Delicious and full of vegetables, this chicken bibimbap is a feast for the eyes and the palette. And it’s ready in the time it takes to cook the rice!
A classic Korean dish, Bibimbap literally means “mixed rice”. It can take many forms, but always starts with hot rice on the bottom, with a variety of fresh and cooked vegetables on top, meat (most often beef or pork, but sometimes chicken or tofu) and of course, a dollop of Korean Gochujang or Gochujang sauce. To eat, you simply mix the rice with the vegetables and spicy sauce. (It’s not nearly so pretty after you mix it together, so I didn’t photograph that part :)
About this Chicken Bibimbap
I love Bibimbap because it’s all at once easy, delicious, filling, spicy and vegetable-rich. My version features quickly stir fried red and orange pepper and bok choy. Alongside, is fresh green onion and shredded fresh carrot, marinated in a bit of sesame oil. As for the meat, I went with chicken, starting with always moist boneless, skinless chicken thighs, that are cut in to bite-sized pieces and quickly stir fried with sesame oil and soy sauce. Garnish with a generous sprinkling of sesame seeds and a dollop of spicy Gochujang, Doenjang (fermented soybean paste) or if you prefer, simple soy sauce.
Preparation is as simple as starting some rice cooking and heating a wok or frying pan. Prepare the fresh vegetables, then quickly saute the vegetables that will be cooked, one at a time, and remove to a plate. Finally, cook the chicken. When the rice is ready, fill a bowl with rice, arrange the vegetables in sections around the outside, then top with the warm chicken. Garnish and serve.
Ingredients and Substitutions
Gochujang – If you aren’t yet familiar, it’s spicy chili pepper paste, more intense than sriracha (so use less) but the flavour is more complex. It’s great with eggs, to stir in to sauces that you want to spice-up, stir fries or as part of a marinade, cooking sauce for meat. Gochujang itself is quite a thick paste. You can make an easy Gochujang sauce that is thinned, sweetened and flavoured, that works really well as a condiment. I’ve included a quick and easy Gochujang sauce recipe in the bibimbap recipe below.
Many large grocery stores with well stocked International sections now carry Gochujang, but if you can’t find it there, look in local Korean markets or online. A large container keeps a long time in the fridge and since you only use a bit at a time (a little goes a long way!), you won’t need to replace it too often.
Chicken – I’ve used boneless, skinless chicken thighs here, as they are hard to beat for flavour and they are never dry. That said, you could easily substitute boneless, skinless chicken breasts here.
Recipe Tips
Some fresh vegetable options for your bibimbap: julienned or sliced cucumber, carrots, green onion. Salt and marinate in a bit of sesame oil.
Some cooked vegetable options for your bibimbap: zucchini slices, mushrooms, sliced onions, spinach, soybean sprouts, bell peppers, any greens like kale etc. Quickly sauté in hot wok or frying pan with oil until tender-crisp or a splash or water until wilted.
Although not authentic, if you are so inclined, you could replace the rice with cauliflower rice or cooked grains.
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Get the Recipe: Fast and Easy Chicken Bibimbap
Ingredients
- 1 cup uncooked rice , white, brown or basmati
- 1 Green onion, sliced diagonally into 3/4-inch diagonal slices
- 1 cup carrot, grated
- 1 teaspoon sesame oil
- 5-6 baby bok choy, root end trimmed and quartered
- 1 red bell pepper, , cut into 2-inch long, thin slices
- 4 skinless boneless chicken thighs, cut into bit sized pieces
- 1 Tablespoon cooking oil
- 2 Tablespoons soy sauce, low sodium recommended
- 1/2 teaspoon sesame oil
- Pinch sugar
- 1 teaspoon cornstarch dissolved in 1 Tbsp. water
- 1-2 teaspoon Gochujang for topping , or use the Gochujang sauce, below
- 1 teaspoon Sesame seeds, plus more for garnish
- Additional sesame oil and/or soy sauce, for drizzling
Gochujang sauce:
- 2 Tablespoons Gochujang
- 1 1/2 teaspoon white granulated sugar, or brown sugar or honey
- 1 1/2 teaspoon sesame oil
- 1 - 1 1/2 Tablespoons warm water, for thinning sauce to desired consistency
Instructions
- Start rice cooking, adding water as directed on package.
- In a small bowl, stir together grated carrot and sesame oil. Prepare rest of the vegetables and keep in separate piles or bowls. Set aside. Cut chicken and set aside.
- Heat oil in wok or frying pan over medium-high heat until very hot. Add bell pepper slices and cook, stirring, until tender-crisp. Remove to a separate pile on a large plate. Add a tablespoon of water to the hot wok. Add bok choy and allow to steam for 30 seconds or so, then stir until just wilted. Remove to a separate pile on the plate with the bell peppers.
- Add a bit more cooking oil to the wok. Add the chicken and cook, stirring, until cooked through. Add soy sauce, sesame oil and a pinch of sugar. Cook, stirring, for another 45 seconds or so. Stir the cornstarch mixture, then add to the pan. Continue cooking, stirring, until sauce is glossy and thickened. Remove from heat, leaving chicken in wok.
- When rice is cooked, divide between two deep bowls. Top with sections of bell pepper, green onion, shredded carrot and bok choy. Divide the warm chicken between the two bowls, piling it in the centre. Top with a dollop of Gochujang Sauce (or just a dollop of Gochujang). Garnish with sesame seeds. *Alternately, you can serve sauce or Gochujang on the side, or substitute with soy sauce or soybean paste.
- To eat, mix the toppings with the rice.
Notes
More Korean Recipes to Love!
Hi! I’m Jennifer, a home cook schooled by trial and error and almost 40 years of getting dinner on the table! I love to share my favourite recipes, both old and new, together with lots of tips and tricks to hopefully help make your home cooking enjoyable, stress free, rewarding and of course, delicious!
I want to make this & have no experience with bok choy….for 4 servings it calls for 10-12 baby bok choy….I know what it looks like lol, but that seems like a lot….am i missing something? Thanks for your help!
Hi Mary, it does wilt down quite a bit, but yes, that may be more than you need for 4. Maybe 8 would do it in most cases.
Hi Jennifer, looks delicious — I can’t wait to try this recipe! Curious to know what the third ingredient down is meant to be as it’s showing as “1 cup shredded shredde”. Thank you in yummy anticipation ?
Hi Ellie and sorry, it is the carrots. I’ve corrected the ingredients list accordingly. Thanks for pointing that out :)
Thanks so much, Jennifer! This is my weekend cooking inspiration ?
So glad to hear! Enjoy :)
Hi Jennifer. I made your bibimbap for supper tonight. It was delicious! I made your Gochujang sauce with the paste I had bought. Thank goodness I only bought the mild because there was quite a bite to it too, but everything tasted wonderful. I doubled the recipe, cooked some whole wheat basmati, and had roti prata to go along with it. I never heard any complaints from anyone! Thanks for sharing this!
So glad you enjoyed it Colleen! It’s one of my favourite dishes to order out and I love enjoying it at home, too. And yes, the Gochujang packs a punch, for sure. You do actually get used to it a bit, the more you eat it. A bit ;)
Well Jennifer…I actually found the gochujang yesterday in an Asian grocery store in London!! I was very excited as I had no idea where to look and you can’t ask anyone that works there as nobody speaks English…So, it was pretty much just by chance that I found it. They had hot and mild, so for starters, I got a small 200 gr container ($3.99) of the mild. Now, I shall proceed with the Bibimbap! Can’t wait! Thank You! Oh yes…I looked in the grocery stores here and could not find black sesame seeds (McCormicks or otherwise), so while I was looking for the gochujang, I found a 113 gr bottle of those too, for $1.99. ? Lots of interesting things to be found there..I have even bought lime leaf and holy basil there before as well.
So glad you found both! :) I don’t have access to a Asian grocery here locally, but stock up when I’m in Toronto. I think I maybe found those McCormick black sesame seeds at my local Walmart though. Sometimes they have the most obscure things in an otherwise plain Jane store! Happy cooking (and good choice with the mild. You may find it perfect or you can work up to the hot ;)
What a great dish. Made it this evening with sushi rice and added thinly sliced beef with the chicken and an additional vegetable; mushrooms. The gochujang adds a bit of heat but you can dial it back dependent upon your taste. The carrots were very bright and amazing how a 1/2 tsp of oil can change the flavor.
Definitely will make again.
So glad you enjoyed it, Cathy :) I love your version! That’s the great thing about bibimbap – so adaptable to so many variations.
This looks fresh, healthy and just fabulous! Love these types of dishes, and have never tried making them at home before!
Thanks Sara and it really is super easy. Just like a stir fry, only you stir it in the bowl :)
Hey Jennifer! You just made my favorite dish in the whole world! We used to have a wonderful local Korean restaurant owned by a lovely woman named Choi. My husband and I ate there at least once a month and often took guests and friends with us to dine. I always ordered Dol Sot Bibimbap, served in a hot-from-the-oven clay bowl, with a raw egg on top. Served with a long handle spoon, you stir it up in the hot bowl until the egg is cooked – just like fried rice. Anyway – I always use tons of the wonderful sauce – and you’re right – it is the new Sriracha! Choi used to thin her sauce with Sprite of all things. I don’t drink soda but didn’t care when it came to the sauce. I used a bunch. Choi’s husband got Lou Gehrig’s disease and she had to close the restaurant to care for him. I’m so glad gochujang is becoming more popular. We would have to drive to the Korean market near Washington D.C. (about 50 miles) to get a bottle or two! Thanks so much – printing, pinning and sharing :)
What a great story! My small town of 15,000 has the best Korean/Japanese restaurant, where I am lucky to have access to great Korean food. It was great for exploring new flavours and has definitely fuelled my passion to recreate it at home, too.
I love the Dol Sot, too Tricia and always order it when I’m out! I would love to recreate it at home, but haven’t been able to get my hands on any of those bowls yet :) And that is interesting about the Sprite. I think Sprite is a favourite for Korean dishes. I have a bulgogi recipe that uses Sprite for tenderizing the meat! I’m going to try it :)
You’re schooling me today Jennifer! I’ve never heard of bibimbap or gochujang. This is one gorgeous and healthy dish that I’ll definitely need to try! What a nice pick me up of color for the winter!
You must try this then, Mary Ann. You know … just to strike this one off your list :) It’s a lovely dish and delicious with chicken, beef or pork.
I love gochujang. I like to add it into BBQ sauce or anything else I want to give a little kick to. Annie Chun’s makes gochujang sauce in a squeeze bottle. Several of the grocery stores near me carry it in the Asian section.
I will have to look for that gochujang sauce, Sandy. I have never seen in my small town grocery, but will look when I am in the city next. It makes perfect sense that it exists. So handy (and delicious)!
Ingredients clarification? :
– inch Green onion? Inch? – doesn’t look like much to slice into 3/4 …
– 1 in red bell pepper, cut into 2-inch long, thin slices – 1 in?
– 4 in skinless boneless chicken thighs – 4 in?
Sorry about that John. I’m using a new plugin for my recipes and when it imports my written text, it does some wonky things. I have fixed it now so it makes more sense :) Thanks for the heads up!
Mm..looks good, Jennifer! Where did you happen to find this Gochujang sauce? I’m always in the international and Asian sections of the grocery stores and have never noticed it… Darn it!
Hi Colleeen, I’ve seen it in the larger grocery stores in the Toronto area, but not here where I live, unfortunately. If you are in Toronto or any larger centre, find a Korean market to get it easily. I got my last one from a Korean market in Kitchener. If all that fails, you can buy it online (try amazon.ca or here -http://shop.southchinaseas.ca/Gochujang-Korean-Hot-Pepper-Paste-500g_p_550.html ) It lasts a long time, so you don’t need to be buying too often!
Thanks Jennifer. I will keep an eye out for it. There are actually a couple of Asian supermarkets in London that I could look in and we go to London all the time. Hopefully the name Gochujang is written in English! If not, our daughter lives in Toronto, so I can always take a look there the next time we visit. Thanks for the info. Btw, have you ever ordered anything from that southchinaseas website?
You should find it in London, Colleen. It’s pretty much a staple product at Asian markets. Might not be in English though :) It’s always in the same kind of tub (often red) as on the southchinaseas website. And no, I haven’t ordered anything from them yet. My daughter is in Toronto, too, so I just place my order with her ;) If you find the Gochujang, look for the Red Pepper Flakes, too (like these -http://shop.southchinaseas.ca/Korean-Pepper-Flakes-Kochu-Karu-46g_p_69.html ) If you like to make Korean at home, they are often in recipes with the Gochujang, so great to have on hand, too!
I haven’t made this dish in a long time and I want to make your delicious version, Jennifer. I’m all about fresh deliciousness in the new year and this is perfect.
I think I forget how quick and easy these types of dishes are and I don’t cook them often enough.
Beautiful, mouthwatering photos as always!
Thanks Robyn :) I love this chicken version. Tastes a little lighter and love the sesame chicken! And yes, I was done and waiting on my rice for this one.
Yum! Just what the doctor order, after all the heavy holiday splurges. I love everything about this quick, easy, healthy dish. And the name is quite charming!
Thanks Chris. It’s one of my favourite dishes at our local Korean restaurant. The name always makes me smile when I say I order it :)