Korean Ground Beef

This Korean ground beef recipe is the kind of dish that both beginning and experienced cooks need in their life.

The meal comes together in minutes and is full of fantastic flavors. It is easier to make than ordering take-out, saves you money, and tastes better too!

Cheater Korean Beef - recipe by Barefeet In The Kitchen

Easy Korean Beef

I love so many things about this recipe! This has been one of my favorite takeout meals for a long time. Good Korean beef is salty, savory, sweet, tangy, and spicy all at once.

Everything is simple enough to be found in most grocery stores, too. No running around town looking for hard-to-find ingredients. (Who has time for that?)

The recipe I’m sharing today is a “cheater” version because it uses ground beef instead of the more traditional (and expensive) cuts of meat. This dish includes our favorite Asian ingredients, including fresh ginger.

The fact that this super easy Korean beef is made with ground beef instead of a more expensive cut of meat makes it a really great alternative to pricier meats when you are craving Chinese food or an Asian meal.

Best of all, you can make this recipe from start to finish in less than 20 minutes.

Korean Beef and Rice

I’ve served this over rice, wrapped in lettuce, and on top of a salad. Korean ground beef and rice bowls make for a crowd-pleasing dinner or lunch. It packs up wonderfully in to-go containers to take to work or school and reheats beautifully.

We like this so very much that I’ve taken to doubling the recipe every time I make it just to ensure we have leftovers. I get absolutely giddy when I’m wondering what to serve for lunch and remember I have a container of Korean Beef waiting in the fridge.

Your favorite takeout place is going to start missing you once this Korean ground beef is in your meal rotation. It’s so easy, flavorful, and economical that you’ll wonder where this recipe has been all your life.

And if you love Korean food as much as we do, you need to put beef bulgogi on your list to make soon too!

Korean Ground Beef

I’ve tried a few different recipes for Korean beef over the years. So, when my friend Amy told me about this Cheater Korean Beef, I made it the very next day.

It turns out that this is a very popular recipe and to the best of my knowledge, it started here with this Korean beef recipe from Lizzy Writes. (Thanks, Lizzy!)

We were in the middle of moving at the time and over the following month, I made this for dinner four more times. It really is one of the easiest dinners that you can make.

My family has quite a few “favorite” easy meals so, as you can imagine, that says a lot about how much we enjoyed this Korean ground beef recipe.

This is the perfect dinner for busy nights when you just don’t have much time to think about what you’re going to be eating. My kids still cheer when they see this on the stove, even after eating it countless times over the past few years.

cheater korean beef in skillet with wooden spoon

Kitchen Tip: I use this rice cooker and this skillet to make this recipe.

Korean Ground Beef Recipe

You’ll need the following ingredients to make this:

sesame oil
ground beef
garlic
fresh ginger
light brown sugar
cornstarch
soy sauce
chili paste
kosher salt, ONLY if needed
frozen peas
green onions

My first choice when making this recipe is to slice the ginger into tiny matchsticks for the best taste and texture combination. However, when I only have frozen ginger on hand, or when I simply don’t have an extra minute to slice it, it works beautifully to simply grate the ginger on a microplane.

ground beef with peas in a Korean inspired sauce

This dish reheats wonderfully and I’ve learned to double the recipe every time I make it. This is also an excellent freezer meal. Just freeze the cooked beef before you add the green onions.

After thawing and reheating, add the green onions on top when you’re ready to serve, if desired. Korean Beef is pretty much the ultimate in flavorful and frugal make-ahead meals.

Cheater Korean Beef - this simple recipe comes together in minutes and is full of fantastic flavors. It's easier than ordering take-out, saves you the money, and tastes better too!

If you’re looking for more lightning-fast, easy dinner recipes, check out the Kielbasa Cabbage Potato Skillet, the {Better Than Take Out} Beef and Broccoli Stir-Fry, and this Pizza Soup. My kids love every one of those recipes and my older boys can make them on their own too, making them even easier dinner nights for me.

I have Monterey Chicken, Turkey Taco Stuffed Sweet Potatoes, and Easy Skillet Lasagna on my list to try soon. Every one of these meals comes together in under 20 minutes.

For fellow enthusiasts of Asian-inspired recipes, I highly recommend trying Foodie with Family’s Chinese Pork Recipe for an upcoming weekend meal.

Korean Ground Beef

Korean Ground Beef is a simple meal that comes together in minutes. It's easier than ordering take-out, saves you money, and tastes better too!

Course Main Course

Cuisine American

Prep Time 5 minutes

Cook Time 15 minutes

Total Time 20 minutes

Servings servings

Calories 395kcal

Ingredients

1 tablespoon sesame oil
1 pounds ground beef
3-4 large cloves garlic minced
1 tablespoon fresh ginger cut into tiny matchsticks
¼ cup light brown sugar
2 teaspoons cornstarch
⅓ cup low-sodium soy sauce
2-3 teaspoons chili paste plus more, if desired
¼ teaspoon kosher salt ONLY if needed
1 cup frozen peas
3 green onions sliced thin

Instructions

Warm the oil in a large skillet over medium high heat. Brown the beef until cooked through, crumbling it as it browns. Drain thoroughly, then add the garlic and ginger and cook another minute or two until fragrant.
Whisk together the brown sugar, cornstarch, soy sauce, and chili paste. Pour the liquids over the beef, stir to combine, and bring to a simmer for 2 minutes to blend the flavors and slightly thicken the sauce.
Add the peas, stir and simmer a minute longer. The peas will thaw and warm in the hot skillet. Sprinkle with green onions before serving.

Notes

This dish reheats wonderfully. I’ve learned to double the recipe every time I make it. The beef freezes well too, just skip the green onions and sprinkle them on the top when ready to serve. Cheater Korean Beef is pretty much the ultimate in flavorful and frugal make-ahead meals.

A note about fresh ginger: My first choice when making this recipe is to slice the ginger into tiny matchsticks for the best taste and texture combination. However, when I only have frozen ginger on hand, or when I simply don’t have an extra minute to slice it, it works beautifully to simply grate the ginger on a microplane.