Korean Bibimbap - for the ultimate vegetarians

Vegetarian version of a Korean household bowl-meal

I had a vague perception that Korean cuisine is an assortment of only meat and rice and that there would be nothing special that a vegetarian would relish; until last month, when the canteen in my office served this delicious, all-encompassing bowl meal - Bibimbap. Ha ha!

But seriously, I fell in love with this dish immediately and HAD to try it at home. This is a dish filled with colors, flavors and freshness of the ingredients.

I wouldn't totally agree with the sources suggesting this to be comfort food because it does take time and effort to prepare it. Nevertheless, its versatility makes it suitable for all kind of cooks. 'Bibimbap' translates into mixed rice, and is essentially a rice-dish with a variety of side-dishes. Every ingredient is cooked individually, but once served on the plate, they are supposed to be mixed together. 

Traditionally, this dish is made with left overs in an earthenware pot but can alternatively be prepared without it, as I did. This recipe is inspired by the famous Korean Chef - 'Maangchi'. I was really happy with how it turned out and in some ways even better than what I had first tried in my canteen. I have made two versions here - one with and one without a sunny-side-up egg.

Try it out when you want to treat your taste buds with a burst of flavors and when you have some time to spare! 

THE RECIPE

Category: Lunch / Dinner

Style: Korean

Servings: 2

Ingredients:

 - 1 cup carrot, cut into thin strips

 - 1 cup red bell pepper, cut into thin strips

 - 1 cup cucumber, cut into half-moons

 - 1 cup zucchini, cut into half-moons

 - 1 cup mushrooms, cut into half-moons

 - 1 cup spinach, blanched

 - 1 cup Asian bean-sprouts, cooked in  boiling water for 15 minutes

 - 1/2 cup green onions, chopped

 - 1 egg, optional

 - 2 tablespoons roasted white sesame seeds

 - 2 tablespoons garlic, minced

 - sesame oil for cooking

 - soy sauce for cooking

 - salt for seasoning

 - 2 cups cooked rice

Bibimbap Sauce:

 - 3 tablespoons Korean Gojuchang sauce, found in Asian supermarkets

 - 1 teaspoon sugar

 - 2 teaspoons soy sauce

 - 1 teaspoon garlic

 - 2 teaspoons white rice vinegar

 - 1 teaspoon roasted white sesame seeds

 - 1 teaspoon sesame oil

Instructions:

1. Coat the carrots, zucchini and cucumber with salt, each in a separate bowl and keep aside.

2. Remove the excess water from the carrots after a while. In a pan, cook the carrots with garlic and salt until half-cooked.

3. Clean the pan with a wet tissue. Cook the red bell peppers with garlic and salt. Add a little bit of sesame oil in the end.

4. Remove excess water from cucumber and zucchini  as well and cook them separately in a similar manner with preferred seasoning as above. Ensure to clean the pan between each ingredient to avoid mixing of the flavors.

5. Add sesame oil and mushrooms to the pan and cook it with soy sauce, green onions and sesame seeds.

6. Cook the spinach with the seasoning of choice as above.

7. For the sauce, mix all the ingredients listed under 'Bibimbap sauce' in a bowl and mix well.

8. Take a deep bowl or plate and assemble all the ingredients as shown in the pictures, with rice heaped in the middle. Top the rice with the Bibimbap sauce and serve.

9. Top it with a sunny side up egg for a wholesome platter.

Notes:

 - As mentioned earlier, this dish is for every cook. Feel free to play with the seasoning of different ingredients. Even try different condiments!

German Canteen Version versus Home-made Version of Korean Bibimbap