If you’ve ever found yourself planning your next Korean BBQ dinner before you’ve even finished the first one, these Beef Bulgogi Tacos are for you.
There’s something so satisfying about sweet, savory, caramelized beef tucked into warm tortillas with crunchy veggies, spicy cucumber salad, and a drizzle of creamy gochujang mayo. It feels like takeout-level flavor, but it’s surprisingly doable at home.
And if weeknight dinners have been feeling repetitive lately, this is the kind of recipe that breaks the routine without making your kitchen feel chaotic. Most of the prep time is just letting the beef marinate, and the actual cooking takes about 10 minutes. Future you? Very happy.
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Tips and Tricks for Korean Beef Bulgogi Tacos
- I used flank steak in this recipe but any cut of beef will work, preferably a marbled cut. You can use ribeye, but it can be expensive! Sirloin steak, skirt steak, and brisket are other good options. The steak is easier to thinly slice if you freeze it briefly first, about 30 minutes will do.
- If you don’t want to make the spicy cucumber salad, you can make quick pickled veggies.
- The spicy cucumber salad is called oi muchim, and it is my favorite banchan (small side dish) at Korean BBQ restaurants.
- Traditionally Korean red chili powder, called gochugaru, is used for this banchan. It is smoky and a little spicy. This ingredient can sometimes be tough to find, so we have substituted red pepper flakes and chipotle powder. However, if you have gochugaru feel free to use it! You can use gochujang but you may end up with a saltier end product.
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Ingredient Notes and Tips
A few small tricks make this recipe even better.
Freeze the steak first
Pop your steak in the freezer for about 30 minutes before slicing. It makes it much easier to get those thin slices you want for bulgogi.
Use a marbled cut if possible
Flank steak works great, but sirloin, skirt steak, brisket, or ribeye also work well. A little fat helps create that tender, flavorful finish.
The pear matters
Grated Bosc pear adds sweetness and helps tenderize the beef naturally. It’s one of those ingredients that makes the flavor feel special.
About the cucumber salad
This spicy cucumber salad is inspired by oi muchim, a popular Korean side dish and one of my favorite banchan options at Korean BBQ restaurants.
Traditionally, it uses gochugaru (Korean red chili powder), but red pepper flakes and chipotle powder work well if that’s easier to find.
Dietary Swaps (Gluten-Free / Dairy-Free)
This recipe is naturally dairy-free and very easy to make gluten-free.
For gluten-free tacos
The two ingredients to swap are:
- Tortillas
- Soy sauce
Use gluten-free tortillas (like Mission Original GF tortillas) and swap soy sauce for tamari or liquid aminos.
That’s it.
Simple swaps are what make meal prep sustainable.
How to Make These Bulgogi Tacos Gluten-Free
The two ingredients that have gluten in this recipe are the tortillas and the soy sauce! There are super easy swaps to make this recipe gluten-free. My favorite gluten-free tortilla is the Mission brand original GF tortilla, which you can find in most grocery stores (but unfortunately not in Whole Foods). You can also order them here! For the soy sauce, you can swap it out for tamari or liquid aminos. Both of them are gluten-free.
If you want to see me rate 6 different gluten-free tortillas, check out the video below!
How to Store and Reheat
These Beef Bulgogi Tacos last up to 4 days in the fridge and are best stored with the components separate.
Store separately:
- Cooked beef
- Tortillas
- Spicy cucumber salad
- Gochujang mayo
- Lettuce and toppings
To reheat:
- Warm the beef in the microwave or on the stovetop.
- Keep tortillas at room temperature or warm them separately before assembling.
- Do not reheat the cucumber salad—it tastes best cold and crisp.
- This keeps everything fresh and prevents soggy tacos, which we all deserve.
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Don’t forget to try out these other delicious recipes!
- The Easiest Chicken Burrito Bowl For Meal Prep
- Easy Beef Bibimbap Bowl
- General Tso’s Chicken Recipe
- Easy Chicken Tikka Masala Recipe For Meal Prep
- 30-Minute Beef Stir Fry With Soba Noodles
- Veggie Meal Prep Ramen With Tofu & Marinated Eggs
FAQs
Bulgogi is a Korean dish made with thinly sliced beef marinated in a sweet and savory sauce, usually with soy sauce, garlic, sesame oil, and fruit like pear for tenderness and sweetness.
Flank steak works great, but sirloin, skirt steak, brisket, and ribeye are also good choices. Thin slicing matters more than the exact cut.
Yes. The beef marinates beautifully ahead of time, and the cooked filling stores well for up to 4 days, making it great for meal prep lunches and dinners.
Traditional bulgogi is more sweet and savory than spicy. The spice in this recipe mostly comes from the cucumber salad and gochujang mayo.
You can freeze the cooked beef, but the full taco recipe is best enjoyed fresh. The cucumber salad and toppings do not freeze well.
Beef Bulgogi Tacos
Ingredients
For the bulgogi
- 3 TBSP soy sauce
- 2 TBSP brown sugar
- 1 TBSP sesame oil
- 16 oz flank steak thinly sliced
- 1/2 yellow onion sliced finely
- 1/2 Bosc pear grated
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 1- inch ginger minced
- 2 green onion chopped
- 1 tsp sesame seeds
- black pepper to taste
For the Spicy Cucumber Salad
- 1 large cucumber sliced
- 1 carrot grated and divided
- 2 green onions chopped
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 1/4 tsp red pepper flakes
- 2 tsp chipotle powder
- 2 tsp granulated sugar
- 1 tsp salt
- 2 tsp rice vinegar
- 1 tsp sesame oil
- 1 tsp sesame seeds
For the gochujang mayo
- 1 TBSP gochujang
- 1/2 cup mayo
- 1/2 lime for juices
Everything else
- 9 tortillas
- 1 cup kimchi chopped, optional
- 1 cup lettuce optional
Instructions
- Combine the soy sauce, brown sugar, and sesame oil in a small bowl, stirring until the sugar is mostly dissolved. In a wide and shallow mixing bowl or baking dish, add the steak, onions, pear, garlic, ginger, green onion, sesame seeds, and pepper. Add the soy sauce mixture and mix well with your hands or tongs until the meat is evenly covered in the sauce. It will be thick and chunky. (For a smoother marinade, combine the garlic, ginger, and pear in a food processor or blender before adding it to the wet ingredients.) Cover the meat tightly with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes, up to 24 hours.
- While the beef marinates, make the cucumber salad. Add your chopped cucumbers, half of the shredded carrot, green onion, and garlic to a medium bowl. Mix in the red pepper flakes, chipotle powder, sugar, salt, rice vinegar, sesame oil, and sesame seeds. Stir together until the cucumbers start to get juicy and are fully coated. Set aside.
- Combine the mayo, gochujang, and lime juice. Stir well and taste, adding more lime juice and gochujang to your preference.
- Heat a large skillet or grill pan over medium-high heat and let it get really hot. Add a splash of cooking oil and once it shimmers, add the beef in batches. The beef will cook really quickly depending on how thick you cut it. Mine cooked to medium doneness in about 3 minutes. Stir the beef frequently to cook on all sides. Set aside.
- Store the beef separately from the other ingredients. Assemble the tacos when you are ready to eat. Reheat the beef, then add lettuce, beef, the remaining shredded carrot, chopped kimchi, and gochujang mayo to a tortilla. That’s it!
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