In making galbi or kalbi as it is also known, the traditional cut of beef to use is thin sliced short ribs called kalbi cut, or Maui cut rubs or Korean cut ribs, depending on the butcher, in most cases regardless of what they are labeled, they are expensive cuts of beef and you can't eat the bone so it is really expensive when you eat it.
One day as I was traipsing through Costco I spied these boneless beef short ribs, and intrigued, I took them home and then wondered what do I do with them.
Remembering back to a recent meal of galbi that rocked everyone's socks at the taste, and mine at the cost, I thought that slicing them would offer up the same flavour and texture profile, at a reduced cost. So I set to slicing by first cutting them in half to make them easier to handle.
Next, I set a piece on its side and sliced them lengthwise to ensure the cut went across the grain.
I repeated the slicing getting 3-4 slices out of each piece.
After slicing all the pieces I began to construct the meal as per the recipe below.
The fact that there were no bones to pick around made them very enjoyable for all of us and nary a complaint was heard that evening, in fact, the crowd demanded I do them again real soon.
Beef Galbi (Kalbi)
3 lbs beef short rib, bone-in or boneless, slices should be no thicker than 1/4"
1 cup brown sugar, firmly packed
1 cup soy sauce
1/2 cup water
1/4 cup mirin
1 medium onion, peeled
1 medium apple, peeled and core removed
1 kiwi fruit peeled or use 1 tsp baking soda instead (for meat tenderizing)
4 cloves fresh garlic
1/4 cup sesame oil
1/2 tsp black pepper
Place onion, garlic, apple, and kiwi (if using) into a food processor and pulse until a fine mince or puree is reached.
Pour into a large stainless steel bowl.
Add the remaining ingredients to the bowl and stir well to incorporate.
Add sliced beef to the marinade.
Remove beef from marinade and let drain well.
Place marinated beef onto a hot grill and cook until browned, about 1-2 minutes per side.
Cook to medium-rare or medium.
Remove from grill and serve hot.
If you are serving this for an appie, slice thinly and serve warm with lettuce leaves to make a lettuce wrap.
This dish is fantastic, probably my favourite barbeque recipe and even the non-beef eater in the house likes them and that's saying a lot.
It is best if the meat is marinated for at least overnight up to 24 hours and drained very well before grilling.
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