This meal is inspired by one of my favorite food trucks, now turned brick and mortar stores, from DC—Takorean. “What is Takorean?” you ask. Well, #1 it’s amazing and #2 it’s a Korean Taco Grill.
Yep, Korean flavors in tacos—mind-blowing. Their flavors are so powerful and the concept of Korean-style food in tacos and taco bowl format is fantastic. I would get Takorean bowls for lunch more times than I’ll admit when I worked down the street from one of their stores.
The other great thing about these bowls is the protein is variable. You can easily swap chicken, tofu, pork, egg, brussels sprouts, etc. in place of the steak in this recipe. The marinade flavors from the steak recipe below should easily translate for whatever protein substitute you use.
To put this meal together, you’ll also need to cook rice (unless you just want to use the kale slaw as your base, which is totally fine as well). Use whatever kind of rice you would like, but I normally use white rice. Sometimes brown if I’m trying to be a little more healthy that day. Once you have the slaw made, meat cooked, rice cooked, and lime crema whisked together you can assemble your bowl. Use half rice and half slaw for the base of your bowl and layer the meat on top. Top your bowl with lime crema. Other toppings that you can use include cilantro, sesame seeds, scallions, gochujang sauce, and sriracha.
Enjoy! And if you are in D.C. or now in Philadelphia(!!!), check out Takorean to get the original version.
Korean Stir-Fry Steak
Ingredients
- 1 lb steak (sirloin, flank) cut into small strips
- 1/2 cup soy sauce
- 1 tbsp sugar
- 1/4 cup scallions (about 2-3)
- 3 cloves minced garlic (about 2 1/2 tbsp)
- 1 tbsp sesame oil
- 1 tbsp minced ginger
- 1 1/2 tbsp gochujang
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
Instructions
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Cut steak into thin strips. If available, you can purchase the “stir-fry steak” which is already cut into thin strips.
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Mix all ingredients of the marinade together. I mix these together in the same container I will use to marinate the steak.
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Add steak strips to the marinade and mix until all strips are coated in the marinade. Refrigerate for 1 hour – overnight.
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Remove from refrigerator approximately 15 minutes before ready to cook to allow meat to get closer to room temperature.
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Heat large skillet to medium heat. Add meat and cook for a few minutes on each side. Meat will cook quickly since it is in thin strips.
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Remove meat and cook remaining juices for a few minutes extra. Pour over meat.
Spicy Kale Slaw
Ingredients
Slaw Mix
- 3 cups cut kale
- 1 1/2 cups shredded purple cabbage
- 1 1/2 cups matchstick carrots
- 1/2 cup scallions
Dressing
- 1/4 cup soy sauce
- 1/4 cup rice wine vinegar
- 1/2 tsp sesame oil
- 1 tbsp mirin
- 3 tsp gochujang
- 2 tsp minced ginger
- 1 tsp garlic powder
Instructions
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Dice scallions (whites and greens).
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Make sure the kale is fully de-ribbed (remove any stems from the kale leaf). Most pre-cut bags have most of the stems removed, but there may be a few you have to remove. Chop kale into bite-sized pieces.
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Mix all slaw ingredients together – kale, carrots, cabbage, and scallions.
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Mix all dressing ingredients together in a separate bowl. Pour over slaw mix and toss.
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Refrigerate for at least an hour before serving.
Lime Crema
Ingredients
- 1 cup sour cream *can substitute dairy-free
- 1 tsp mirin
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp cumin
- 1/4 tsp garlic powder
- juice from 1 1/2 limes
- zest from 1 1/2 limes
Instructions
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Whisk all ingredients together and chill for at least an hour.
