Korean Ground Beef Bowls
A $20 Dinner for Four | High protein
Dinner for four. Ready fast. Gluten-free. And built from ingredients that cost about $20 total, depending on where you shop.
These Korean Ground Beef Bowls are exactly the kind of dinner I want on a busy weeknight: flavorful ground beef, a quick homemade Korean BBQ sauce, warm jasmine rice, and plenty of fresh, crunchy vegetables.
Nothing complicated. Nothing that requires three grocery stores.
Just a really good bowl of food that costs less than ordering one takeout entrée. And I know you have a pound of ground beef in your freezer, staring at you!
Ground Beef Keeps Saving Dinner
Ground beef may not be glamorous, but it continues to understand the assignment. It cooks quickly. It’s affordable.
Most families will eat it without a lengthy negotiation.
And because it absorbs sauces so well, it can go from basic to very much not basic in about 15 minutes.
I use 90% lean ground beef here, but 85% works too. Just drain off any excess grease before adding the sauce.
The Homemade Sauce Takes Five Minutes
The sauce is doing most of the heavy lifting in this recipe.
It’s made with sesame oil, fresh ginger, garlic, gluten-free soy sauce, brown sugar, rice vinegar, and gochujang.
Sweet. Savory. A little spicy. Exactly what ground beef needs.
Make sure your soy sauce and gochujang are labeled gluten-free. Traditional soy sauce contains wheat, and some brands of gochujang do too. Gluten-free tamari works perfectly here.
Gochujang Brings the Personality.
The Tapioca Slurry Fixes Everything.
Gochujang is a fermented Korean chili paste with a deep, slightly sweet heat.
One heaping tablespoon gives this sauce plenty of flavor without making the bowls overwhelmingly spicy.
You can use a little less for sensitive eaters or add more if your family enjoys some heat.
Once the sauce is simmering, stir together the tapioca powder and water.
Pour that mixture into the skillet and let it cook briefly.
The sauce will thicken, turn glossy, and cling to the beef instead of collecting sadly at the bottom of the bowl.
Don’t skip this part. It’s the difference between seasoned ground beef and sticky Korean BBQ-style beef.
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The Shortcut Is Already-Cooked Rice
Could you cook jasmine rice from scratch? Of course.
Do you need to on a Wednesday night? Absolutely not.
A package of prepared jasmine rice gets these bowls onto the table much faster. Heat it while the beef cooks, and both will be ready at nearly the same time.
We’re not making life harder than it needs to be.
Crunchy Vegetables Keep It Fresh
The rich, sticky beef needs something fresh next to it.
Thinly sliced cucumber and grated carrots add crunch without adding much work.
I use store-bought shredded carrots when I have them because I have nothing to prove to a carrot.
Finish everything with sliced scallions and sesame seeds.
The Under-$20 Dinner Breakdown
The exact total will depend on where you shop and which ingredients you already have, but this meal is designed to feed four for around $20.
The ground beef is the largest expense.
Rice, carrots, cucumber, and scallions are all relatively inexpensive, and the sauce uses pantry ingredients you’ll have left for future dinners.
And an easy way to change up the bowls…
- Use ground turkey or ground chicken instead of beef.
- Add steamed broccoli, edamame, shredded cabbage, or sautéed green beans.
- Serve the beef in lettuce cups for a lighter option.
- Add a fried egg if everyone is extra hungry.
- Use cauliflower rice if that works better for your family.
These Korean Ground Beef Bowls are fast, filling, gluten-free, and affordable enough to make regularly.
The homemade sauce tastes far more exciting than the amount of effort involved, while prepared rice and store-bought shredded carrots keep the actual cooking manageable.
Dinner for four for about $20.
A win is a win.
Disclaimer: Please note that some of the links in this blog post are affiliate links and I will earn a commission if you purchase through those links. I use all of the products that I link and reccommend them because they are high quality products that I trust.
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Korean Ground Beef Bowls
- Total Time: 20 minutes
- Yield: 4 1x
- Diet: Dairy-Free, Gluten-Free
Description
These gluten-free Korean ground beef bowls feed four for about $20 with sticky homemade BBQ sauce, jasmine rice, carrots, and cucumber.
Ingredients
For the ground beef
- 1 pound ground beef, preferably 90% lean
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon black pepper
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1 teaspoon minced fresh ginger
- 1 tablespoon minced garlic
- 1/2 medium shallot, minced
For the homemade Korean BBQ sauce
- 1 teaspoon sesame oil
- 1 teaspoon minced fresh ginger
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 3/4 cup gluten-free soy sauce or tamari
- 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon rice vinegar
- 1 heaping tablespoon gluten-free gochujang
- 1 tablespoon tapioca starch
- 1 tablespoon water
For the bowls
- 1 8-ounce package prepared jasmine rice
- 1 cup grated carrots
- 1 cucumber, thinly sliced
- 1 scallion, thinly sliced
- 1 teaspoon sesame seeds
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Notes
Prepare the vegetables while the beef browns. By the time the sauce thickens, the entire dinner will be ready to assemble.
- Prep Time: 10
- Cook Time: 10
- Category: Dinner
- Method: Sautéing
Hi, I'm Kat.
Thanks for being here.
Hi, I’m Kat — a Colorado-based Personal Chef and the heart behind White Sparrow Food Company. As a business owner, a soccer Mom to two daughters and always being asked “What’s for dinner?” – I get the challenges of everyday life.
Here, I share the same easy, wholesome, gluten free recipes I cook for my clients, made simple for real life at home. All recipes that YOU can make in your kitchen.
Take a look around, get inspired, and stay awhile — I’m so happy you’re here.
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