This recipe for Korean BBQ Tacos is marinated and seared beef layered with cabbage slaw and marinated cucumbers, all tucked into warm flour tortillas. A unique take on taco night that’s a real crowd pleaser!
You can never go wrong with tacos, from fish tacos to carne asada, they’re sure to be a hit. This Korean BBQ taco recipe is unexpected, but easy to make. It’ll be sure to earn you rave reviews!
Every Sunday night my whole family gets together for dinner – the kids play, the adults catch up, and it’s a great way to relax before a busy week! Recently it was my turn to host. I often cook comfort food classics, but decided to do something a little unexpected this time around. Taco night is always a hit, so I took that concept and spiced it up a bit with Korean BBQ tacos. The tacos were a huge hit, and I paired them with a lime and ginger iced tea to make the meal even more special.
How do you make Korean BBQ tacos?
These Korean BBQ tacos are as fun to make as they are to eat. To start, I marinate thinly sliced beef in a simple soy, garlic and ginger mixture. While the beef is cooking, I whip up a simple slaw and some quick pickled cucumbers. All of the different flavors and textures get layered into flour tortillas and dinner is served!
Tips for Korean beef tacos
- I use a tender cut of beef such as flank steak, sirloin or New York strip.
- Place your meat in the freezer for 20-30 minutes before you slice it. The meat will firm up from being partially frozen and it makes it much easier to get thin, even slices.
- You can use a bag of pre-shredded coleslaw mix to save time.
- I typically use small Persian cucumbers, but chopped larger English cucumbers would also be great.
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Korean BBQ Tacos
Ingredients
- For the beef:
- 1 1/4 pounds thinly sliced beef such as sirloin or flank steak
- 1/4 cup soy sauce
- 2 tablespoons brown sugar
- 3 cloves of minced garlic
- 2 teaspoons minced fresh ginger
- 1/2 teaspoon red chile flakes optional
- salt and pepper to taste
- 2 teaspoons vegetable oil
- For the slaw:
- 2 cups shredded green cabbage
- 1 cup shredded purple cabbage
- 1/2 cup shredded carrots
- 1 tablespoon lime juice
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1/4 cup thinly sliced green onions
- salt and pepper to taste
- For the pickled cucumbers:
- 1 cup very thinly sliced cucumbers I use the small persian cucumbers
- 2 tablespoons rice vinegar
- 1/2 teaspoon sugar
- salt to taste
- 8 small flour tortillas.
Instructions
- In a resealable bag combine the soy sauce, brown sugar, garlic, ginger, chile flakes and salt and pepper to taste. Add beef, seal the bag, and shake to coat the meat in the marinade.
- Marinate the meat for at least 15 minutes or up to 2 hours.
- In a small bowl, combine the cucumbers, rice vinegar, sugar and salt to taste. Cover and refrigerate for at least 15 minutes, or up to 4 hours.
- Heat the vegetable oil in a large pan over high heat. Add the beef in a single layer and cook for 4-5 minutes until beef is cooked through and starting to brown.
- While the beef is cooking, make the slaw. In a medium bowl, combine the green cabbage, purple cabbage, carrots, lime juice, olive oil and green onions. Toss until thoroughly mixed. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
- To assemble place 8 flour tortillas on a flat surface. Fill each tortilla with approximately 1/4 cup slaw and evenly divide the beef over the tortillas. Top each taco with approximately 2 tablespoons of pickled cucumbers and serve.
Nutrition
This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of Lipton. The opinions and text are all mine.
stephanie says
November 12, 2017 at 5:17 pmI made these a week or so ago for my roommates and myself we really loved them! we love korean food but were a little scared to try some korean fusion but they turned out so good the beef marinade was great and the pickled cucumbers complimented it so well. I will definitely be making these again soon!
Ann says
February 28, 2017 at 1:00 pmAlso, dark or light brown sugar?
Ann says
February 28, 2017 at 12:22 pmHello, do you marry made the beef already cut up in pieces or do you marinade it as a full steak and then cut it after it’s cooked ?
Sara says
February 28, 2017 at 4:03 pmI cut up the meat first then marinate it. You can use light or dark brown sugar, it doesn’t matter in this recipe!
Tammy says
October 19, 2016 at 7:47 pmWhat do you serve as a side/sides to go with this?
Sara says
October 19, 2016 at 10:44 pmYou can serve it with an asian inspired salad (lettuce, cucumber, carrots, bell pepper, mandarin oranges, sesame seeds, etc) or a side of rice, like a simple steamed rice or something like this fried rice: https://www.dinneratthezoo.com/veggie-fried-rice/
Cathy says
August 31, 2016 at 3:32 pmMade these tonight for dinner. Yum!
Heather @Bostongirlbakes says
August 29, 2016 at 12:14 pmPutting this on the need to make for dinner this week list!!
Greg says
July 27, 2016 at 10:37 pmLooks great! The crunch from the cucumbers and cabbage make all the difference.
Angela says
July 27, 2016 at 6:56 amWhat type of beef do you use?
Sara says
July 27, 2016 at 1:28 pmI use thinly sliced sirloin or flank steak!
Sue | My Korean Kitchen says
July 26, 2016 at 10:45 pmIt looks and sounds delicious! Perfect for this grilling season!
cheri says
July 25, 2016 at 6:40 amLove that youpickled cucumbers with these tacos, such a nice touch. Pinned!
Sam says
July 23, 2016 at 5:18 pmThese tacos make my mouth water! The iced tea also sounds great!
Ellie says
July 23, 2016 at 8:13 amWhat type of beef do you recommend?
Harley Ryan says
November 5, 2016 at 1:42 pmFilet minion
Debbie says
July 22, 2016 at 10:15 pmGreat looking tacos! I’m going to try the ice tea tomorrow as CA is having a heat wave!
Bea says
July 22, 2016 at 11:47 amWow tacos and ice tea… What could be better!
Tricia @ Saving room for dessert says
July 22, 2016 at 6:26 amI love Sunday dinners and we’ve started having them once a month – at my house 🙂 I’ll have to make these because everybody would love them! They are so pretty too and now I’m craving a great big glass of ice cold tea!!!
Jennifer @ Seasons and Suppers says
July 22, 2016 at 6:04 amBeef tacos are my husband’s favourites, so I will definitely make these for him, especially, soon! They look delicious!!