Eventually, I decided to make Korean tacos at home so I can stop hunting down food trucks. And, surprisingly, it's pretty simple! IMO, Korean tacos are one of the quickest ways to take your next taco night from pretty good to amazing. 😋
The secret to really good ones comes down to a few things: 1. Starting with a bomb protein. 2. Boosting it even more with a killer Korean marinade (which you can easily buy or prep yourself). And 3. Topping everything with a magic three-ingredient sauce (that's also really easy to make!).
Now, I'm no Roy Choi and these tacos you're reading about aren't the same recipe... at all. But, I came up with something mouthwatering but pretty straightforward that even my lazy self can pull off at home.
So, without further ado, here's what you'll need to whip up these bad boys yourself!
• For tacos: Galbi (beef short ribs), Korean BBQ marinade, onion (optional), tortillas
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• For sauce: Sriracha or similar spicy sauce, mayo, lime
• For toppings: Slaw, kimchi, scallions, anything else you'd like!
First, prep your meat! 🥩 Since this is a Korean-style taco, you'll need galbi, or beef short ribs.
A quick primer on the meat: Galbi means "ribs" — and galbi short ribs come in two different cuts. In the English cut (regular galbi), ribs are separated and cut into short lengths. In the flanken cut (a.k.a. LA galbi), ribs are cut thin across the bones. It's what I'm using here, but both work fine!
Often when buying galbi, you can find it pre-marinated. Otherwise, you can marinate it yourself (for 2-3 hours) with a Korean BBQ marinade. Find that in the Asian aisle of your supermarket or online, like this one or this one from Amazon (the second one is also available at Target).
If you can't find short ribs or flanken cuts at your local market, you could sub with chuck roast. Although, you could also make these with chicken, pork, or tofu and the marinade! On top of the marinade, I cut up some onion to soak and cook with the meat for more flavor.
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For the meat, cut it up into smaller pieces and then cook it in a skillet over medium-high heat.
You don't have to shred the galbi or cut it into perfect cubes. By letting them be different sizes, they'll cook differently and give your taco more texture and flavor. Once the meat is done, you're onto the sauce!
For the sauce, you only need to mix three ingredients: mayo + Sriracha + lime. It's straight up perfect.
More specifically, you'll need ¼ cup mayo, 1 tbsp Sriracha, and 2 tsp lime juice (which works out to about half a lime).
You can scoop this right onto your tacos. Or if you want to get ~fancy~, scoop it into a Ziplock bag and cut a *tiny* hole in the corner to make it easy to drizzle.
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Now, this is a pretty simple taco, so besides the meat and sauce, I only used kimchi, slaw (cabbage and carrots), and scallions.
No, I absolutely did not slice up cabbage and carrots. I bought bagged coleslaw, which I highly recommend if you have no use (or fridge space!) for an entire napa cabbage, on top of a head of red cabbage.
P.S. I personally *hate* cilantro (I don't think it tastes like soap, it's just so bitter), so I opted to use scallions as my garnish. But for ya cilantro-lovers out there, feel free to add some on top!
Time to build your 🌮 taco 🌮! Just get your tortilla ready, and begin layering!
First, the meat and onions. Then, spread some kimchi on top. After, sprinkle on some slaw, drizzle your sauce, and top it off with some scallions (...or cilantro). That's it!
And (after eating one and transferring two to a bigger plate), there ya have it: delicious, savory Korean tacos! A literal flavor bomb in your mouth.
Oh, and be sure to slice up some more lime to squeeze onto your finished tacos!
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