auntie alice's galbi jim

last christmas my aunt alice made a wonderful beef dish in a slow cooker. the meat was very tender and packed with flavour! in korea, meat is rarely eaten the way it is in america; usually it is presented as a side dish instead of the centerpiece of the meal. this dish is so flavourful that you only need a little bit with rice... and you really must eat it with rice so you can soak up all the lovely sauce! (:



aunt alice's galbi jim
serves 12 as a side, 8 as a main

2.3 kg chuck roast or brisket
900 g steamed small yellow potatoes (optional)
handful of shiitake mushrooms (optional)
2 medium-sized yellow onions, cut in half
1 small or medium-sized korean radish, peeled and cut into big chunks
5 carrots, peeled and cut into chunks
1 cup broccoli or brussels sprouts, cut into bite-sized pieces
10 garlic cloves, peeled
2 peeled slices of ginger, about 3 cm each
1 cup soy sauce (regular, not light)
1 cup granulated sugar or palm sugar
1/8 or 1/4 tsp ground black pepper
pinch of salt

wash the meat, trim off the fat, and cut it into big chunks. heat a nonstick frying pan on medium-high heat and sear the meat chunks for about 30 seconds on each side, then put them in the slow cooker with 5 garlic pieces and the ginger pieces. cook the seared meat on the low setting for about 4-6 hours until the meat is cooked. the meat should be intact and the broth should not be a reddish color.

on the same nonstick frying pan on medium-high heat, lightly cook the radish, carrots, yellow onions with 5 garlic pieces and add pinch of salt. do not fully cook the vegetables.

drain all but 2 cups of the meat broth from the slow cooker, reserving the rest for use in another recipe. add cooked vegetables, broccoli or brussel sprouts and add the rest of the ingredients. if using dried shiitake mushrooms then add them now, but if they are fresh then add them a few minutes before serving. cook on high for about 2-3 hours or you can cook on the low setting for a few more hours, depending on when you are serving. (: