Bibimbap

Tamara West

Korea’s national dish, bibimbap, is a colourful rice bowl loaded with vegetables and flavour. Hot, sour, salty, sweet, and bitter, make it your own way, as the Koreans do, with different meats and vegetables that you have on hand. Once the vegetables are prepared it’s quick to assemble and fun to eat. This is comfort food, Korean style!

Ingredients

2 cups	Short grain rice, cooked per packet instructions (Main)
2	Chicken breasts, steamed, or cooked to your liking, more if you have big appetites (use tofu for a vegetarian option)
1 drizzle	Sesame oil, per serving
4	Eggs, fried
4 sprinkles	Toasted sesame seeds

Sauce

5 Tbsp	Gochujang, spicy red Korean soybean paste, from Asian supermarkets (Main)
2 Tbsp	Doenjang, (Korean soybean paste), or miso
2 Tbsp	Sesame oil
1 Tbsp	Rice vinegar
1 Tbsp	Golden syrup
1	Lime, zest and juice of
1 Tbsp	Grated ginger
1 tsp	Crushed garlic
¼ cup	Ginger beer, or soda water
1 tsp	Toasted sesame seeds

Vegetables

¼ cup	Rice wine vinegar
¼ cup	Water
2 Tbsp	Sugar
1	Carrot, or 2, finely sliced using a mandolin or peeler
1 bunch	Radishes, finely sliced using a mandolin or peeler
2 cups	Mung bean sprouts
¼ tsp	Crushed garlic
½ tsp	Grated ginger
1 large bunch	Spinach
¼ tsp	Crushed garlic
½ tsp	Sesame oil
1 sprinkle	Salt and pepper
12	Shiitake mushrooms, dried
1 tsp	Sesame oil
½ tsp	Crushed garlic
½ tsp	Grated ginger
1	Lemon, juice of
1 tsp	Sesame seeds
1 tsp	Sesame oil
2	Courgettes, cut in half and thinly sliced
½ tsp	Crushed garlic
½ tsp	Grated ginger
1 sprinkle	Lime zest
½	Lettuce, finely shredded
2	Spring onions, finely chopped

Directions

To prepare sauce(do in advance)

1. Into a bowl whisk the gochujang and doenjang. Add the sesame oil, rice vinegar, golden syrup, lime zest and juice, grated ginger and garlic.
2. Thin the sauce with the ginger beer and add the toasted sesame seeds. Chill.

To prepare the vegetables (do in advance)

1. Bring the rice wine vinegar, water and sugar to a boil, then cool. Add the vinegar mixture to the carrot and radish and leave to pickle for 30 minutes. Drain to serve.
2. Blanch the mung bean sprouts for 30 seconds. Refresh in cold water, drain and pat dry. Mix with ¼ tsp crushed garlic and ½ tsp grated ginger. Set aside.
3. Repeat the (blanch, refresh and dry) process with the spinach, squeezing out as much liquid as possible before drying and roughly chopping. Mix with ¼ tsp crushed garlic, ½ tsp sesame oil, salt and pepper. Set aside.
4. Pour boiling vegetable water over the shiitake mushrooms and leave to soak for 40 minutes. Drain, dry and thinly slice. Heat 1 tsp sesame oil, add ½ tsp crushed garlic, ½ tsp grated ginger and fry the mushrooms until tender. Add the lemon juice, 1 Tbsp of the sauce (see above), and 1 tsp sesame seeds. Set aside.
5. Heat 1 tsp sesame oil, add ½ tsp crushed garlic, ½ tsp grated ginger, and saute the courgettes until just tender. Season with lime zest and fresh pepper. Cool.
6. Mix the shredded lettuce with the spring onions.

To arrange and serve

1. Add rice to 4 serving bowls, drizzle with sesame oil, and place a fried egg in the middle of each. Sprinkle with toasted sesame seeds.
2. Arrange small handfuls of the prepared vegetables around each bowl, covering the egg white but not the yolk.
3. Top the lettuce section with a few slices of steamed chicken breast, or cooked tofu. Add a generous amount of the sauce and dig in.