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Home Gluten Free

Spicy Korean Pork Bulgogi Recipe & Video

gf
Posted:3/02/202234 Comments
Recipe Print

Spicy Pork Bulgogi (Dwaeji Bulgogi) is a classic Korean pork dish that’s perfectly seasoned with gochujang, garlic, ginger and sweet flavors that makes this dish simply irresistible.

Pork Bulgogi - Korean BBQ Dweji Bulgogi
Pork Bulgogi – Korean BBQ Dweji Bulgogi

What is Pork Bulgogi

Pork Bulgogi or Dwaeji Bulgogi 돼지불고기 is a spicy, savory, sweet, gingery and mouthwatering Korean pork dish. Sometimes it also goes by Jeyuk Bokkeum (제육 볶음) – especially when it’s made from pork belly. Because Jeyuk 제육 means pork belly. Pork is marinated in gochujang, ginger and other seasonings then typically grilled on charcoal or on a grill pan.

What does Pork Bulgogi taste like?

Typical Korean pork bulgogi is quite spicy that comes from the gochujang and chili pepper (gochukaru). It’s also a bit sweet with lots of ginger and garlic flavor. But there is a version that’s mild too.

The first time I tasted Dwaeji Bulgogi/Dwaeji Bulgogi (돼지 불고기) was at my friend’s house when I was in 4th or 5th grade and I thought it was absolutely delicious. But it was also very very spicy! My friend’s mom cooked it right at the table on an electric grill for a group of us. It was really yummy but so spicy hot that I thought my lips and mouth were on fire! And yet, I simply could not stop eating it…

The recipe here is the closest I could get to that taste except it is probably not as spicy – or maybe I am just better at eating spicy foods now. You are welcome to increase the amount of red chili powder or gochujang if you want to add more kick to it. I will leave that up to you.

What pork cut is best for Pork Bulgogi

Use pork collar butt, shoulder, ham cuts for pork bulgogi or you can also use pork belly for a richer taste. Check out my Know your Pork Cut post to learn more about Korean pork cuts.

Tips for cooking and serving Pork Bulgogi

  • Gochujang – this is a spicy Korean chili paste that’s fermented for many months. It is not just spicy but full of umami and a slight smoky flavor. I like to make my own gochujang at home (here’s my recipe) but you can pretty much buy it easily these days. Either online or at your local grocery store.
  • Use fresh ginger – ginger is a very important part of the marinade so please use freshly grated or chopped ginger.
  • Grilling & Pan-Frying – because the marinade is pretty thick and loaded with seasoning, one thing to note is that the marinade burns easily. Especially when you pan-fry, use a non-stick frying pan and wipe the burnt sauce in between batches. You do want to brown the meat but be careful not to burn it.
  • Storage –  freeze either cooked or uncooked pork bulgogi and reheat in a frying pan or in the microwave.
  • Additions – add sliced onions, carrots and/or mushrooms for added flavor and texture.
  • Garnish -Sprinkle some sesame seeds and sliced green onions on top before serving.
  • Serve pork bulgogi with some rice, fresh vegetable side dishes or with some ssam and ssamjang and you can have a really deliciously hearty, quick and easy meal!

Koreans love eating ginger and pork together

 You may notice that ginger is often used when Koreans cook pork. Ginger not only adds great flavor and gets rid of any “porky taste and smell” but is also known to neutralize the coldness of pork. In traditional Korean medicine, foods are divided into cold and warm foods. Pork is a cold food and ginger is a warm food. When used together ginger is said to help neutralize the coldness of the pork.

I also know from experience that having a freshly brewed ginger tea really helps to calm my stomach down when I have a bad stomachache. I’m sure you have also heard about drinking ginger tea to help heal the common cold.  I have also read that the Japanese serve ginger with sashimi to aid digestion and kill any bacteria that can be in the fish. There’s definitely something to ginger..

Korean BBQ Beef - Bulgogi (불고기)
Korean BBQ Beef – Bulgogi (불고기)

In case you want to try Beef Bulgogi, here it is! A non-spicy version that is my most popular recipe!! You will regret it if you don’t make this one. 😝

How to make Spicy Pork Bulgogi – Korean Dwaeji Bulgogi

Servings: 2-3 Cook Time: 25 min + marinating timeDifficulty: Easy

Ingredients

  • 1lb Thinly sliced pork butt/shoulder/leg
  • 2 Tbsp soy sauce
  • 2 Tbsp Korean red chili paste (Gochujang 고추장)
  • 2 Tbsp cooking rice wine or Korean mirim or Mirin
  • 3 Tbsp sugar
  • 1 Tbsp sesame oil
  • 1 Tbsp sesame seeds
  • 1 Tbsp chopped garlic
  • 1 Tbsp grated or chopped fresh ginger
  • 1 Tbsp chopped green onions
  • 1/4 tsp garlic powder
  • 1 tsp Korean red chili powder (Gochugaru 고추가루) + 1 tsp to taste
  • 1/4 tsp black pepper

Step-by-Step Directions

1. Traditionally, thinly sliced pieces from the neck, shoulder or hind leg (ham area) are used for pork bulgogi. The cut I bought from my local market is from the neck (collar butt) and it’s called moksal (목살) in Korean.

Pork Bulgogi Slices - Collar Butt
Pork Bulgogi Slices – Collar Butt
Pork Butt - Bulgogi Slices
Pork Butt – Bulgogi Slices

2. Make the marinade by mixing all of the ingredients above.

Pork Bulgogi marinade
Pork Bulgogi marinade

3. Mix the pork slices and the sauce together and marinate for at least 15 min. or more the better. You can let it marinate in the fridge for up to a day.

Pork Bulgogi marinated
Pork Bulgogi marinated

4. The best way to cook pork bulgogi is to BBQ it over a grill. But it’s not easy to just directly cook them over the conventional American BBQ grill because the pieces can fall through. Koreans usually use a grill that have smaller openings like the one below:

korean grill over charcoal
korean grill over charcoal

If using a standard American style grill, you can put a piece of tin foil and poke holes into it with a fork so some direct heat can come through. Like so..

tin foil with holes for Korean BBQ
tin foil with holes for Korean BBQ

You can also use grill baskets made for grilling vegetables or fish instead.

The other method is to buy a portable gas stove and a grill pan similar to shown here.

Portable gas stove and Korean grill pan
Portable gas stove and Korean grill pan

There are also other types of grill pans that have holes in them for the meat to get direct heat and these work great for bulgogi.

For everyday easy cooking, just heat a frying pan on medium high heat. The pan should be hot enough for the pork to sizzle as soon as it touches it. Cook the pork in the pan turning them over when it starts to brown. The pan should be really hot. Do not cook too much pork at once because that can lower the temperature. You want to cook the pork quickly and have a nice sear to them. If you end up with too much juice, the heat is probably not high enough or you added too much meat into the pan.

As a garnish, sprinkle some sesame seeds and sliced green onions. (optional)

Serve pork bulgogi with some rice, fresh vegetable side dishes or with some ssam and ssamjang and you can have a really deliciously hearty, quick and easy meal. It’s also a great dish to have with any jjigae or soup.

Pork Bulgogi Korean BBQ Recipe
Pork Bulgogi Korean BBQ Recipe
How to make Pork Bulgogi (Dweiji Bulgogi)
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5 from 10 votes

Spicy Pork Bulgogi

Spicy, savory, sweet, gingery pork bulgogi made with Korean gochujang sauce.
Prep: 15 minutes minutes
Cook: 10 minutes minutes
Total Time: 25 minutes minutes
serves: 2

Ingredients

  • 1 lb thinly sliced pork neck butt/leg/shoulder

Pork Bulgogi Marinade

  • 2 Tbsp soy sauce
  • 2 Tbsp Korean red pepper bean paste (고추장 gochujang)
  • 2 Tbsp cooking rice wine or mirin
  • 3 Tbsp sugar
  • 1 Tbsp sesame oil
  • 1 Tbsp sesame seeds
  • 1 Tbsp chopped garlic
  • 1 Tbsp grated or chopped fresh ginger
  • 1 Tbsp chopped green onions
  • 1/4 tsp garlic powder
  • 1 tsp Korean red chili powder (고추가루 gochukaroo) +1 tsp to taste
  • 1/4 tsp black pepper
US Customary – Metric
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Instructions

  • Thinly sliced pieces from the neck, shoulder or hind leg (ham area) are used for pork bulgogi. The cut I bought from my local market is from the neck (collar butt) and it’s called moksal (목살) in Korean.
    Pork Bulgogi Slices - Collar Butt
  • Make the marinade by mixing all of the ingredients above.
    Pork Bulgogi marinade
  • Mix the pork slices and the sauce together and marinate for at least 15 min. or more the better. You can marinate pork bulgogi in the fridge for up to a day.
    Pork Bulgogi marinated
  • The best way to cook pork bulgogi is to BBQ it over a grill. But it’s not easy to just directly cook them over the conventional American BBQ grill because the pieces can fall through. Koreans usually use a grill that have smaller openings.
    korean grill over charcoal
  • If using a standard American style grill, you can put a piece of tin foil and poke holes into it with a fork so some direct heat can come through.
    tin foil with holes for Korean BBQ

Tips & Notes:

As a garnish, sprinkle some sesame seeds and sliced green onions.
Serve pork bulgogi with some rice, fresh vegetable side dishes or with some ssam and ssamjang and you can have a really deliciously hearty, quick and easy meal.

Nutrition Information:

Calories: 524kcal (26%)| Carbohydrates: 35g (12%)| Protein: 46g (92%)| Fat: 22g (34%)| Saturated Fat: 5g (31%)| Cholesterol: 136mg (45%)| Sodium: 1305mg (57%)| Potassium: 910mg (26%)| Fiber: 1g (4%)| Sugar: 24g (27%)| Vitamin A: 360IU (7%)| Vitamin C: 4.5mg (5%)| Calcium: 83mg (8%)| Iron: 4.1mg (23%)
Author: JinJoo Lee
Course:Main Course, Pork
Cuisine:Korean
Keyword:bbq, beef marinade, classic, grill
KoreanCategory:Gui (구이)
Did You Make This?I love seeing what you’ve made! Tag me on Instagram at @Kimchimari or #kimchimari and don’t forget to leave a comment & rating below!

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34 Comments
  1. Kristina J. says

    Posted on 12 January 2024 at 1:06 am

    5 stars
    Was a bit too one note, think I’ll omit one tbsp of gochujang and it should do the trick 😀 Am going to try to make a spicy stew out of the meat I already made with potatoes, think that’ll taste awesome 🙂

    Reply
  2. Suzi Kim says

    Posted on 1 September 2023 at 2:08 pm

    5 stars
    So easy to make! And it reminds me of my mom’s! Making this and your Galbi recipe tomorrow night for guests!

    Reply
    • JinJoo says

      Posted on 2 September 2023 at 3:24 pm

      Aww I’m soo happy to hear that! That’s the best compliment ever. Thank you so much.

      Reply
  3. Ceecee says

    Posted on 2 April 2023 at 9:12 pm

    Hello,

    Is this similar to the spicy pork with gochujang from Itaewon Class?Thank you so much.

    Reply
    • JinJoo says

      Posted on 2 April 2023 at 10:53 pm

      Yes! Hope you enjoy it!

      Reply
  4. Hana says

    Posted on 25 January 2023 at 5:28 pm

    Hey! Just an FYI! – Your pinterest links are broken!

    Reply
    • JinJoo says

      Posted on 28 January 2023 at 1:43 pm

      Hi Hana – wow really? I checked a few pins and they seem to work ok for me. If you can send me the particular pin that’s not working, I would so appreciate it! Thank you!

      Reply
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Nutritional facts, MSG & gluten free

Nutritional Facts in my recipe cards are provided PER SERVING and it’s an estimate and may not be accurate. Due to different brands of ingredients having different nutritional values, the values I provide here may be different from your preparation.

– Gluten-Free recipe assumes you are using gluten-free soy sauce (since many soy sauces contain gluten or wheat) and/or gluten-free gochujang.

– MSG & Corn Syrup FREE – these are never used in my recipes

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