Favorite Eats: Bee Bim Bop recipe + a fun book

A long time ago, in a galaxy far away…

 

Nevermind, it was just a long time ago, across the country, when I was doing a 365 photo challenge, and also blogged lots of recipes. This was, oh, 6 years ago? Anyway, it was a long time ago. Back to the point, I used to post on my old blog about the recipes I was trying, and it was so fun! Also, I just love food photography and lately am trying to improve on my own food photography, just for fun and giggles. All I’m trying to say is, “I used to share recipes and thought it was fun, and now I’m trying to take better food photos, so here I am doing both again and you get to tag along for the ride and hopefully enjoy a few new recipes along the way.”

(So sorry, Ms. McD, for that awful run-on sentence. I know this would have earned me a “D” and rewrite back in high school.)

First recipe: a family favorite, Bee Bim Bop.

It’s a Korean dish, and is so yummy and fun to make. Your kids will hopefully also love it. It’s very customizable, so if you don’t like one thing, don’t eat it and have more of another! My kids often only eat the meat and rice, sometimes they add an egg, sometimes they get crazy and even eat the spinach. Shocking, I know. Everyone’s favorite side is sea weed. Even the baby shoves it by fistfuls into his mouth.

Now, if you’re going for a really fun and well-rounded experience here, go to your library before you make this dish and look for the children’s picture book called, “Bee Bim Bop.”

It’s delightful. When we lived in New York, we stumbled across this book in our local library, and it’s a definite gem. I was excited to find it because Bee bim bop is a Korean dish and my mother-in-law is Korean (as in, she grew up there!). It’s fun to have a story and connection to her culture that my kids can enjoy. Also, it has a great recipe for Bee bim bop at the end! Don’t worry if you can’t find it, I am going to give you a recipe for it in just a bit.

My mother-in-law has been making the meat part of this dish for us since before we were married. It’s called bulgogi, and refers to beef. Basically, it is marinated strips of beef which are cooked in a skillet. So yummy. Bee bim bop is “mix mix rice” and is a dish with rice, meat, veggies, and sometimes an egg. You put it all in your bowl, mix it up, and eat! Delicious. You really should try it. It’s not scary at all and you don’t even have to go to a unique store to find ingredients. Your local grocery store will have it all, and if it doesn’t, you might live in a very small town that has no soy sauce, and if that is the case, I’m sorry. But Amazon can sell you soy sauce, so never fear!

And now for the recipe! Introducing, BEE BIM BOP!!! (besides, what kid won’t have fun saying “bee bim bop”? It’s a great name!)

 For the meat (bulgogi)

1lb flank steak, or any tender cut you like. Slice it thinly.

2-3 cloves garlic, minced
1-2 green onions, if you like them
5 T soy sauce
2 T sugar OR chopped apple or Asian apple pear
1 T sesame oil
1 T cooking oil (I use coconut, because I believe it is healthiest! But use what you have on hand)
1 t ground ginger, or 1 T fresh, chopped ginger (fresh is best!)
1 t sesame seeds (optional)
salt and pepper

Mix marinade ingredients together and mix with sliced raw steak. Let sit in fridge for an hour or up to overnight. Also, this freezes REALLY well, so make a double batch if you like.
When ready to cook, heat a large skillet over med-high to high heat. Add the meat and marinade, stirring occasionally until cooked through. Time will vary depending on how thinly you sliced your meat! Set aside.
Veggies and sides:

2-4 c cooked rice (cook as much as your family likes–we always eat a lot with bee bim bop)
2 carrots, peeled and grated
1-2 packages of frozen spinach, thawed
1 clove garlic, minced
4 eggs
oil for frying
kimchi, if you like it! We love having kimchi with bee bim bop.

Saute garlic in oil and add spinach until warmed. Season with salt and pepper if desired.
Fry eggs, or scramble them and slice into ribbons. Set aside.

To serve:
Add rice to bowls, then top with the bulgogi and veggies. Now for the fun: mix it up, stir like crazy! Enjoy your bee bim bop!