Epic Gimbap Recipe (Kimbap)!
Today we are making gimbap!!! Gimbap is one of my absolute favorite food from Korea, I have eaten countless gimbap throughout my 38 years of life from Korea to America, and I have made countless gimbap recipes at home. Nowadays, there are many restaurants specializing in gimbap and various and unique gimbap in Korea, but when I was growing up in Korea, gimbap restaurant wasn’t a thing. So all I knew about gimbap was my mom’s and my friends’ moms’ gimbap. Every family had different recipes, ingredients, tips, and tricks to make it perfect. Of course, my mom had a couple of secrets, too, for her gimbap recipe.
My mom’s secret gimbap recipe key points were seasoning the rice and adding ground beef bulgogi. Nowadays, it’s common to season rice for gimbap, but back then, not everyone did that. Also, bulgogi gimbap is the most popular and known gimbap menu these days, but back then, most moms made gimbap with ham, and that was classic. Adding bulgogi to gimbap was very rare, and all my classmates and even teachers wanted to swap my mom’s gimbap with their classic ham gimbap. Growing up, my other favorite gimbap were tuna gimbap, cheese gimbap, and kimchi gimbap. After so many gimbap restaurants opened up and my sisters and I were all grown up, my mom stopped making gimbap at home. I understand because gimbap can be lots of work. I still do miss my mom’s gimbap she used to make back then, though.
I have a ground beef bulgogi recipe, bulgogi gimbap, tuna gimbap, cheese gimbap, and kimchi gimbap recipe so check it out if you are interested in!
Making plant-based gimbap wasn’t as easy as I thought. Yes, it can be easily turned into plant-based since there are a lot so veggies you can add, but those don’t taste like gimbap to me. It’s just rice rolls with a bunch of veggies. To me, gimbap has a complexity of textures, flavors, and fragrant, and recreating all those textures and flavors as gimbap that I grew up eating was pretty challenging. I made so many versions of plant-based gimbap, and the gimbap recipe I’m sharing today is definitely one of the best gimbap recipes I created.
Gimbap is definitely a food that takes a lot of time and effort, but the happiness of the person who eats it makes it all worthwhile. I tried my best to create this gimbap recipe as effortless and easy as possible, so I hope you don’t intimidate and give it a try! When you slice the gimbap and put that into your mouth, your loved ones’ mouth… you will say, “it was all worth it!!”
Bring a pot of water to a boil and add some salt. Blanch 10 green beans for 1 minute, then remove them from the pot and set aside. Undercook the green beans a bit so they will continuously cook with the residual heat.
Blanch 12 oz shredded carrots in the same boring salted water for 1 minute, then remove from the pot and set aside. Drain completely & spread to dry excess water. This is very important to prevent the kimbap from busting open.
Turn off the heat and dried shiitake into the pot. Let it sit for 15 to 20 minutes. 
Meanwhile, let’s shred & sliced the rest of the vegetables – 8 oz danmuji (Korean pickled radish), 1/4 head of purple cabbage, 3 oz yubu (fried beancurd), and 12 oz burdock.
you can substitute danmuji with any other pickled vegetables or my pickled radish & carrot recipe.
Burdock (as known as ueong or gobo) might be an unfamiliar ingredient for some of you. It’s a root vegetable that is often used in Korean and Japanese cooking. You can find them in Asian grocery stores, usually Korean or Japanese groceries. You can also find frozen ones. If you can’t find them, you can skip them. Wash and scrub the burdock (you can peel them, but I prefer just to scrub, not peel because lots of nutrition is in the skin) and shred with mandoline or your knife. Soak in lemon/vinegar water to prevent browning.
Let’s make egg omelets. Heat a non-stick rectangle-shaped skillet (you can use a regular round skillet, too) and pour 1/4 cup of plant-based liquid egg. (I used Justegg.) Roll it to the long side and set it aside. Repeat with the rest of the plant-based liquid egg. For regular eggs, just beat 5 eggs in a measuring cup and follow the same direction. Use oil as needed.
Now, remove the shiitake from the pot and squeeze all the excess water. Slice them thinly and set aside. Keep the veggie broth for later use, it makes great soup! Rinse off the pot real quick and bring it back to the stove.
Combine 1/4 cup soy sauce, 1/4 cup mirin, 1/4 cup sweetener (agave nectar, maple syrup, or sugar), 1 tsp mushroom seasoning, and 1 clove of crushed garlic in the now-clean pot. Turn on the heat to medium and bring it to a simmer. When it’s simmering, add sliced yubu (fried beancurd) and let them soak the flavor for 1 minute. Turn off the heat, and remove yubu from the pot using a strainer. Squeeze all the excess sauce & collect the sauce back into the pot. Again, this is very important to prevent the kimbap from busting open. Set aside.
Drain the shredded burdock from the lemon water and add to the same sauce we just cooked yubu in. Turn the heat back on to medium, and cook the burdock until fully cooked, about 5 to 6 minutes. Stir occasionally. Turn off the heat, remove the burdock from the pot using a strainer and set aside.
The pot now has about 3 tbsp of the sauce left. Turn the heat back on, add the sliced shiitake to the pot and cook until it absolves all the sauce, about 1 minute. Add the veggie broth as needed. Finish with a few drops of sesame oil and set aside.
All the fillings for the gimbap are ready!! I know it’s a lot, but gimbap is much tastier when various ingredients are added to create complex textures and flavors! You can always add or omit the ingredients to your taste because you can add anything and everything to gimbap. This is just my personal favorite fillings for gimbap!
Bring warm cooked rice in a large mixing bowl, and add salt, sugar, black pepper, sesame seeds, and sesame oil to season. Mix well and cover with a kitchen towel to prevent the rice from drying out and cooling too fast.
Place one seaweed sheet on a work surface, rough side up. Spread 1/2 cup of seasoned rice on top of the seaweed and leave about 1 inch exposed at the top edge. Overwrap another sheet of seaweed about 1 inch and press down so it will stick.
Arrange a handful of each ingredient on top of 2nd layer of the seaweed sheet (where’s no rice).
Place your thumbs under seaweed to support and hold the filing tightly with the rest of your fingers. Start rolling the kimbap, give a little pressure and make it as tight as possible. Make sure the 2nd layer of seaweed wraps the filling ingredients completely before rolling with the rice-spread seaweed. Repeat with the rest of the ingredients. This recipe will make five kimbap.
Coat the kimbap with plenty of sesame oil and slice it into 9 to 10 pieces. If you coat your knife with sesame oil, too, it will be easier to slice. Sprinkle some sesame seeds, and enjoy!
Kimbap is the best when it’s freshly made, can’t be made a day ahead. But if you have leftover kimbap, keep it in the fridge, and the next day, coat it with beaten egg and pan-fry them. It’s kimbap jeon, so delicious!
Epic Gimbap (Kimbap)
- Total Time: 55 mins
- Yield: 5 Gimbap 1x
Ingredients
- 10 green beans
- 3 medium size carrots (approximately 12 oz), shredded
- 10 to 12 dried shiitake mushrooms
- 8 oz danmuji, Korean pickled radish or pickled radish & carrot (you can substitute with any other pickled vegetables)
- 1/4 head of purple cabbage, shredded
- 1 1/4 cup plant-based liquid egg (I used Justegg) or 5 large eggs
- 1/4 cup soy sauce
- 1/4 cup mirin
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 1 tsp mushroom seasoning
- 1 clove garlic, crushed
- 3 oz yubu, fried beancurd, sliced
- 12 oz burdock, shredded (Place in lemon water to prevent browning)
- 2 1/2 cups warm cooked rice
- 1 tsp salt
- 2 tsp sugar
- Pinch of black pepper
- 2 tsp sesame seeds
- 2 tsp sesame oil
- 10 dried & toasted seaweed sheets
Instructions
- Bring a pot of water to a boil and add some salt. Blanch green beans for 1 minute, then remove them from the pot and set aside. Blanch shredded carrots in the same boring salted water for 1 minute, then remove from the pot and set aside. Drain completely & spread to dry excess water. This is very important to prevent the kimbap from busting open. Turn off the heat and dried shiitake into the pot. Let it sit for 15 to 20 minutes.
- Meanwhile, let’s shred & sliced the rest of the vegetables and make an egg omelet. Heat a non-stick rectangle-shaped skillet (you can use a regular round skillet, too) and pour 1/4 cup of plant-based liquid egg. Roll it to the long side and set it aside. Repeat with the rest of the plant-based liquid egg. For regular eggs, just beat all the eggs in a measuring cup and follow the same direction. Use oil as needed
- Now, remove the shiitake from the pot and squeeze all the excess water. Slice them thinly and set aside. Keep the veggie broth for later use, it makes great soup! Rinse off the pot real quick and bring it back to the stove.
- Combine soy sauce, mirin, sugar, mushroom seasoning, and garlic in the now-clean pot. Turn on the heat to medium and bring it to a simmer. When it’s simmering, add sliced yubu and let them soak the flavor for 1 minute. Turn off the heat, and remove yubu from the pot using a strainer. Squeeze all the excess sauce & collect the sauce back into the pot. Again, this is very important to prevent the kimbap from busting open. Set aside.
- Drain the shredded burdock from the lemon water and add to the same sauce we just cooked yubu in. Turn the heat back on to medium, and cook the burdock until fully cooked, about 5 to 6 minutes. Stir occasionally. Turn off the heat, remove the burdock from the pot using a strainer and set aside.
- The pot now has about 3tbsp of the sauce left. Turn the heat back on, add the sliced shiitake to the pot and cook until it absolves all the sauce, about 1 minute. Add the veggie broth as needed. Finish with a few drops of sesame oil and set aside.
- Bring warm cooked rice in a large mixing bowl, and add salt, sugar, black pepper, sesame seeds, and sesame oil to season. Mix well and cover with a kitchen towel to prevent the rice from drying out and cooling too fast.
- Place one seaweed sheet on a work surface, rough side up. Spread 1/2 cup of seasoned rice on top of the seaweed and leave about 1 inch exposed at the top edge. Overwrap another sheet of seaweed about 1 inch and press down so it will stick. Arrange a handful of each ingredient on top of 2nd layer of the seaweed sheet (where’s no rice).
- Place your thumbs under seaweed to support and hold the filing tightly with the rest of your fingers. Start rolling the kimbap, give a little pressure and make it as tight as possible. Make sure the 2nd layer of seaweed wraps the filling ingredients completely before rolling with the rice-spread seaweed. Repeat with the rest of the ingredients. This recipe will make five gimbap.
- Coat the gimbap with plenty of sesame oil and slice it into 9 to 10 pieces. If you coat your knife with sesame oil, too, it will be easier to slice. Sprinkle some sesame seeds, and enjoy!
Notes
Gimbap is the best when it’s freshly made, can’t be made a day ahead. But if you have leftover gimbap, keep it in the fridge, and the next day, coat it with beaten egg and pan-fry them. It’s gimbap jeon, so delicious!
- Prep Time: 45 mins
- Cook Time: 10 mins
1 comment
Food for thought. Plant-based carrot & tempeh bacon. Sweet potato noodle.