Remove the blood from the meat with kitchen paper. (This can be done by placing the kitchen paper on the cutting board. Then put one slice of meat and layer another piece kitchen paper on top of the meat. Gently press it down to soak up the blood.) Place the meat into a large mixing bowl for marinating.
Pour the marinade sauce into the bowl and mix well with the meat. Add the sesame oil and gently mix it into the meat. (I prefer adding the sesame oil separately as opposed to mixing it in marinade sauce. I read somewhere that the oil can prevent the other sauce getting absorbed effectively into the meat.) Cover the bowl with food wrap (or move the meat into a glass container with a lid) and marinate the meat for at least 4 hours in the fridge. (If you have more time, you can also marinate it overnight for an extra enhanced flavour).
Prepare the vegetables. Thinly slice the onion, carrots and green onion.
Preheat the wok/skillet on the stove on medium high heat and once heated add the cooking oil and spread it well with a spatula.
Add the meat and vegetables and stir. Cook them on high heat for 3 to 5 mins until the meat is starting to turn brown. Stir occasionally (every 30 seconds) and reduce the heat gradually as the meat & vegetables cook
When the meat is nearly cooked toss in the sesame seeds. By now the heat should be very low. Stir them quickly and turn off the heat.
Serve the Bulgogi onto a plate and enjoy.
NOTES: Pre-sliced Bulgogi meat can be purchased at a Korean grocery store. If you don’t have access to a Korean grocery store, you can buy the meat at your local butcher and ask them to thinly slice it. Just remember it has to be “paper thin”. If you’re determined to cut the meat yourself at home, slicing is easier when it’s still partly frozen. As I mentioned briefly earlier, the fruit that is commonly used in the Bulgogi marinating process is Korean pear/Asian nash pear. It is used as a tenderiser (but also as a sweetness enhancer). It is not an easy fruit to get your hands on if you don’t live in Korea, hence I use an apple and it’s been working really great for me. Some Koreans also use kiwi or pineapple but you will have to make sure you don’t over-marinate the meat as these are stronger tenderising agents than pear and apple. If you marinate the meat for too long, the colour and the texture of the meat can change substantially. You might want to cut the meat between steps 5 & 6 with a pair of scissors and tongs if it’s not mouthful size already. Alternatively, you can slice the meat into a few pieces before you marinate. Again, partly frozen meat is easier to cut but then you will have more work removing the blood from more meat pieces. You can serve the Bulgogi with some steamed Korean rice and with other Korean side dishes. Bulgogi is typically enjoyed with some lettuce leaves and perilla leaves (to wrap with) and some Korean ssamjang (to dip with) and finally some Kimchi (to spice with). You can freeze the unused (& uncooked) portion of the meat in the freezer for a few weeks.