Korean Ground Beef Bowl (Printable Version)

Seasoned beef with tangy pickled vegetables over rice for a quick, satisfying meal.

# What You'll Need:

→ Beef

01 - 1 lb lean ground beef
02 - 2 tablespoons soy sauce or tamari for gluten-free
03 - 1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil
04 - 1 tablespoon brown sugar
05 - 2 teaspoons freshly grated ginger
06 - 3 cloves garlic, minced
07 - 1 teaspoon gochujang or sriracha, optional
08 - 2 green onions, thinly sliced
09 - 1 tablespoon sesame seeds

→ Rice Base

10 - 4 cups cooked jasmine rice or cauliflower rice

→ Quick Pickled Vegetables

11 - 1 cup carrot, julienned
12 - 1 cup cucumber, thinly sliced
13 - 1/2 cup radish, thinly sliced
14 - 1/2 cup rice vinegar
15 - 1 tablespoon sugar
16 - 1/2 teaspoon salt

→ Garnish

17 - Additional green onions, sliced
18 - Extra sesame seeds

# Directions:

01 - In a bowl, combine rice vinegar, sugar, and salt, stirring until dissolved. Add carrot, cucumber, and radish, tossing to coat evenly. Let sit for at least 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.
02 - Cook jasmine rice or cauliflower rice according to package instructions. Keep warm until ready to serve.
03 - Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add ground beef, breaking it up with a spoon while cooking until browned and cooked through, approximately 5-7 minutes. Drain excess fat if necessary.
04 - Add soy sauce, sesame oil, brown sugar, ginger, garlic, and gochujang if using to the browned beef. Stir well and cook for 2-3 minutes until fragrant and sauce develops.
05 - Remove from heat and stir in sliced green onions and sesame seeds until evenly distributed.
06 - Divide cooked rice among serving bowls. Top each portion with seasoned ground beef and a generous handful of pickled vegetables.
07 - Garnish each bowl with additional green onions and sesame seeds. Serve immediately while rice is warm.

# Expert Advice:

01 -
  • It comes together in 35 minutes, so you can have something restaurant-quality on the table before you've even fully settled into your evening.
  • The contrast between warm seasoned beef and cool pickled vegetables creates this unexpected textural dance that keeps you coming back for another spoonful.
  • You can make it gluten-free, low-carb, or vegetarian without losing a single bit of its soul.
02 -
  • Don't skip letting the pickled vegetables sit for at least fifteen minutes—that brief rest is what transforms raw vegetables into something with real personality and purpose.
  • Toasted sesame oil is non-negotiable; regular sesame oil tastes thin and forgettable in comparison, so seek out the bottle that specifically says toasted.
03 -
  • Toast your sesame seeds in a dry skillet for two minutes before adding them—this amplifies their nuttiness and makes them taste like an intentional choice rather than an afterthought.
  • The soy sauce and gochujang are salty, so taste before adding extra salt to the pickle brine or to individual bowls.
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