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Cucumbers with meat in Korean

Korean-Style Cucumbers with Beef

A quick, hearty, spicy, delicious salad! Korean-style cucumbers with beef make the perfect appetizer to go with drinks. They're made from everyday ingredients and work for both weeknights and celebrations — and you can dial the heat up or down to your taste!

Pearl

Recipe author

Composition / ingredients

Servings:

Beef (boneless or fillet)

400

Cucumbers (1 large English cucumber or 2 medium)

Bell pepper

Onion

Garlic

Ground red pepper (level)

Sugar

0.5

Vegetable oil

Salt

Soy sauce

Vinegar (6%)

Ground coriander

Sesame seeds (optional)

Fresh herbs

Translation table of volumetric measures

Nutrients and energy value of the composition of the recipe

By weight of the composition:

Proteins 34 % 11 g

Fats 34 % 11 g

Carbohydrates 31 % 10 g

159 kcal

GI: 100 / 0 / 0

Cooking method

Cooking time: 30 min

Step 1:

How do you make Korean-style cucumbers with beef? First, gather the ingredients from the list. You can use bell peppers in different colors — it'll make the finished dish look wonderfully bright and appetizing. Rinse the cucumber, bell pepper, and peeled garlic in clean water.
Step 2:

Cut the cucumbers into thin strips about 2 inches long. Put the strips in a plate or small bowl, salt them, and leave them for 10–15 minutes.
Step 3:

Cut the beef into thin, long strips. To make it easier to slice, pop it in the freezer and let it firm up slightly first.
Step 4:

Cut the onion into thin half-moons and chop the garlic finely by hand (or press it through a garlic press if you prefer). For this recipe I used half a yellow onion and half a red one.
Step 5:

Cut the bell pepper into thin strips.
Step 6:

Heat the vegetable oil in a skillet. Over high heat, fry the beef until cooked through. It takes hardly any time at all — 3 to 5 minutes.
Step 7:

To get the meat to sear rather than steam, I cooked it in batches: I browned half the portion first, moved the finished beef to a plate, then cooked the rest in the pan. Keep stirring the pieces constantly as they cook so they don't burn.
Step 8:

Add the onion to the beef in the pan and pour in the soy sauce. Stir-fry for about two minutes.
Step 9:

Gently squeeze the liquid out of the cucumbers. Put the strips in a deep bowl. Add the coriander, sugar, hot pepper (adjust the amount to taste), and garlic.
Step 10:

Add the beef and onion to the cucumbers.
Step 11:

Next add the bell pepper and vinegar.
Step 12:

Mix everything well and taste. Add more salt, sugar, or vinegar if it needs it. The finished dish should be spicy, sweet, and sour.
Step 13:

Let it sit for 5–10 minutes. Sprinkle with sesame seeds and fresh herbs. Done — serve!

For the herbs, use dill or parsley. Young green onions are especially good here. Great on its own or alongside steamed rice. Enjoy!
If the skin isn't tough, damaged, or bitter, there's no need to peel the cucumber.
The salad looks nicer and neater if you cut all the ingredients into pieces of the same size and shape (cubes, for example).
Since everyone's tolerance for salt, sweetness, bitterness, heat, sourness, and spice is different, always add seasonings and spices to your own taste! If you're using a seasoning for the first time, keep in mind that some are especially easy to overdo (chili pepper, for one).