Korean Style Steak Bites
Recipe by mingling trays @mingling_trays
Story & Photographs by Bori Kim
Perhaps, ketchup is the most common, universal language on the table. Across the borders, everyone speaks it—and they love it. From fries to omelettes, from Irish meatballs to Japanese omurice, even to Korean chop steak, it is the must on the table or in the fridge.
When it comes to ketchup, however, we have not tasted sweetness from fresh tomatoes. If you walk through the condiment aisle, you won’t see real tomatoes inside the bottle of ketchup—please, look into the label of each bottle very carefully. We’ve consumed sweetness-like from the corn syrup all these years. Knowing this isn’t even close to “fresh” or natural, I had given up on ketchup for a long time.
One afternoon, I walked into Home Goods, just to look around. I didn’t mean to buy anything, but then something grabbed my attention. I stopped at the gourmet aisle. A country-style bottle looked into my eyes. I carefully put this bottle in my hand and began to read it.
“Tomato Puree, Sugar, Onion, Distilled Vinegar, Raisin, Sun Dried Tomato,
Salt, Spices, Ground Mustard Seed, and Habanero Powder with Citric Acid.”
I couldn’t say a word, but wait…there’s no corn syrup.
I had to read it again.
Pause.
Who are you? You have all my favorites—tomato, onion, raisin. Yes, sun dried tomato, even mustard seed. And, finally habanero—that is one of my life-saving ingredients—absolutely glorious.
I loved it.
I had to get it.
Only one bottle left on a shelf.
Before anyone else does, I had to get it—Judge Casey’s Famously Thick Ketchup.
Later that evening, my mom and I opened it and tried. We both rolled our eyes, and nodded. This is a perfect bottle of sauce—of course, more than a bottle of ketchup. We first had this with Korean grilled pork just as dipping sauce. Then, we thought of our old recipes. For Koreans, even for many Asians, teriyaki sauce, oyster sauce, or A1 is all they’ve got for cooking. Here, however, we have found such an excellent sauce carefully crafted with all-natural ingredients. That may cross the borders, from Irish to Korean. Or Korean to Irish.
So, here it comes—when Korean meets Irish, those flavors speak for themselves. They all speak one common language, Judge Casey’s Famously Thick Ketchup!
Ingredients
1.2lb (or 550g) Rib Eye Steak (cut into chunks or bite size)
3-4 Garlic Cloves (chopped or minced) - depending on how much you love garlic
1 Small Onion (or ½ of regular size)
½ Red Onion
½ Green Bell Pepper
½ Yellow Bell Pepper
½ Red Bell Pepper
Salt & Pepper
2 Tablespoons Olive Oil
*substitutes: stir-fried tofu or shrimp
Sauce
½ cup Judge Casey’s Ketchup
-Feisty Habanero or Truly Original
1 tablespoon Korean Soy Sauce
1/3 cup Dark Muscovado Sugar
1/3 (or ½ ) teaspoon Crushed Red Pepper (or Korean hot pepper, chopped)
Instructions
Preparation
Step One: Cut rib-eye steak and add a little salt and pepper with two tablespoons of olive oil.
Step Two: Place all the sauce ingredients in a bowl and mix them well. Set it aside.
Cooking
Step Three: Once the pan is heated, sear the rib-eye steak for about minute or two (rare to medium rare). Set it aside to rest.
Step Four: Stir chopped garlic and onion until they’re golden-brownish.
(or until the aroma fills your kitchen)
Step Five: Stir bell peppers along with garlic and onions until the veggies are crisp and tender.
Step Six: Pour sauce in the pan.
When it begins to bubble, place the steak back in the pan until it turns a brownish color or up to your preference, either medium or medium-to-well-done.
Step Seven: Serve it in a cast-iron skillet or just on a simple plate.
*optional: if you love butter, and we do! One tablespoon of butter will give you a sense of joy.
