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I love anything Korean-BBQ style and I really love meatballs, so I knew I was going to love these—and I did! Make sure you deactivate the enzymes of the fresh ginger by soaking it in 1 tablespoon of vinegar for 5 minutes—otherwise your meatballs will turn out soggy. Alternatively you can add the ginger to the sauce.
Korean Barbecue-Style Meatballs ? Mushy is Not Tender
When it comes to cooking, there is no better teacher than a tragic failure, which is how I learned not to use too much raw ginger in a marinade for meat. I don't remember exactly when I became aware of this issue, but it was a long time ago, and probably involved watching pieces of meat mysteriously fall apart into mushy shards that slip through the grates of the grill to a fiery, disappointing death.
Yes, that's what happens if you add too much raw ginger to meat, and let it sit around before cooking it. It's a lesson you never forget. Until you do. As usual, I'll blame the 'fog of war' that happens during a video shoot, but it never occurred to me that the piece of ginger I was mincing was going to cause trouble. And, it would've caused much more trouble had I not been in such a hurry. I was going to let the mixture sit in the fridge for hours, and if I had, I'm not sure what I would've ended up eating for dinner, but it would not have been Korean barbecue-style meatballs.
I'll let you Google precisely why/how the enzymes in ginger dissolve protein, and I already explained in the video how to avoid this issue by deactivating the ginger with heat or acid, so I won't go over that again now. Instead, I will finish up by bragging about how delicious these were. They're very sweet and spicy, and little salty, but also profoundly savory and satisfying. When served over plain rice to absorb all the big flavors, these makes for a truly incredible meal, which is why I really do hope you give it a try soon. Enjoy!
Ingredients
- 1 pound ground beef
- 2 teaspoons gochujang (Korean hot pepper paste)
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce
- 2 teaspoons grated fresh ginger (heated to 150 F degrees (65 degrees C) to deactivate enzymes, or soaked in 1 tablespoon vinegar for 5 minutes)
- 4 cloves garlic, finely minced
- 1/3 cup thinly sliced green onions, plus more for garnish
- ½ cup finely crushed buttery round crackers (such as Ritz®)
- toasted sesame seeds for garnish
For the Glaze
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 tablespoons rice wine vinegar
- ¾ cup beef broth or water
- 1/3 cup brown sugar
- 1/3 cup soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon gochujang (Korean hot pepper paste)
- 1 teaspoon sesame oil
- 1 teaspoon Sriracha hot sauce
- 2 teaspoons cornstarch
- 1 tablespoon water
Directions
Step 1
Add ground beef to a bowl and spread gochujang evenly over the surface of the meat. Season evenly with kosher salt, pepper, and soy sauce. Spreading out the seasoning will reduce the time you need to handle the meat. Spread fresh ginger and garlic evenly over the surface. Add green onions and cracker crumbs. Mix in quickly with a fork until well combined.
Step 2
Cover and refrigerate for about 30 minutes.
Step 3
Preheat the oven to 450 degrees C (220 degrees C).
Step 4
Form mixture into 12 equal-sized balls using wet hands. Add to a cast iron skillet.
Step 5
Bake meatballs in the preheated oven until nicely browned, about 20 minutes.
Step 6
Transfer meatballs to a plate while preparing the sauce in the same skillet.
Step 7
Drain most of the grease but 1 teaspoon out of the skillet and set onto stove over medium-high heat. Add garlic and stir until fragrant, about 1 minute. Deglaze skillet with rice vinegar and soy sauce. Stir in brown sugar, beef broth, and gochujang. Season with sesame oil and Sriracha. Stir sauce and bring to a simmer. Cook until reduced by a third.
Step 8
Meanwhile stir together cornstarch and water in a small bowl to create a slurry. Reduce heat to medium-low and mix in slurry while whisking constantly. Keep simmering sauce until it has reduced to about half. Add meatballs back into the skillet and baste with the sauce. Allow to simmer, basting generously, until meatballs are heated through and are well soaked with sauce, 3 to 5 minutes.
Step 9
Serve garnished with toasted sesame seeds and green onions.
Cook’s Notes:
This recipe was adapted from one by Kay Chun, published by NY Times Cooking.
Nutrition Facts (per serving)
| Nutrition Facts | |
|---|---|
| Servings Per Recipe 4 | |
| Calories 558 | |
| % Daily Value * | |
| Total Fat39g | 51% |
| Saturated Fat14g | 70% |
| Cholesterol97mg | 32% |
| Sodium2502mg | 109% |
| Total Carbohydrate27g | 10% |
| Dietary Fiber1g | 5% |
| Protein23g | |
| Potassium397mg | 8% |
*Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet. Your daily values may be higher or lower depending on your calorie needs.
**Nutrient information is not available for all ingredients. Amount is based on available nutrient data.
(-) Information is not currently available for this nutrient.If you are following a medically restrictive diet, please consult your doctor or registered dietitian before preparing this recipe for personal consumption.
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source by allrecipe
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deliciousssssssssssssss
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These were very good and not difficult to make. I reduced the brown sugar by half which I wouldn’t do next time, they were slightly lacking on the sweetness. I put the ginger in the sauce for the simplest solution. I will definitely make these again.
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Go Chef John!! Absolutely, delicious. I used the heat method to deactivate ginger and let it cool to room temp before adding. Because we love ginger I also put some in the glaze. We both really enjoyed this flavor profile so much that I intend to create a Korean BBQ burger in the near future.
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The recipe was great, but definitely your timing estimating was wrong. This is one putsie preparation. First of all most people do not have these ingredients readily available. I do because I sometimes cook Korean food, however knowing this. I would highly advise on cutting back on the hot sauce because I followed all the instructions and it was too hot. Most people would not eat it. I should have known better when it said 1 T., red flag right there, this stuff is very hot. It was. Dry tasty and I would do it again, ut cut down on the hot sauces, both of them.
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I have made a ton of stuff from Food Wishes, so I knew that these wouldn’t be terrible. And I had a couple pounds of burger hanging around so I mad a double batch. These were so good that I pretty much ate all of the leftovers and didn’t even feel guilty. These truly are the meatballs that you are missing in your life!
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Not too difficult and very tasty. I reduced the amount of sugar a bit and it was still plenty sweet, good spice level. Will definitely make again.
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Wow.
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So good.
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This is such a flavourful recipe. It freezes really well – I made up some for school lunches (as you can see in the pic) and put them in the freezer for the next time I needed a quick meal to go.
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We, like many families, keep on eating the same few meals, and although good, it becomes boring. This dish was really great, and even my fussy husband said it was delicious! Others have said it was too spicy hot– my son and husband said it wasn’t that spicy. That is so hard to guage as people have such different palates. I thought it tasted great. I would double the recipe and keep some for leftovers. Once you have all these ingredients out, why not make more? FYI: 1) READ your ingredients before starting. I had to run to the store for a few things and I have a well-stocked kitchen. 2) If you are looking to make something real quick, this isn’t it, but the time put in is worth it. Also, having a “Food Chopper” from the Pampered Chef will certainly help to expedite the process. I used it to chop up the garlic and crackers. Also, I used ground sirloin which did NOT produce any fat but the recipe turned out great anyway!
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WOW. These were amazing, like little flavor bombs! They were just a little too gingery for me, so next time I will do 1 tsp. But the flavor was so good and the sauce was amazing as well. I’ll be making these again very soon.
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It tastes good, but the meatballs themselves were a little salty. I think in the future I might omit the salt or the soy sauce.
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Sauce ended up super rich. I really liked the flavor (though I’m switching brands of gochujang that I used – this new one is meh.) I also used Bison burger meat for the meatballs and I think that was also not what I was looking for. But I know the recipe is very good and I will make this again with the 85/15 beef like Chef recommended. I will also use the recipe for a glaze on other Asian stirfrys for that rich flavor. Thanks, Chef, for another winner!
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I made this as written. Terrific flavor, but the meatballs needed a binder. No egg in a meatball recipe?
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I enjoyed this. It felt a little grainy – I wonder if it was the gochujang I used?
I used fresh ginger in the meat mixture and tried the recommended approach of deactivating it via a soak in rice vinegar first. Didn’t work for me – the meatballs were still excessively soft and fell apart. Next time, I will just put the ginger in the sauce.
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Amazing! Followed exactly except I put the ginger in the sauce (same time as the garlic) just for simplicity. Next time I’d also cut 5 minutes off the meatballs but that might just be my oven. So yummy! I served it with rice and bok choy.
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Absolutely delicious dish! The flavors are very complex and layered. I use wyagu beef for the meatballs because Iike the texture. You might as well double this recipe because everyone will want seconds!
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The sauce was a bit too salty for my taste. Next time I will use low sodium soy sauce. Otherwise very good. I soaked the ginger in rice vinegar as suggested. Texture came out good. Made this with saut?ed onions + mushrooms as a side.
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I made these and took them to an Easter Dinner. One of the guests is quite the expert in Korean cuisine. So, I was very excited when he told me how good the meatballs were! Will definitely make them again. Know that the Korean paste is pretty spicy, so determine the crowd you will be making these for. Hopefully they all enjoy the heat.
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I followed recipe as it was written. I soaked the ginger in 1 TBSP of rice wine vinegar and drained it before adding to the beef. I am glad that I watched the video, for tips on mixing and forming the meatballs. We really loved it. I think I may use a little less salt in the meatballs and a bit more brown sugar in the glaze next time I make them. Thanks for the great meal!
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