Korean Barbecue

Korean barbecue is refers to the Korean method of roasting beef, pork, chicken, or other types of meat. Such dishes ae oftern prepared at the diner’s table on gas or charcoal grills that are built into the table itself. Some Korean restaurants that do not have built-in grills provide portable stoves for dinners to use at their tables.

The most representative form of gogigui is bulgogi usually made from thinly sliced marinated beef sirloin or tenderloin. Another popular form of it is galbi made from marinated beef short ribs. However, gogigui also includes many other kinds of marinated and unmarinated meat dishes, and can be divided into several categories. Korean barbecue is not only popular among Koreans, but also has gained popularity internationally.

Marinated Gogigui

Bulgogi is the most popular of Korean barbecue. Before cooking, the meat is marinated with a mixture of soy sauce, sugar, sesame oil, garlic, and pepper. It is traditionally cooked using gridirons or perforated dome griddles that sit on braziers, but pan-cooking has become common, as well.

Galbi is made with beef short ribs, marinated in a sauce that may contain soy sauce, water, garlic, sugar, and sliced onions. It is believed to taste best when grilled with charcoal or soot

Jumulleok is short steak marinated with sesame oil , salt, and pepper. It is almost similar to unmarinated gogigui and one thing that distinguishes it from other kinds is its steak-like juicy texture. Spicy pork daeji bulgogi is also a popular gogigui ish and it is quite different from beef bulgogi because the marinade is not soy sauce-based, but instead consists of sauces based on gochujang and/or gochu garu (Korean chili powder).

Unmarinated gogigui

Chadolbegi is a dish made from thinly sliced beef brisket, which is not marinated. It is so thin, it cooks nearly instantly as soon as it is dropped onto a heated pan.

Samgyeopsal basically comprises thicker strips of unsalted pork belly. It has fatty areas and is tender. In Korea, samgyeopsal is eaten more frequently than chadolbegi due to the comparatively lower price of pork.

Also, loins (deungshim, 등심) and boneless ribs (갈비살) are a popular choice for an unmarinated type of gogigui.

Side dishes served with gogigui

Gogigui comes with various banchan (side dishes), among which, green onion salad called pajeori and a fresh vegetable dish including lettuce, cucumbers, and peppers invariably accompanies meat dishes at restaurants. A popular way of eating Korean barbecue is to wrap the meat with lettuce and add condiments such as – pajoeri (spicy scallion salad) and ssamjang (a spicy paste made of doenjang mixed with gochujang).