These Korean Beef and Mushroom Bowls are made from ground beef and mushrooms, with Bulgogi-inspired flavors. Tasty, quick, and easy to make!
This year, one of my goals is to post more quick-and-easy dinner recipes. I'm on to a quick start with these Korean Beef and Mushroom Bowls.
This tasty recipe definitely fits the quick-and-easy bill as the list of ingredients required to make it is short and easily accessible, and it can be on your table in less than half an hour.
I show this Korean-inspired beef and mushroom mixture as a rice bowl, which is what my kids prefer. But it's also great served as lettuce wraps, over a plain green salad, with noodles, or with whole grains like barley or quinoa.
This dish features bulgogi-inspired flavors that kids are sure to love. It's slightly sweet and salty, with a hint of spice that can be easily adjusted by adding or removing red pepper flakes.
How to make Korean Beef and Mushroom Bowls:
Making this quick-and-easy meal starts with a blended-beef technique in which mushrooms are used to replace or "extend" the ground beef in a dish. This technique can be used in many ground beef-based dishes, including burgers.
This blended-beef technique starts with coarsely grinding the mushrooms so that they resemble the texture of ground beef. The easiest way to do this is with a food processor.
After grinding the mushrooms, sautee them to remove all the extra moisture in them before mixing them with the meat and seasonings. Using this method will ensure that the mushrooms blend right in with the beef. Even the biggest mushroom skeptics won't notice them!
Korean Beef and Mushroom Bowl Ingredients:
- White or brown mushrooms
- Reduced sodium soy sauce - substitute with Tamari or gluten-free soy sauce if you need this recipe to be gluten-free.
- Brown sugar - or replace with coconut sugar. You can even use regular granulated sugar in a pinch.
- Grated or minced fresh ginger - find it in the produce section. Pro tip: always keep a piece of ginger on hand in the freezer. It can be grated with a microplane from frozen.
- Sesame oil - this adds lots of nutty flavor. Find it in the international aisle, or with specialty cooking oils
- Red pepper flakes - add more if you want it spicy, less if you don't want it spicy at all.
- Canola oil - or any other neutral cooking oil
- Small onion
- Garlic
- Ground beef - any type will do, but if you want your meal to have less fat and calories, opt for lean or extra lean.
- Cooked rice, noodles, salad, or lettuce leaves - use any of these (or a combination) depending on your serving preferences. I've shown rice bowls in my photos, but I also love it as lettuce wraps.
Want more ground beef recipes?
Korean Beef and Mushroom Bowls Nutrition Notes:
The nutrition facts in the recipe below include only the beef and mushroom part of the meal. They don't include the grain or vegetables that you might serve it with.
Quick and Easy Korean Ground Beef and Mushroom Bowl
Ingredients
- 1 pound white or brown mushrooms
- ⅓ cup reduced sodium soy sauce If you need this recipe to be gluten-free, make sure you choose gluten-free soy sauce or tamari
- 3 Tablespoons brown sugar
- 1 Tablespoon grated or minced fresh ginger
- 2 teaspoons sesame oil
- ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes Add more if you want it spicy, less if you don't want it spicy at all.
- 1 Tablespoon canola oil
- 1 small onion thinly sliced
- 4 cloves garlic minced
- 1 pound ground beef
- Cooked rice, noodles, salad, or lettuce leaves To Serve
Instructions
- Wipe any dirt off of mushrooms using a damp paper towel. Break into pieces and place into the bowl of a food processor. Pulse until the mushrooms are coarsely ground.
- In a small bowl or measuring cup, stir together the soy sauce, brown sugar, sesame oil, ginger, and red pepper flakes. Set aside.
- Heat canola oil in a large skillet over medium high heat. Add ground mushrooms and cook until all excess moisture has evaporated, about 8 minutes. Add onions, and cook until soft, about 3-5 minutes. Add garlic, and cook until fragrant, about 30-60 seconds. Add beef and break into pieces. Cook until beef is no longer pink, about 5 minutes. Add the soy sauce mixture, and cook until the sauce thickens, about 3 minutes. Serve over rice, noodles, salad, or as lettuce wraps.
Nutrition
Debbie Barnes
I substituted ground turkey for beef, and coconut aminos for soy sauce. I also added red bell pepper for color. It smelled wonderful while cooking. Unfortunately, when I took a bite- all I could taste was sweet. The amount of brown sugar should be drastically reduced, at least for my taste.
Bonnie
This was a very easy meal. I love the mushrooms for some bulk. I would definitely make this again.
Carissa
Thanks so much for your comment. I'm so glad you enjoyed it!
Ann
AMAZING!!! We loved it.