My Go-To Korean Shredded Beef
If you’re craving something tender, saucy, and full of flavor this Korean shredded beef is your answer. It’s rich, savory-sweet, and perfectly melt-in-your-mouth thanks to a beautifully balanced pear-ginger gochujang sauce. You can make it in the Instant Pot, crockpot, or oven, and serve it in rice bowls, tacos, burritos, pizzas and more.
Erica’s Thoughts
I love hosting and having dinner parties. But when it is a lot of people, I can definitely get overwhelmed. Having the neighbors over for dinner is fine and dandy, but when you’re cooking for a Hugh Jass family of 40, it’s a whole different story. That’s how I became absolutely obsessed with this recipe. Whenever I have to cook for a crowd (ahem, my Hugh Jass family), I am immediately drawn to beef chuck roast + Instant Pot or pork shoulder + Instant Pot. My two go-tos are this Mexican shredded beef and/or pork carnitas for tacos OR this Korean shredded beef for rice bowls or burritos.
I make this beef every year for our huge summer camping trip (where I’m cooking for 40 people) and serve it with rice, cucumbers, edamame, green onions, kimchi, sriracha mayo, peanuts and sesame seeds for a DIY bowl buffet. If I have fewer people, I’ll assemble burritos with all of the same ingredients, toast them on the griddle and pretend we’re eating from a fusion-style taco truck. So good.
The flavors are based on traditional Korean marinades that use pears, garlic, ginger, soy sauce and a sweetener like brown sugar or palm sugar. I like to bump up the flavor even more with Gochujang and toasted sesame oil.
The versatility of this beef knows no bounds- it’s great for a weeknight dinner, meal prep, camping or cooking for a crowd. Y’all are gonna love it!
What You’ll Need to Make Korean Shredded Beef
- Beef chuck roast: Beef chuck roast (what you generally use for pot roast) is easy to find and nearly any grocery store. Other cuts you could use are boneless short ribs or bottom round roast.
- Pears: It’s pear season for me right now, so I use a few fresh Bartlett pears. If you don’t have fresh, canned works.
- Low-sodium soy sauce: If you are gluten-free, you can use tamari or coconut aminos.
- Brown sugar: Adds a caramelized sweetness that balances the spice. Can substitute honey or maple syrup.
- Gochujang: Gochujang sauce is a Korean condiment that adds subtle spice, depth and just a little sweetness. It’s quite common nowadays and you can find it in the international foods aisle of most regular grocery stores. If not, you can find it at your local Asian market. I like the Bibigo brand.
- Ginger: Freshly grated ginger or as a shortcut, I like the ginger paste in the tube (next to the fresh herbs in the produce section).
- Garlic: Fresh garlic cloves or garlic paste please, for the best flavor.
- Toasted sesame oil: Toasted sesame oil adds nutty richness that rounds out the sauce. Find in the the Asian foods aisle.
How to Make this Korean Beef Recipe:
Cut the roast into large chunks, trimming away the thick pieces of fat.
Pat dry and season with salt and pepper, then place in the Instant Pot.
Blend pears, soy sauce, brown sugar, gochujang, ginger, garlic, and sesame oil until smooth. Pour over the beef and toss to coat.
Pressure cook on high for 70 minutes, then quick or natural release. Remove the beef, shred with forks, and simmer the sauce on sauté mode until thickened by half.
Return the beef to the pot and toss until glossy and coated.
Serve over rice, noodles, or in burritos, tacos, pizza, or eggs. It’s incredibly versatile and makes amazing leftovers.
How to serve Korean Shredded Beef
- as a rice bowl
- wrapped in flour tortillas as a fusion-style burrito
- as a filling for tacos paired with cucumber cabbage slaw
- piled in lettuce wraps with kimchi, peanuts and avocado
- on top of pizza with mozzarella cheese, kimchi and green onions
- paired with cauliflower rice and your favorite toppings to make low-carb Korean beef bowls as low-carb Korean beef bowls
FAQs
Use a squeeze of sriracha or chili garlic paste, or omit entirely if you don’t care for spice. The recipe will still be yum!
Use coconut aminos or tamari instead of soy sauce.
Refer to the recipe notes for instructions on making this in the crockpot or the oven.
Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days.
Yep, this is one of my very favorite meal prep freezer recipes.
1) You can cut the meat, blend the sauce, and pour the sauce over the meat chunks in a gallon Ziploc bag and freeze up to 6 months. When you’re ready to cook, dump the whole shebang in the Instant Pot. This is the option I would take if I were prepping this for my family or for a post-partum friend.
2) Fully prep, cook and shred the meat. Place cooked, shredded beef in a Ziploc bag or vacuum-sealed container, reserving a bit of the liquid separately to add when you reheat and ‘re-hydrate’ the meat. This is what I do when I prep this recipe for a trip or camping.
Asian slaw, edamame salad, gochujang fried rice, chili garlic noodles.
No more guessing what to make for guests—send out the invite, your menu is set!
If you try and like this recipe please don’t forget to leave a comment and star rating down below! If you love more lifestyle, behind the scenes and ‘eating in real life’ type of content come find me over on Instagram, @itsaflavorfullife, I love connecting with you all there!
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My Go-To Korean Shredded Beef
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 70 minutes
- Total Time: 85 minutes
- Yield: 10 servings 1x
- Category: Beef
- Method: Instant Pot or Slow Cooker
- Cuisine: Korean-Inspired
Description
Fall-apart tender Korean shredded beef that tastes like comfort food with minimal effort. Easy to make, wildly flavorful, and perfect for both busy nights or impressive dinner parties.
Ingredients
- 4lb beef chuck roast
- salt and peppe
- 2 small ripe pears, cut into chunks or 1 14oz can pears, drained
- 1/2 cup low-sodium soy sauce
- 1/3 cup brown sugar
- 2 tablespoons gochujang sauce
- 2-inch knob fresh ginger, roughly chopped or 1 tablespoon ginger paste
- 5 cloves garlic, roughly chopped
- 2 teaspoons toasted sesame oil
Instructions
- Using a sharp chef’s knife, cut the roast into about 8 pieces, trimming away the very large sinewy pieces of fat. No need to be perfect, just trim away the biggest pieces and discard. Pat the meat dry with a paper towel and season with salt and pepper. Place meat in the Instant Pot.
- In a blender or food processor, blend together 2 chopped ripe pears, ½ cup low-sodium soy sauce, ⅓ cup brown sugar, 2 tablespoons gochujang sauce, 2-inch knob fresh ginger, 5 cloves roughly chopped garlic and 2 teaspoons of toasted sesame oil until smooth and creamy. Pour the sauce over the meat, tossing so it is well coated.
- Set the Instant Pot to pressure cook for 70 minutes, followed by natural or quick release. Remove the pieces of meat to a cutting board and set the Instant Pot to sauté mode for 20 minutes, until the liquids are reduced by half.
- While the liquid is reducing, use tongs or two forks to shred the beef. It should be very tender and fall apart. Turn off the Instant Pot and return the meat to the reduced juices, tossing until evenly coated.
- Serve on rice bowls, in burritos, tacos, pizzas, potatoes or eggs. The sky is truly the limit.
Notes
Refer to above blog post for step-by-step photos and answers to frequently asked questions and substitutions.
Crockpot instructions: Add the trimmed, seasoned beef to the slow cooker. Pour the blended pear-ginger sauce over top and toss to coat. Cover and cook on low for 8 hours or high for 4-5 hours, until the meat is tender and shreds easily. While you shred the meat and simmer the liquid in a saucepan over medium heat until reduced by half, if desired. Return meat and liquid to the crockpot and toss to combine.
Oven instructions: Place the beef in a Dutch oven or baking dish, pour the sauce over top, and toss to coat. Cover tightly with a lid or foil and bake at 325°F for 3-3½ hours, until fork-tender. Remove the beef to shred and reduce the liquids on the stovetop over medium heat, until reduced by half. Return meat to juices, tossing to coat.
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Nutrition
- Serving Size: about 2/3 cup cooked, shredded beef with juices
- Calories: 293
- Sugar: 10.4 g
- Sodium: 511.3 mg
- Fat: 9.2 g
- Carbohydrates: 13.9 g
- Fiber: 1.1 g
- Protein: 36.9 g
- Cholesterol: 107.2 mg
Duuuuude so excited that this one has hit the blog!
I have eaten this dish (prepared by Erica herself) a couple of times and it is SO GOOD and my children love it!
Absolutely delicious as a wrap or a bowl.
Yaaassss, was literally thinking about you! It’s about time! this is an easy add to your list since you know both your kids go crazy for the meat haha