Slow Cooker Korean Beef
Slow cooker Korean beef is tender, savory, slightly sweet, and kid-friendly. Inspired by the sweet-and-savory flavors of Korean bulgogi, this dump-and-go version uses pantry staples like honey, soy sauce, and gochujang. It’s an easy freezer meal that’s delicious served in rice bowls, tacos, lettuce wraps, or with simple sides.
Why We Love This Recipe
- Dump-and-Go: This easy dump-and-go meal comes together fast in the morning and slow cooks all day, so it’s ready in time for dinner.
- Family-Friendly: While you’ll enjoy interesting Korean-inspired flavors, we intentionally made this recipe not-too-spicy for families. For extra heat, I highly encourage using more gochujang at the end to garnish your dish. It’s delicious!
- Great for Meal Prep: Prep two roasts and freeze one for later, or portion the cooked, shredded beef with rice and veggies into individual containers for easy lunches all week long.
- Versatile: We’ll show you how to serve this flavorful beef in four different ways–bowls, tacos, lettuce wraps, or with simple sides! Plus, everyone can enjoy the toppings they want if you make Korean beef bowls or tacos.
Ingredients
You’ll need these ingredients from the store. See notes below…
Ingredient Notes
- Gochujang is a Korean fermented chili paste that gives the beef its savory, slightly sweet, spicy flavor. I found O’Food Gochujang Korean Chili Sauce from Walmart, which had clean ingredients. A sub could be Sriracha sauce.
- Ginger paste works great in place of fresh ginger as a shortcut.
- I grabbed minced dried onion from my pantry for this recipe, but you can certainly use finely chopped fresh onion instead. The onions will get nice and soft over that long cook time.
Testing Notes from Our Kitchens
I tested this three times in my kitchen + had my friend Casey test it on her family + our chef-trained photographer tested it on her family AND Polly tested in her kitchen too.
That’s six tests for you, friends. We want our recipes to work for you that much! :). Here’s what our team learned through all these trials:
- Low and slow is best. On HIGH, the roast took at least 5 hours to get fairly tender. Cooking it on LOW for 8–9 hours gave a much more tender texture, so choose LOW if you have the time.
- Season with pepper, not salt. The soy sauce brings plenty of salt. When we salted the roast before cooking, the finished beef was too salty. Instead, taste after shredding and add a pinch of salt then. It really brightens the flavors.
- A little broth balances the sauce. With a full cup of broth, the sauce tasted watered down. With no broth, the soy sauce was too strong. A third of a cup turned out to be just right.
- Choose your heat level. Two tablespoons of gochujang gives gentle warmth that kids can handle. A quarter cup makes it bolder and spicier, which is great for spice lovers but too much for little ones. Our favorite approach is to keep the slow cooker mild and add extra gochujang at the table.
- Mix the sauce right in the slow cooker. It saves a dish.
- Remove large pieces of fat before shredding. Then stir the shredded beef back into the sauce so it soaks up all that flavor.
- Our favorite toppings: kimchi was the standout. A fried egg was a big hit with the kids, and a drizzle of Bang Bang Sauce brings it all together.
- Plan for big appetites. My family of five, including two teen boys and my husband, had about one serving left over. If you’re feeding a crew of hungry teens, consider a 4-pound roast.
Step-by-Step Instructions
Find the full instructions in the printable recipe card below.
What to Serve with Korean Beef
For a simple dinner, serve with rice or rice noodles and a side like roasted broccoli or frozen stir-fry vegetables. Or use the shredded beef in one of these delicious ways:
Korean Beef Bowls
Serve over brown rice (or coconut rice) and offer toppings like kimchi (so good!), shredded carrots, sliced cucumber, pickled red onions, sliced green onions, sesame seeds (love the crunch!), gochujang sauce (a must-have), and/or a drizzle of non-traditional but really tasty Bang Bang Sauce. A fried or soft-boiled egg on top is a classic Korean-bowl move if you want to go further.
Korean Beef Tacos
Spoon the beef into warm tortillas and fill with toppings like rice, kimchi, pickled red onions, sliced green onions, sesame seeds, Bang Bang Sauce, and/or more gochujang.
Korean Beef Lettuce Wraps
You can tuck rice, shredded beef, and gochujang and/or Bang Bang Sauce into lettuce wraps like our Asian Chicken Lettuce Wraps. I like to use butter leaf lettuce or green leaf lettuce leaves.
Meal Prep Tips
This shredded beef works well for meal prepping easy lunches for the coming week.
- Slow cook the Korean Beef, cook the rice, and prep the toppings on Sunday.
- Portion the cooked, shredded beef along with some rice and veggies into individual meal prep containers.
- Keep your fresh toppings separate from the rice and beef, and then add those on top once the rest is heated up.
- Don’t forget to pack Bang Bang Sauce in small containers, too.
- Store for up to 5 days in the refrigerator.
How to Freeze Korean Beef (Two Ways!)
As you may know, we are huge freezer cooking evangelists and cookbook authors. So we test every recipe possible for freezer meal prep too.
We tested freezing this recipe two different ways, and they both work well.
Freeze for Later:
- Method 1 – Uncooked: To a gallon-sized freezer bag, add the beef broth, soy sauce, honey, rice vinegar, gochujang, sesame oil, minced onion, garlic, and ginger. Gently squeeze the bag to combine. Season the roast with salt and pepper and place in the bag with the sauce. Wash your hands and then seal, removing as much air as possible, and freeze.
- Method 2 – Fully Cooked: Fully cook the meal through Step 4. Let the shredded beef and sauce cool completely. (Safety Note: Do not let the meat sit on the counter for more than 2 hours.) Transfer to a freezer safe container, making sure the beef is covered with sauce, and freeze.
Prepare From Frozen:
- Method 1 – Uncooked: Thaw in the refrigerator for about 24 hours. Cook as directed.
- Method 2 – Fully Cooked: Use one of these safe thawing methods and then warm gently on the stove or in the microwave.
FAQs
Cut chuck roast into 2×2-inch pieces. Place in the Instant Pot and season well with salt and pepper. Cover with the sauce from Step 2. Lock and seal the lid. Cook for 30 minutes at high pressure with a natural release (aka: do not open the release valve; wait until the pin drops before opening). Follow step 4 to shred and serve.
Yes! Simply replace the soy sauce with coconut aminos or gluten-free tamari and look for a gluten-free gochujang. Taste and add more salt if needed.
What is Gochujang? And can I substitute it?
It’s a Korean fermented chili paste that gives the beef its savory, slightly sweet, spicy flavor. Find it in the Asian section of many larger grocery stores (I found mine at Walmart). A replacement could be Sriracha sauce.
Tightly cover and store leftovers in the refrigerator for up to 5 days or in the freezer for up to 3 months. If freezing, I suggest adding any leftover liquid from the slow cooker to the meat.
This is the kind of recipe we love most: dump it in the slow cooker in the morning, then let everyone build their own bowl at dinner. Keep it mild for the kids, pass the gochujang for the spice lovers, and don’t skip the kimchi. Let us know if you try it!
Slow Cooker Korean Beef
Ingredients
- 3 lb chuck roast (trimmed of excess fat)
- Ground black pepper (to taste)
- 1/2 cup low-sodium soy sauce
- 1/3 cup low sodium beef broth
- 1/4 cup honey
- 2 tablespoons gochujang (plus more to taste at end)
- 2 tablespoons rice vinegar (unseasoned)
- 2 teaspoons toasted sesame oil
- 1 tablespoon dried minced onion
- 1 tablespoon minced garlic
- 1 tablespoon minced fresh ginger (sub: ginger paste)
- Optional: Salt to taste
Instructions
- Season Beef: Place the trimmed chuck roast in the slow cooker and season all sides with pepper.
- Make Sauce: In a small bowl, whisk together the soy sauce, beef broth, honey, gochujang, rice vinegar, sesame oil, minced onion, garlic, and ginger. Pour the sauce over the roast.
- Slow Cook: Cover and cook on LOW for 8-10 hours or HIGH for 5-6 hours, or until the beef easily shreds apart with a fork.
- Shred & Serve: Shred the beef with two large forks, discard large pieces of fat, and stir to combine. Taste and season with salt, if desired. This Korean shredded beef is delicious served in several ways:For bowls: Serve over rice and offer toppings like kimchi (so good!), shredded carrots, sliced cucumber, pickled red onions, sliced green onions, sesame seeds, gochujang sauce, and/or a drizzle of (non-traditional but really tasty) Bang Bang Sauce. A fried or soft-boiled egg on top is a classic Korean-bowl move if you want to go furtherFor tacos: Spoon the beef into warm tortillas and fill with toppings like rice, kimchi, pickled red onions, sliced green onions, sesame seeds, Bang Bang Sauce, and/or more gochujang. A la carte: For a simple dinner, serve with rice or rice noodles and a simple side like roasted broccoli or Frozen Stir Fried Vegetables. Lettuce Wraps: You can also tuck this beef, sauce, and rice into lettuce wraps.
Freezer Instructions
Freeze for Later:
- Method 1 – Uncooked: To a gallon sized freezer bag, add the beef broth, soy sauce, honey, rice vinegar, gochujang, sesame oil, minced onion, garlic, and ginger. Gently squeeze the bag to combine. Season the roast with salt and pepper and place in the bag with the sauce. Wash your hands and then seal, removing as much air as possible, and freeze.
- Method 2 – Fully Cooked: Fully cook the meal through Step 4. Let the shredded beef and sauce cool completely. (Safety Note: Do not let the meat sit on the counter for more than 2 hours.) Transfer to a freezer safe container, making sure the beef is covered with sauce, and freeze.
Prepare From Frozen:
- Method 1 – Uncooked: Thaw in the refrigerator for about 24 hours. Cook as directed.
- Method 2 – Fully Cooked: Use one of these safe thawing methods and then warm gently on the stove or in the microwave.
Notes/Tips
- Heat Level: We intentionally made this recipe not-too-spicy for families. But, for extra heat, I highly encourage using more gochujang at the end to garnish your dish. It’s delicious!
- Instant Pot Directions: Cut chuck roast into 2×2 inch pieces. Place in the Instant Pot and season well with pepper. Cover with the sauce from Step 2. Lock and seal the lid. Cook for 30 minutes at high pressure with a natural release (aka: do not open the release valve; wait until the pin drops before opening). Follow step 4 to shred and serve.
- Gochujang is a Korean fermented chili paste that gives the beef its savory, slightly sweet, spicy flavor. Find it in the Asian section of many larger grocery stores. A replacement could be Sriracha sauce.
- Gluten-Free Version: Replace the soy sauce with coconut aminos or gluten-free tamari and look for gluten-free gochujang.
- Meal Prep: Portion the cooked beef with rice and vegetables into individual containers for easy lunches. Add fresh toppings like cucumber and pickled red onions after reheating.
- Storage: Store leftovers in the refrigerator for up to 3-5 days or in the freezer for up to 3 months.
Nutrition
Photos and video by Whitney Reist of Sweet Cayenne.
Leave a Comment