriskitchen.com/2008/12/spicy-fried-pork-μ μ‘-λ³Άμjeyuk-bokkeum/
http://aeriskitchen.com/2009/08/spicy-chicken-stew-with-vegetables-%EB%8B%AD%EB%8F%84%EB%A6%AC%ED%83%95dakdoritang/
Thanks !!! π
Hi Aerie π
i made this yesterday and it was so delicious! i was just wondering if you’ve ever tried ready made kalbi marinades like Sempio kalbi sauce and if they are good too. thanks for the great recipe
hi Micah,
Awesome.. you enjoyed it. hehe.. Yes, I’ve tried ready made kalbi marinades when I was in Korea.. it’s okay..but hard to beat homemade sauce… and homemade sauce is healthier too.. π thanks..
hi aeri,
im so glad that u have this site. im korean and i havent really had much homemade korean food since my mother and grandmother went away.
in the galbi recipe i was wondering if i leave the onion and korean pear on the meat or take it off before putting the sauce mixture over to marinate.
also i was wondering if u had a book for all your recipes. i do not mind buying one if there is.
thank you
rhonda
hi Rhonda,
Very happy to meet you!!!
The onion and pear can be kind of my secret tip for good flavor.. so I want to recommend you try it. Yes, we are working on my cookbook to publish.. If It’s done.. I will post it on my blog.. so please eye on it..hehe thanks π
Hi Aeri, to make this spicy, would I just add red pepper powder? Also, would the process be very different if I wanted to try to make bulgolgi instead?
hi Eleen,
To be honest with you, I don’t know how the taste will be like if you just add red pepper powder…since I didn’t have that experience. (maybe you can try it ..and let us know ?? hehe ) we have spicy version of galbi too… I will post it someday. I posted bulgogi recipe before… why don’t you check it out ?? here is a link for it.
http://aeriskitchen.com/2008/08/korean-bbq-bulgogi/
thanks π
Hi Aeri,
I was wondering if I could substitute the rib to beef shank, do you think that’d work? If I marinate the beef shank cubes overnight with the ingredients, would they be tender the next day when I cook them? Please give me your opinion.
I tried it using ribs last time and it’s so tasty! but ribs are pretty expensive here, so yeah im just wondering.
thank you and God bless you!
Hi Kelly,
Yes, I think that beef shank will work for this recipe too.. just make sure..the pieces are not too thick.. or it will not get enough flavor when you marinated it. π Yes… the marinating process helps make the meat tender. I hope you get success again. hehe thanks π God bless you too.
Hi Aeri,
I enjoyed your videos and recipes. Your Galbi recipe looks delicious, i hope that i can make it one day soon. i was wondering if you give the recipe for the spicy Galbi when you have time. Thanks!
Hi Sam,
Yep.. definitely try this recipe someday.. and Okay I will add your request in my list. thanks π
Aeri! It’s me again! ^_^
Can I use this delicious sauce to marinate Tofu and grill the tofu like Galbi?
I’m wondering if I can soak the asian pear/onion mixture on firm tofu… I’m thinking if I soak it overnight – maybe the tofu will soak in the sweet flavor! π
Aeri, do you have a picture of the cooking wine you use? I would like to find it at my local Korean grocery store!
Thank you so much! π LOVE YOUR RECIPES!!
hi Karen,
haha…. try it..and let me know how it turned out.. I’m very curious about the result too.. hehe
I added the link for cooking wine ..in the ingredients section of this post.. click that.. thanks π
Dear Aeri,
thank you and thank you very much for posting so many delicious korean food’s recipes. Just looking at your pictures make me so hungry π Thanks again!
Hi Lenny,
Reading your comment make me happy. thanks π
Hi Aeri,
Just tried this recipe with skirt steaks and it was amazing1 I was a little bit hesitant because of the kuk kanjang and the preliminary pear and onion marinade, but it was sooo ono! Thank you for posting this recipe. π
hi csyama,
hehe thanks for trying this recipe even you had some concern.. ^^ i’m happy you enjoyed it.
Dear Aeri,
will it matter if i use another kind of pear and not the asian pear? its very seasonal to get it here in florida. we have several other varieties of pear on hand. thanks! π
hi Christine,
I hesitate to say yes.. because.. I know other pear (like typical american pear ) taste and texture are very different from Asian pear..one time I used apple instead of pear for my bulgogi seasoning.. since that’s all I had.. and I thought apple can be similar enough to try..but it changed the flavor too much. You can try because you might like it actually..but it’s just my opinion.. ^^ thanks
Hi Aeri!
Thank you for the recipe. It was delicious! My boyfriend who is Korean loved it as well. He is excited to try out even more recipes from your website! π
hi Kim,
Wow..I’m excited to hear about that too.. hehe thanks π say hi to your Korean bf for me. π
This website makes me so hungry! π
Hi Aeri,
I donβt eat beef and just wondering whether I can use pork instead? And if I do, do I still use pear and onion to marinate?
Thank you very much
Hi Kai,
Sure, you can use pork instead of beef..just replace the meat and the do the same thing for the rest. Actually, in Korea.. beef (Korean beef not the imported ones) is ve~~~ry expensive.. so it was more common for Koreans eat pork instead of beef for this dish.
hi. i just came across your videos on you tube.i cant wait to start trying out these recipes. for the gaibi, what heat settings do i cook it on? you make it look sooo easy!!! THANKS.
hi michelle,
I will cook mine.. medium heat.. ^^ and once the meat is cooked… can increase the temperature to medium-high.. so you will get some nice golden brown outside.. ^^
Hello. I was wondering if we need to use the specific korean cooking wine and soysauce you posted? Can we use just normal store bought ones?
hi Jennie,
yes you can just use normal soy sauce … if you don’t have cooking wine.. just replace it to water.. it’s fine..^^
Hi Aeri, I have a question for you about one of the steps.
When I mixed the onion and pear together there was a lot of liquid. Should I our out the extra liquid or is it ok to have it mixed with the meat? I saw your pear/onion mix looked very thick and doesn’t have a lot of liquid in it so I wasn’t sure.
Also, when I buy the asian pear should it have a bit of give when I squeeze it or should it be very hard?
Thank you for your help!
hi Kendra,
no worry for the liquid..because when you cook the meat.. they will be gone.. usually asian pear has crunch… hard texture.. thanks
Aeri,
I made this tonight for my wife and she enjoyed it as much as I. Would also like to say you have a wonderful website. I look for many different recipes on a lot of sites, but yours by far is the best I’ve seen. You have excellent pictures of each dish, and the steps for prepping is easy for me to follow. Again thank you so much and I plan to make many more of your dishes for my wife.
Thank you so much for your website! I’m half korean and so many of these recipes remind me of my childhood. π
Can I use something else to substitute the soy sauce? My dad can’t eat soy sauce. =[
Oh..sorry but soy sauce is the main flavor for this.. so.. maybe not this recipe.. you can make something else for him? sorry..btw.. it is so sweet you try to cook something for your dad ^^
You can try Coconut Aminos or Braggs Liguid Aminos. It has a similar flavor. Sorta! lol
hello Aeri
i love to cook with your recipes as my husband loves their taste i have tryed other peoples recipes but he is very picky. i your style reminds him of the flavors he grew up with in mokpo
thanks i alway look foward to new recipes to try
Hi, I want to marinate then freeze this meat but after I freeze it how do i cook it? Should I defrost it overnight in the fridge or do I cook it while its still frozen? I’m new to cooking so I have no idea haha…
It will be better if you defrost them ..and then cook… or you can start to cook frozen from very low temperature..
I might try it one day. But then again, do you have to sereve this kimchi? β
Hi
There is no rule to serve kimchi. π It is up to you.
Hi! I went Seoul for the first time and got blown away by the amazing beef galbi. They were incredibly delicious! Thanks for sharing the recipe because I hope to relive korean cuisine at home π
Hi tricia,
That’s cool that you visited Korea before.. π Hope you had many good memories over there. Try this recipe someday. thanks
What can I serve this GalBi with rice, veggies or kimchi?
sure.. sounds like a great plan. Thanks π
If we dont have soup soy sauce can we substitute it with regular soy sauce?
hi nani,
Yes you can. thanks ^^
Hi!! Thank you for the recipe! I am from Spain and my boyfriend is Korean and this is one of his favorite foods!! I am making now the preparations to cook it tomorrow! I hope everything goes well and it tastes good~ Yours looks sooooo delicious!!! ;D
hi Rocio,
I wonder how your boyfriend liked your first Korean galbi.. ^^ Hope he liked it. Thanks
Hi Aeri,
Can I use pork instead of beef? Any if I use pork, do I need to marinate with pear and onion?
Looking forward to hearing from you.
Thank you so much
Kai,
If you try this recipe, let me know how it turned out. I hope you like it. hehe btw.. if you use Instagram or facebook.. you can hashtag me with your picture #aeriskitchen also. π thanks
Hi Aeri,
Will tag you on the ig if I do. So I still need to marinate the pear and onion with the pork still?
Looking forward to hearing from you.
Thank you so much
Hi Kai,
I’d love to see your pic for this on Instagram. About your question… yes onion and pear gives a good flavor to your meat and tenderize it.. so I recommend you to follow the recipe. Thanks
Thanks for the info about beef GalBi. I am looking for new foods to try. I’ll consider trying beef Galbi sometime.
Hi Max,
I hope you can try this someday. Thanks