Korean Steak Sandwich: Bulgogi Beef in a Toasted Bun

⏱ Marinate: 30 min, 2 hrs 🔥Cook: 15 min 👤Serves: 4 🌶Heat: Mild-Medium

Korean steak sandwich takes a bulgogi-style marinade, soy sauce, gochujang, sesame oil and grated apple and applies it to thinly sliced ribeye that gets seared in a screaming hot pan until it caramelizes at the edges, then rested, sliced thin against the grain and piled into a toasted brioche bun with gochujang mayo and quick-pickled cucumbers.

It reads like a lot of things happening at once, but most of it is the marinade doing the work while you get on with something else. Bold, sweet, spicy, slightly smoky, genuinely one of the best sandwiches worth making on a weeknight.

Ingredients

For the steak and marinade

• 1 lb ribeye or flank steak, freeze for 20–30 minutes before slicing to make very thin cuts easier
• 3 tablespoons soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon gochujang
• 1 tablespoon sesame oil
• 1 tablespoon brown sugar
• 1 tablespoon mirin, or rice wine; adds a gentle sweetness and gloss
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 teaspoon fresh ginger, grated
• ½ small apple or Asian pear, finely grated, the fruit enzymes tenderize the steak quickly; don’t marinate more than 2 hours or the texture softens too much
• 1 tablespoon neutral oil, for searing

For the quick pickles

• 1 small cucumber, thinly sliced
• 1 small carrot, julienned
• 3 tablespoons rice vinegar
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• ½ teaspoon salt

For the gochujang mayo

• ¼ cup mayonnaise
• 1½ teaspoons gochujang, adjust to taste
• 1 teaspoon sesame oil
• ½ teaspoon rice vinegar

For assembly

• 4 brioche or potato buns
• 2 tablespoons butter, softened
• ½ cup shredded cabbage or butter lettuce
• 2 scallions, thinly sliced
• Toasted sesame seeds, optional garnish

How to make Korean steak sandwich

1. Slice and marinate the steak. Slice the steak as thin as possible against the grain, about 2–3mm. Freezing it for 20–30 minutes beforehand makes this much easier. Whisk together the soy sauce, gochujang, sesame oil, brown sugar, mirin, garlic, ginger and grated apple. Add the steak, toss well, and marinate for at least 30 minutes and up to 2 hours.The grated apple is doing real tenderizing work via natural enzymes, don’t skip it, but don’t over-marinate either. Beyond 2 hours the texture can become slightly mushy rather than tender.
2. Make the quick pickles. Toss the cucumber and carrot with rice vinegar, sugar and salt. Let sit at room temperature while the steak marinates, stirring once or twice.
3. Make the gochujang mayo. Stir together the mayonnaise, gochujang, sesame oil and rice vinegar until smooth. Taste and adjust heat.
4. Sear the steak. Heat a large skillet or cast iron pan over high heat until very hot. Add the neutral oil. Add the marinated steak in a single layer, cook in batches if needed to avoid crowding. Sear for 1–2 minutes until caramelized at the edges and cooked through. Don’t stir constantly, let it sit and get color before tossing.High heat and dry cooking are critical. Pat off any excess marinade before the steak hits the pan, too much liquid causes steaming instead of searing, and you lose the caramelized edges that carry most of the flavor.
5. Toast the buns. Butter the cut sides of the buns and toast in the same pan over medium heat until golden.
6. Assemble. Spread gochujang mayo generously on both cut sides of each bun. Add cabbage or lettuce, then the cooked steak, then a spoonful of quick pickles using a slotted spoon. Top with scallions and sesame seeds, and close the bun. Serve immediately.

What the apple is doing in the marinade

Traditional bulgogi uses grated Asian pear in the marinade and it’s not just for sweetness. The natural enzymes in both pear and apple break down muscle fibers, tenderizing the steak in a way that longer marinating time in a plain soy marinade simply doesn’t achieve. A regular sweet apple like Fuji or Honeycrisp works perfectly here if Asian pears aren’t available.

This is also why the marinade time caps at 2 hours, the enzymes are efficient, and beyond that point they start working against you.

Make it your own

Claire’s note

A slice of provolone or pepper jack melted over the steak in the final minute of cooking turns this into a Korean cheese steak that’s genuinely hard to argue against. Kimchi makes an excellent addition or substitute for the quick pickles if you have some on hand, it adds a fermented depth that works beautifully against the sweet marinade. For a spicier sandwich, add extra gochujang to the mayo and a few sliced jalapeños. Leftover cooked steak keeps refrigerated for 3 days and reheats fast in a hot skillet, don’t use the microwave, which makes it tough.

Serve with

Korean steak sandwich is a complete meal on its own, pairs well with sweet potato fries, a simple cucumber salad, or edamame on the side. For more from the Korean collection the complete Korean recipes guide and the Asian recipes collection have it all.

Add Korean steak sandwich to your weekly meal planner, marinate the steak the night before for a fast weeknight dinner. And for more recipes, follow us on Pinterest.

Korean Steak Sandwich

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• Author: Claire Bennett
• Total Time: 45 minutes
• Yield: 4 servings 1x
• Diet: None

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Description

A delicious Korean steak sandwich featuring marinated ribeye, gochujang mayo, and quick pickled cucumbers, perfect for a weeknight meal.

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Ingredients

Scale 1x2x3x

• 1 lb ribeye or flank steak, frozen for easier slicing
• 3 tablespoons soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon gochujang
• 1 tablespoon sesame oil
• 1 tablespoon brown sugar
• 1 tablespoon mirin
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 teaspoon fresh ginger, grated
• ½ small apple or Asian pear, finely grated
• 1 tablespoon neutral oil, for searing
• 1 small cucumber, thinly sliced
• 1 small carrot, julienned
• 3 tablespoons rice vinegar
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• ½ teaspoon salt
• ¼ cup mayonnaise
• 1½ teaspoons gochujang, adjust to taste
• 1 teaspoon sesame oil
• ½ teaspoon rice vinegar
• 4 brioche or potato buns
• 2 tablespoons butter, softened
• ½ cup shredded cabbage or butter lettuce
• 2 scallions, thinly sliced
• Toasted sesame seeds, optional garnish

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Instructions

1. Slice and marinate the steak. Freeze the steak for 20–30 minutes and then slice it thinly against the grain. Whisk together soy sauce, gochujang, sesame oil, brown sugar, mirin, garlic, ginger, and grated apple. Marinate the steak for at least 30 minutes and up to 2 hours.
2. Make the quick pickles. Toss cucumber and carrot with rice vinegar, sugar, and salt. Let sit at room temperature while the steak marinates.
3. Make the gochujang mayo. Stir together mayonnaise, gochujang, sesame oil, and rice vinegar until smooth.
4. Sear the steak. Heat a skillet over high heat, add neutral oil, and sear the marinated steak for 1–2 minutes until caramelized.
5. Toast the buns. Butter the cut sides and toast in the same pan over medium heat until golden.
6. Assemble the sandwich. Spread gochujang mayo, add cabbage or lettuce, cooked steak, pickles, scallions, and sesame seeds, then close the bun. Serve immediately.

Notes

You can add provolone or pepper jack cheese for a cheesy variant. Kimchi can substitute for pickles for added flavor. Leftover steak can be reheated quickly in a skillet.

• Prep Time: 30 minutes
• Cook Time: 15 minutes
• Category: Main Course
• Method: Grilling
• Cuisine: Korean

Nutrition

• Serving Size: 1 sandwich
• Calories: 500
• Sugar: 8g
• Sodium: 950mg
• Fat: 27g
• Saturated Fat: 7g
• Unsaturated Fat: 15g
• Trans Fat: 0g
• Carbohydrates: 39g
• Fiber: 2g
• Protein: 25g
• Cholesterol: 70mg