Korean Beef Bulgogi Tacos with Slaw and Pickled Cucumbers

• servings: 4 servings
• active time: 15 minutes
• total time: 25 minutes

Ingredients

1 lb ground beef

¼ cup white onion ( - chopped)

1 Tablespoon avocado oil

3 Tablespoons brown sugar ( - packed tightly)

2 Tablespoons low sodium soy sauce

1 Tablespoon dark soy sauce

1 Tablespoon sesame oil

2 cloves garlic ( - minced)

1 teaspoon ginger ( - grated)

½ Tablespoon Korean red pepper flakes ( - (optional for spice))

½ Tablespoon gochujang ( - (optional for spice))

2½ cups shredded red cabbage

1½ teaspoons rice wine vinegar

½ teaspoon sea salt

½ teaspoon sugar

1 large english cucumber ( - thinly sliced)

1 teaspoon sea salt

½ teaspoon sesame oil

corn tortillas

½ cup cilantro leaves

1 Tablespoon toasted white sesame seeds ( - for garnish)

2 stalks scallions ( - chopped for garnish)

1 lime ( - cut into wedges)

½ cup kimchi ( - (optional) chopped)

Directions

Make the pickled cucumbers

Salt the cucumbers

Add the thinly sliced cucumbers and sea salt in a medium sized bowl and toss it around. Let it sit for about 10 to 15 minutes or until the salt draws out some of the liquid from the cucumbers.

Dress the cucumbers

Gently squeeze the cucumbers to draw out more liquid and give it a taste. If it's too salty, rinse it under water and gently squeeze out the water. Add the sesame oil and gently toss it together. Set it aside.

Make the red cabbage slaw:

Mix the cabbage with dressing

In a large bowl, mix together the shredded red cabbage, rice wine vinegar, sea salt, and sugar. Let it sit until the cabbage starts to wilt and absorbs the dressing.

Make the beef filling:

Make the bulgogi sauce

Mix all the ingredients for the Korean beef sauce in a small bowl and set it aside.

Cook the Korean beef filling

Heat a pan on medium high heat and add the oil and ground beef. Break the beef apart into small pieces. When the beef is almost fully cooked, add the chopped onions and the sauce. Continue to cook for about 3 more minutes or until the beef is fully cooked and the onions have softened. Remove from the heat.

Assemble the tacos:

Serve the tacos

For serving, spoon the Korean beef bulgogi on top of the tortillas and add the red cabbage slaw and pickled cucumbers. Top with any of the following - kimchi, sesame seeds, scallions, and cilantro leaves. Serve with lime wedges.

Notes

Gochujang is a sweet and spicy Korean red pepper paste so if you plan to add more than 1 Tablespoon of gochujang, reduce the brown sugar by a third.

Other toppings for Korean tacos:

pickled radish

pickled carrots

pickled jalapenos

avocado

corn relish

Nutrition

• Calories: 440 kcal
• Total Fat: 30 g
• Saturated Fat: 10 g
• Cholesterol: 81 mg
• Sodium: 1237 mg
• Total Carbohydrate: 21 g
• Dietary Fiber: 2 g
• Total Sugars: 14 g
• Protein: 22 g