🇰🇷 Korean
Korean Beef Bulgogi Lettuce Wraps
⏱ 25 min (plus 30 min marinate)
🍞 ~7g
🍽 4 servings
⭐ 5/5
⚠️ Estimates only — not medical advice. Carb counts vary by brand and portion. Always verify with your endo or CDCES.
🌍 Cultural note
Bulgogi (불고기) — "fire meat" — is one of Korea's most beloved dishes, thin-sliced beef marinated in a sweet-savory sauce and seared fast and hot. Traditional ssam (lettuce wraps) are how Koreans have been eating it for centuries, which makes this one of the most naturally T1D-friendly dishes on the planet.
Why this recipe is T1D-friendly
- Lettuce wraps = essentially zero-carb vehicle
- Lean beef is pure protein — minimal glucose impact
- We cut the typical bulgogi sugar way back and let grated pear do the natural sweetening
Ingredients
- 1.5 lb thinly sliced ribeye or sirloin (ask the butcher for "shabu cut") (0g)
Marinade
- 1/2 Asian pear, grated (8g, split across servings)
- 1/4 cup low-sodium soy sauce (3g total)
- 2 tsp pure maple syrup (8g total, 2g per serving)
- 1 tbsp toasted sesame oil (0g)
- 3 cloves garlic, grated (2g)
- 1-inch piece ginger, grated (1g)
- 1/2 tsp black pepper (0g)
- 2 scallions, sliced (1g)
To serve
- 1 head butter lettuce or red leaf, leaves separated (1g per 2 leaves)
- Sliced cucumber (2g per 1/2 cup)
- Sesame seeds
- Optional dipping sauce: 1 tbsp soy + 1 tsp rice vinegar + 1 tsp sesame oil
Directions
- Whisk marinade ingredients in a large bowl.
- Add beef, toss to coat, marinate 30 min at room temp (or up to 4 hrs refrigerated).
- Heat a large skillet or cast iron over high heat until smoking hot.
- Working in batches (don't crowd!), sear beef 1-2 min per side. You want char, not steam.
- Transfer to a serving platter, sprinkle with sesame seeds.
- Build wraps at the table: lettuce leaf, a small pile of beef, cucumber, drizzle of dipping sauce, fold and eat.
Dash's kid tips 🐆
- Dash says: little hands love the "ssam game" — pile, fold, pop in mouth, repeat
- For tiny eaters, chop the beef smaller and skip the dipping sauce
- Leftover bulgogi over scrambled eggs the next morning = breakfast of T1D champions