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    Home » Recipes » Weeknight dinner

    Kalbi Recipe (Korean Short Ribs)

    Published: Jun 11, 2024 · Modified: May 8, 2025 by Mike Vrobel · This post may contain affiliate links · 2 Comments

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    Kalbi on the grill - Korean style short ribs

    Kalbi (Grilled Korean Short Ribs). Authentic grilled Kalbi is easy to make, quick to cook, and all the ingredients are available at a modern American grocery store. All you need is thin cross-cut short ribs.

    A plate of Kalbi Grilled Short Ribs

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    Jump to:
    • What is Kalbi?
    • Ingredients
    • How to Make Korean Short Ribs (Kalbi)
    • Recipe Tips
    • What to Serve with Korean Short Ribs
    • Equipment
    • Korean Grilled Short Ribs (Kalbi)
    • Related Posts
    • 💬 Comments

    This recipe is the most authentic lettuce wrap that I know - Korean grilled short ribs, or Kalbi.

    Lettuce wraps are a favorite way to sneak extra vegetables into my diet. We serve them like we do "taco night" - everything goes on the table, and people assemble their own wraps. Of course, the kids won't touch the lettuce, so they just grab the rest of the components of the meal.

    This is authentic, easy to make, and quick to cook. All the ingredients are available at your local grocery store. Sounds too good to be true, right? The hard part is finding the ribs cut this way. Check out your local Asian market, or ask your butcher to cut some short ribs very thin - ¼" thick is what you want, but ½" thick is OK.

    What is Kalbi?

    Kalbi are Korean beef short ribs, sliced thin and grilled. (It is sometimes spelled Galbi, because there are multiple ways to transliterate the Korean word 갈비 into English.)

    Ingrediens for Kalbi

    Ingredients

    • 2 pounds beef short ribs, cross-cut (sliced ¼-inch thick, across the bone.)
    • 1 head Boston bibb lettuce (for wraps, optional)

    Marinade

    • 2 cloves garlic, peeled
    • 1 scallion
    • 1 pear, peeled and cored
    • 1 cup soy sauce
    • 2 teaspoons toasted sesame oil
    • 1 tablespoon honey
    • 1 teaspoon Mirin (or rice wine)
    Marinating the short ribs
    Marinating the beef short ribs

    How to Make Korean Short Ribs (Kalbi)

    Marinate the short ribs for 4 hours

    In a food processor or blender, pulse the garlic and scallion with 1-second pulses until finely minced. Add the pear, and pulse again until finely minced. Add the rest of the marinade ingredients and process until well combined. Put the short ribs in a gallon zip-top bag (or a baking dish) and pour the marinade over the ribs. Seal the bag and store it in the refrigerator for 2-4 hours, turning occasionally to marinate evenly.

    Preheat grill for direct medium heat cooking (350°F)

    On a gas grill, preheat on high for ten minutes, brush the grates clean, then turn the heat down to medium. On a charcoal grill, light the coals, wait until they are covered with gray ash, then spread them in a single layer over the charcoal grate. Clean the grill grate with a grill brush, and brush the grate with a paper towel dipped in vegetable oil.

    Cook the ribs for 4 minutes a side

    Remove ribs from marinade, and cook over the direct-medium heat for 2-4 minutes per side, or until well browned on both sides. Remove ribs to a plate and let rest before serving.

    Kalbi on the grill - Korean style short ribs

    Recipe Tips

    • On my gas grill, I cook in a 2-2-flip-2-2 pattern; cook 2 minutes, turn the ribs 90, cook another 2 minutes; flip the ribs, 2 more minutes, turn 90, final 2 minutes. This gives you a nice diamond pattern on the ribs.
    • Watch the ribs carefully - the marinade has a lot of sugar in it, and will burn if left over too hot of a fire.
    • A trick I learned at my local Korean barbecue restaurant: Use Kitchen Shears to cut the meat off of the bone after cooking.
    • If you can't find Korean cut (aka "Flanken cut") short ribs, substitute either flank steak or skirt steak, cut on the diagonal into ¼" thick slices.
    • I like Mirin in my marinade. It's a Japanese cooking wine with a lot of natural sugar. If you can't find it, substitute regular rice wine or a dry sherry.
    • If you can't find an Asian pear, a regular pear works fine.
    Asian Pear on the left, Western Pear on the right
    Asian Pear (L), Western Pear (R)

    What to Serve with Korean Short Ribs

    To serve as lettuce wraps, use a head of Boston bibb lettuce, leaves separated and rinsed. I usually serve it with a vegetable stir fry, white rice, and, even though they're not really Korean, some hoisin sauce and Sriracha hot sauce. To be really authentic, also serve this with Kimchi, Korean pickled fermented cabbage.

    Equipment

    • Grill (I use a Weber Summit grill. It's overkill for this recipe, but I love it.)
    • Food processor or blender
    Print
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    A plate of Kalbi Grilled Short Ribs

    Korean Grilled Short Ribs (Kalbi)


    5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star

    4.5 from 2 reviews

    • Author: Mike Vrobel
    • Total Time: 4 hours 8 minutes
    • Yield: 2 pounds of ribs 1x
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    Description

    Korean Grilled Short Ribs. Korean kalbi in your own back yard.


    Ingredients

    Scale
    • 2 pounds beef short ribs, cross-cut (sliced ¼-inch thick, across the bone.)
    • 1 head Boston bibb lettuce (for wraps, optional)

    Marinade

    • 2 cloves garlic, peeled
    • 1 scallion
    • 1 Pear, peeled and cored
    • 1 cup soy sauce
    • 2 teaspoons toasted sesame oil
    • 1 tablespoon honey
    • 1 teaspoon Mirin (or rice wine)

    Instructions

    Marinate the short ribs for 4 hours: In a food processor or blender, pulse the garlic and scallion with 1-second pulses until finely minced. Add the pear, and pulse again until finely minced. Add the rest of the marinade ingredients and process until well combined. Put the short ribs in a gallon zip-top bag (or a baking dish) and pour the marinade over the ribs. Seal the bag and store it in the refrigerator for 2-4 hours, turning occasionally to marinate evenly.

    Preheat grill for direct medium heat cooking (350°F): On a gas grill, preheat on high for ten minutes, brush the grates clean, then turn the heat down to medium. On a charcoal grill, light the coals, wait until they are covered with gray ash, then spread them in a single layer over the charcoal grate. Clean the grate with a grill brush, and then wipe the grate with a paper towel dipped in vegetable oil to oil the grate.

    Cook the ribs for 4 minutes a side: Remove the ribs from the marinade and let any excess drip off. Put the ribs on the grill grate directly over the fire. (Keep the lid closed as much as possible if cooking on a gas grill.) Grill the ribs until they are well browned, turning every 2 minutes, about 8 minutes total. (About 4 minutes per side). Remove ribs to a plate and let rest before serving. Enjoy!

    Equipment

    Weber Summit

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    • Prep Time: 4 hours
    • Cook Time: 8 minutes
    • Category: Weeknight Dinner
    • Method: Grilling
    • Cuisine: Korean

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    On the grill

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    Check out my Grilling Recipe index

    Inspired by:
    Steven Raichlen - The Barbecue! Bible

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    Comments

    1. B says

      August 25, 2018 at 11:54 am

      I personally like these a littl blackened for added flavor (but not burnt to charcoal).

      Reply
      • Mike Vrobel says

        August 26, 2018 at 10:10 am

        Thank you!

        Reply

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    Welcome to Dad Cooks Dinner!

    I'm Mike Vrobel, a dad who cooks dinner every night. I'm an enthusiastic home cook, and I write about pressure cooking, rotisserie grilling, and other food topics that grab my attention.

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