Kalbi, or Galbi, are Korean style short ribs. Now, to some of my friends who have been eating Korean food for years, this is old news. But out of curiosity, I polled my Instagram followers, and found quite a few of you didn’t know the ins and outs of Kalbi. So, if you fall in this camp— check out my “what can I learn” to find out the difference between these ribs and other ribs. If not, feel free to jump to the ingredient list or recipe.
Ingredients:
(Makes 3 servings depending on appetite)
- ~1 lbs bone-in flanken beef short ribs
- 1/4 cup soy sauce
- 3 tbs water
- 1.5 tbs Coca Cola
- 1/4 inch of ginger, minced
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 tsp sesame oil
- For garnish – green onions
Directions:
- Set aside your short ribs and green onions. Mix all other ingredients in a large bowl. Add the short ribs and let marinade overnight (or if pinched for time, at least 2-3 hours). The green onions you can keep in the fridge till post-cooking.
- Heat a large pan over medium high and add the marinaded short ribs. Cook for 3-4 min on the first side, then turn down heat to medium low and flip. Pour additional marinade on top for an additional 2-3 minutes.
- I served mine with rice and a side salad. Enjoy!
Notes:
I bought my short ribs at Whole Foods because they were having a great Amazon Prime special. If you’re not feeling up to marinading, they sell pre-marinated ones at the meat counter. If you are and want to try this recipe, I’d recommend trying your local Whole Foods for the meat (and perhaps at a strategic time when they’re on sale if you really want to optimize).
What am I listening to as I make this? “my future” by Billie Eilish
What can I learn while I make this? What exactly Kalbi is! We’ve already established that Kalbi is Korean style short ribs. But what does that mean? Let’s start with the name: Kalbi is also called Galbi, which is the word for “rib” in Korean. Now, what makes these different than other styles of short ribs? If you’ve ever had American or European style short ribs, you may have had a cut of meat that was thicker around the bone. Korean style is unique in the way the ribs are cut. This cut is called “flanken,” which is a cut lengthwise across the bone, yielding the thinner cuts of meat you see for Kalbi.
What if I want a yummy Asian-inspired meal but not this one? Don’t worry– I won’t be offended! Check out these other ideas below:
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