Bulgogi Rice Bowl (Microwave)
プルコギ丼【レンジ】
By Aoi, licensed nutritionist · From a Japanese preschool lunch menu
Bulgogi is a Korean dish of thinly sliced meat simmered in a sweet soy and garlic sauce, and this preschool version swaps in pork, adds plenty of vegetables and turns the seasoning down to a gentle, child-friendly level. The whole thing cooks in the microwave, so there is no frying pan to watch and it comes together while the rice finishes steaming. A light dusting of flour on the pork keeps it tender and lightly thickens the sauce, and the glass noodles soak up all that flavor, which is why kids happily eat their onion, carrot and bok choy along with the meat.
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Ingredients
Amounts for 1 child (1 serving). An adult counts as 2 servings.
One serving here is 1.5× the portion served to a child in a Japanese preschool, sized for Western appetites. An adult counts as two servings. Tap an ingredient to check it off.
Ingredients
- 75 griceJapanese short-grain white rice (japonica), which cooks up soft and slightly sticky. The amount listed is for uncooked rice. Substitute: Sushi rice, or another short-grain or medium-grain rice such as Calrose.
- 30 gthinly sliced pork (komagire offcuts)Small offcuts of thinly sliced pork sold cheaply in Japanese supermarkets for stir-fries and soups. Substitute: Thinly sliced pork shoulder or loin, cut into bite-size pieces.
- 1.5 gflour
- 3 gharusame (glass noodles)Thin, clear noodles made from potato or mung bean starch. Substitute: Mung bean vermicelli or thin rice vermicelli.
- 15 gonion
- 5.3 gcarrot
- 15 gbok choy
Seasonings
- 3 gsesame oil
- 24 gwater (if using a microwave)
- 45 gwater (if using the stovetop)
- 3 gsoy sauce
- 0.8 gmirinMirin is a sweet Japanese rice seasoning that adds gentle sweetness and a glossy finish. Hon-mirin (true mirin) contains about 14% alcohol; "mirin-style seasoning" has little or no alcohol. Some alcohol can remain after short cooking. If you prefer no alcohol for children, use the substitute. Substitute: For each tablespoon of mirin, use 1 tablespoon water plus 1 to 2 teaspoons sugar.
- 0.5 gsugar
- 0.5 ggarlic paste (tube)Grated garlic sold ready to use in a squeeze tube, a staple in Japanese kitchens. Japanese school lunch kitchens grate fresh garlic for its aroma, but for cooking at home Aoi says the tube works just fine. Tube pastes often contain added salt, oil and other ingredients, so check the label. Substitute: Use freshly grated garlic in the same amount. 1 teaspoon of paste is about 5 g.
- 0.8 gwhite sesame seeds
About the Japanese ingredients in this recipe
- rice (米)
- Japanese short-grain white rice (japonica), which cooks up soft and slightly sticky. The amount listed is for uncooked rice. Substitute: Sushi rice, or another short-grain or medium-grain rice such as Calrose.
- thinly sliced pork (komagire offcuts) (豚小間)
- Small offcuts of thinly sliced pork sold cheaply in Japanese supermarkets for stir-fries and soups. Substitute: Thinly sliced pork shoulder or loin, cut into bite-size pieces.
- harusame (glass noodles) (はるさめ)
- Thin, clear noodles made from potato or mung bean starch. Substitute: Mung bean vermicelli or thin rice vermicelli.
- mirin (みりん)
- Mirin is a sweet Japanese rice seasoning that adds gentle sweetness and a glossy finish. Hon-mirin (true mirin) contains about 14% alcohol; "mirin-style seasoning" has little or no alcohol. Some alcohol can remain after short cooking. If you prefer no alcohol for children, use the substitute. Substitute: For each tablespoon of mirin, use 1 tablespoon water plus 1 to 2 teaspoons sugar.
- garlic paste (tube) (おろしにんにく，チューブ)
- Grated garlic sold ready to use in a squeeze tube, a staple in Japanese kitchens. Japanese school lunch kitchens grate fresh garlic for its aroma, but for cooking at home Aoi says the tube works just fine. Tube pastes often contain added salt, oil and other ingredients, so check the label. Substitute: Use freshly grated garlic in the same amount. 1 teaspoon of paste is about 5 g.
Directions
- 1
Cut the pork into 1 to 2 cm wide strips. Rub the flour into the pork so each piece is lightly coated.
- 2
Soak the harusame in boiling water for 5 minutes, then cut into 3 cm lengths. Cut the onion into thin slices and halve them lengthwise, cut the carrot into 4 cm matchsticks, and cut the bok choy into 2 cm wide pieces.
- 3
Put the sesame oil and everything from step 2 into a microwave-safe dish and mix well. Cover with plastic wrap and microwave at 1200W for about 3 minutes 30 seconds (7 minutes at 600W).
- 4
Add the water (microwave amount), soy sauce, mirin, sugar, garlic paste and sesame seeds to the dish from step 3 and mix everything together. Spread the pork from step 1 over the top in a single layer. Cover again with plastic wrap and microwave at 1200W for about 1 minute 30 seconds (3 minutes at 600W).
- 5
Break up the pork with a wooden spatula and stir it into the vegetables, then microwave uncovered at 1200W for about 2 minutes 30 seconds (5 minutes at 600W).
- 6
Spoon the bulgogi from step 5 over bowls of cooked rice.
Nutrition
| Per | 1 serving | 1 adult serving | Your total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Energy | 369 kcal | 738 kcal | 369 kcal |
| Protein | 11.6 g | 23.1 g | 11.6 g |
| Fat | 7.2 g | 14.4 g | 7.2 g |
| Carbohydrates | 71.1 g | 142.2 g | 71.1 g |
| Salt equivalent | 0.5 g | 0.9 g | 0.5 g |
| Calcium | 34.5 mg | 69 mg | 34.5 mg |
| Iron | 1 mg | 2.1 mg | 1 mg |
| Energy | Protein | Fat | Carbs | Salt equiv. | Calcium | Iron | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 serving | 369 kcal | 11.6 g | 7.2 g | 71.1 g | 0.5 g | 34.5 mg | 1 mg |
| 1 adult serving | 738 kcal | 23.1 g | 14.4 g | 142.2 g | 0.9 g | 69 mg | 2.1 mg |
Values are per serving (1.5× the Japanese preschool portion); an adult serving is double. They were calculated by a licensed Japanese nutritionist using the Standard Tables of Food Composition in Japan. "Salt equivalent" is sodium × 2.54, the standard Japanese measure. Allergen flags cover egg, milk and wheat only and come from the nutritionist's records. Soy sauce and miso are made with wheat but are usually allowed on Japanese wheat-free school menus, so check with your doctor.
