Kalbi (KAHL-bee): A traditional Korean BBQ meat dish, kalbi is marinated short ribs (either on the bone or cut into pieces) cooked on a grill.
Ingredients
Marinade:
- 1/2 cup soy sauce
- 1 Korean pear or Asian pear, grated with juices
- 2 tablespoons finely chopped garlic
- 1/2 small white onion, grated or sliced
- 1 tablespoon grated fresh ginger
- 2 tablespoons light brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon honey
- 2 tablespoons sesame seeds, toasted
- 2 tablespoons toasted sesame oil
- 1 tablespoon ground red pepper
- 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 2 green onions, thinly sliced
- 1 (20-ounce) bottle lemon-lime soda, optional (recommended: Sprite or 7-Up)
- 4 pounds short ribs
- Cooked white rice, for serving
- Prepared kimchee, for serving (available at Korean grocers)
Directions
Whisk together all the marinade ingredients in a large baking dish. Add the ribs and turn to coat. Cover and refrigerate for at least 1 hour or overnight; it is best if marinated overnight.
Heat grill to high. Remove short ribs from marinade and grill short ribs until slightly charred and tender and cooked to desired degree of doneness. Serve short ribs with white rice and kimchee.

















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By jdoutt
on September 04, 2012
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Delicious. I made a somewhat simplified version that didn't include the red/black pepper, green onions, honey (substituted extra brown sugar, or lemon-lime soda. The spice from the pepper was missed, but the soda was not. Without the soda, we were left with a really thick, delicious, and flavorful marinade that served really well as a dipping sauce for the meat, rice and and vegetables we cooked.
My recommendation would be to separate the sauce before adding the soda, leaving half for marinade and basting and the other half for dipping.
Really delicious, don't forget to toast the sesame seeds and sesame oil, makes a world of difference!
By cpalmatier_537828
Dacula, GA
on February 20, 2012
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Really enjoyed this. I used ginger ale instead of lemon lime soda as that is what I had on hand. Marinated for about 8 hrs. Next time will marinade over night. Still had good flavor but I can imagine it is even better with more time.
By mikichyung_11993237
Randolph, 70
on February 13, 2012
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One of the most authentic recipes I've come across for Kalbi, although ginger is generally not added the recipe for Kalbi. I found it overpowered the flavor. However, the pear and 7-up worked well to tenderize and add the nice sweetness to the dish.
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