Ingredients
½ cup soy sauce
½ cup white sugar
½ cup brown sugar
¼ cup garlic, minced
⅓ cup green onion, chopped
4 tbsp sesame seeds, toasted
20 oz rib-eye steak, sliced thin
salt and pepper, to taste
3 cups glutinous white rice, (sticky) uncooked, rinsed
6½ cups water
4 shiitake mushrooms, dried
1 lb fresh spinach, washed and chopped
12 oz cucumber, julienned
12 oz carrots, julienned
sesame oil
8 oz fresh bean sprouts
6 eggs
6 nori, sheets, crumbled
¼ cup chili bean paste, (Kochujang)
Preparation
Combine the soy sauce, sugars, garlic, green onions, sesame seeds in a large bowl; add the sliced beef strips to the marinade, and season with salt and pepper. Cover, and refrigerate for at least 2 hours.
Bring the rice and water to a boil in a saucepan over high heat. Reduce heat to medium-low and cover; simmer for 20 to 25 minutes until the rice is tender and the liquid has been absorbed.
Preheat an oven to 425 degrees F, and place 6 Korean stone bowls in the oven. Combine shiitake mushrooms and ½ cup of hot water in a small bowl, and soak for about 10 minutes, until pliable. Trim off and discard the stems. Thinly slice the caps. Set aside.
Bring a saucepan of water to a boil. Add spinach to the water just long enough to wilt the leaves, and then drain and pat dry. Set aside. Combine cucumber and carrots in a bowl, and season with salt and pepper. Set aside.
Preheat wok over medium-high heat. Cook carrots and cucumbers in a small amount of sesame oil to soften, stirring frequently. Remove from pan, and set aside. Add a small amount of sesame oil to the pan, and cook spinach in sesame oil for 1 to 2 minutes.
Remove spinach from the pan and set aside. Add the meat strips and marinade to the wok; cook, stirring frequently for about 4 to 5 minutes until the liquid reduces in volume.
Transfer the stone bowls from the oven to a suitable heat-resistant surface. Brush each bowl with sesame oil to coat. Divide the rice into the bowls, and gently pack to the bottom. The rice should sizzle while arranging.
Arrange the cucumbers and carrots, bean sprouts, greens, shiitake mushrooms, and beef mixture over each portion of rice. Immediately before serving, add 1 raw egg yolk to each bowl, drizzle with about 1 tablespoon of sesame oil, and top with the nori.
Serve Kochujang sauce as a condiment. Enjoy!
