Daeji Bulgogi (Korean pork BBQ)

Before you start preparing the meat you need to cook your rice. I prefer a medium grain rice. Jasmine rice is also good for this. Rinse the rice a couple times till the water runs clear, then add water till it is almost twice as far up as the rice. We added some dried grains and beans to the rice before cooking this time. If you do, be sure to let them soak for a while before cooking. If you use a rice cooker it will take care of all your timing for you. If you cook it on the stove, bring the rice and water to a boil, cover and turn the heat down, and let cook for 30 minutes. Once the rice is done, turn the heat off and fluff with a rice spatula or large spoon.

I used a commercially prepared marinade because it tastes as good as you can make at home and is a lot easier than mixing it from scratch. It is available in oriental stores and in the oriental section of your local megamart. Be sure the marinade you buy has Korean pear and apple.

1 pork tenderloin or boneless center cut pork loin

Minced ginger and garlic (We put fresh garlic and ginger together in a food processor, then keep it in a jar in the refrigerator.)

Green onions cut into 1" lengths and split lenthwise

1 medium onion sliced lengthwise into strips

1 jar pork and chicken bulgogi marinade

Cut pork into thin slices across the grain. Your butcher may do this for you.

Add minced ginger and garlic.

Add green onions.

Cut onion lengthwise, then separate pieces.

Add onion to meat.

Shake jar of marinade to mix, then add to meat. And no, they're not kidding on the label when they say it's hot and spicy. After pouring marinade into the bowl with the meat, run a little water into the jar and cover tightly, then sha

ke jar and pour into the bowl with the meat. You don't want to waste any of this delicious liquid.

This is what it looks like before mixing.

There is no better way to mix this than to just get in there with your hand, breaking the onion ribs apart and making sure the marinade gets well mixed with the meat.

If you're going to take this with you camping, at this point put it into a freezer bag and freeze it. Then you can thaw it out at the campsi

te when you're ready to cook your pork bulgogi.

If you cook this on the stove, use a well seasoned cast iron skillet or griddle. Heat on high. You can also cook this on a grill, covering the grill with foil to keep it from falling through and to keep from losing the juices. In this case, I cooked it on the stove in a cast iron skillet.

Cook in batches so your skillet stays hot. Use one set of tongs to handle the raw meat and another set for turning the meat while cooking. Cook till pork is well done.

This is how it looks when it's done. The top bowl has the rice with grains and beans.

This is a serving suggestion. The yellow circles are tamogi, also called daikon. You can also add kimchi or any other side dishes you want.

My wife says I passed the test. She's a good teacher, and it has to be good to pass her test.