Different textures and flavors of veggie in my Vegan-Friendly Korean Bibimbap with sweet and spicy Gochujang sauce will be sure to make you happy and full!
Happy Wednesday!
Raise your hand if you like a good Buddha bowl! Korea has this dish called Bibimbap since the 16th century (or something like that. The origin of the dish is unclear) and it is truly one of my favorite Korean food. I just didn’t realize that I ate Buddha bowl growing up before it became all hip and popular.
Traditionally, there is bulgogi (Korean soy sauce marinated beef) and fried egg on top of the rice bowl but I brought a recipe that’s vegan friendly. Honestly, I didn’t really miss the meat and egg on my Vegan-Friendly Korean Bibimbap. It is refreshing, savory, spicy, sweet, satisfying, healthy, and delicious!
Please don’t be intimidated by the long ingredients and instructions in the recipe. There are more than a few ingredients, yes. But they are very simple to prepare. It’s about sautéing some vegetables and put them on top of the rice. Easy enough, right?!
One of the reasons why I really adore this dish is because, other than the fact that this dish is so healthy and delicious, you can really customize it any way you want to. If you see the ingredients below and don’t like any one of them, please skip it. And if I’m missing one of your favorite ingredients, please add them to the dish. The possibilities are endless! You can add some fermented kimchi, sautéed spinach, shredded lettuce, and so much more. I am simply here to give you an example of how I prepare my vegan-friendly traditional Korean bibimbap.
I really hope you get to try this dish because once you try them, it will become one of your favorites as well.
Happy eating, friends!
Vegan Friendly Korean Bibimbap
Different textures and flavors of veggie in my Vegan-Friendly Korean Bibimbap with spicy and savory Gochujang sauce will be sure to make you happy and full!
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 20 minutes
- Total Time: 35 minutes
- Yield: 4 servings 1x
- Category: Main course
- Method: Stir fried
- Cuisine: Korean
- Diet: Vegan
Ingredients
For the Sauce
- 3 tablespoons Gochujang (Korean Red Pepper Paste)
- 1 tablespoon mirin
- 1 tablespoon agave nectar
- 1/2 tablespoon sesame oil
For Bibimbap
- 1/2 large onion, thinly sliced
- 1 small zucchini, cut into match stick
- 1 medium-size carrot, cut into match stick
- 4 teaspoons vegetable oil
- 1 package of mushroom of choice (I used Bunnapi mushroom but button mushroom works just fine)
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce
- 1/2 tablespoon sugar
- 2 teaspoons sesame oil
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 6 ounces bean sprouts
- 1 green onion, thinly sliced
- 2/3 of English cucumber (or 2 Persian cucumbers), thinly sliced
- 2 teaspoons Korean red pepper flakes (Gochugaru)
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- 1 cup of baked tofu or tempeh
- Salt for seasoning
- Sesame seeds (garnish)
- 3 to 4 cup of cooked rice (short grain, sushi rice is recommended)
Instructions
- In a small bowl, mix all ingredients for the sauce and set it aside.
- In a small colander, add the cucumber slice and sprinkle about 1 teaspoon of salt on top of them. Toss them together so the salt will coat all the cucumber. Set it aside.
- In a medium non-stick skillet, add about 1 teaspoon of vegetable oil and sauté the onion. Cook until the onion is translucent. Season with salt, about a small pinch. Take it out of the pan and set it aside.
- In the same pan, add about 1 teaspoon of vegetable oil and add zucchini. Cook until zucchini is just soft enough but not mushy, about 2 minutes. Season with salt, about a small pinch. Take it out of the pan and set it aside.
- In the same pan, add about 1 teaspoon of vegetable oil and add the carrot. Cook until carrot is just soft enough but not mushy, about 2-3 minutes. Season with salt, about a small pinch. Take it out of the pan and set it aside.
- In the same pan, add about 1 teaspoon of vegetable oil and add mushroom. Cook for a couple of minutes until they release their water and started to evaporate. Add 1 tablespoon soy, 1/2 tablespoon sugar, 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder, and 1 teaspoon of sesame oil and stir to mix. Cook for another minute or two and set it aside.
- Check the cucumber slices. Squeeze all the water out of the cucumber and transfer to a small bowl. Add 2 teaspoons of Korean red pepper flakes and 2 teaspoon sugar. Set it aside.
- In a medium-size saucepan, boil some water. Once the water comes to a boil, add bean sprouts. Cook for no more than a minute. Drain the sprouts and squeeze all the water out.
- Transfer the blanched bean sprouts to a bowl and season with a pinch of salt, 1 teaspoon sesame oil, and thinly sliced green onion. Mix until all the bean sprouts are seasoned. Set it aside.
- In a large bowl, add about 1/2 cup to 1 cup of cooked rice. Add all the cooked vegetables on top of the rice (about 1 tablespoon of each prepared vegetable). Put about 1/2 tablespoon of sauce on top. Mix all the veggies and sauce in the bowl with your spoon and enjoy.
Notes
You can customize this bowl in any way you like! If you are not a big fan of bean sprouts, skip it by all means. If you don’t have a cucumber on hand but have some spinach, put some sautéed spinach in your bowl. You don’t have to be locked down to what I used in my recipe. Please make it your own but I’m just here to give you a little example 😉
Keywords: Korean Bibimbap, vegan friendly, bibimbap, vegan bibimbap, vegan-friendly Korean bibimbap, Korean rice bowl
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