Bibimbap-a loola, a whop bim bap!

[purple goddess]

I am now the proud owner of my first ever Korean Bibimbap!! Bought today at a new Korean BBQ store in my 'burb.

I am ashamed to say I have never eaten this before, and in my hurry to get to work, I grabbed the plastic bag of goodies and fled.

Now I am at work, and I've opened the bag, I am presented with a quandary.

**insert embarrassed shuffle **

How do I eat it??

I have a bowl of rice, with various vegies in it, topped with an egg and a spurge of chilli paste (hot, as in temp), but I also have a container of what appears to be fish stock (hot, as in temp) with some spring onions floating in it AND a smaller container of what looks like cole slaw, kim chi, and wodge of potoato/turnip which is CHILLED?

Do I pour the stock onto the rice and vegies? Where do the cold items go?

It is a pot luck??

Tell me, how do I eat this?

(oh, and I have a kim chi pancake, with a dark soy dipping sauce, too!)

[BobB]

That's interesting, I've never seen a bibimbap with "some assembly required." I thought part of the essence of the dish is that it's served in a blazing-hot stoneware bowl that crisps up some of the rice. Is the do-it-yourself version common?

[hill food]

prob. cause it was take-out.

[BobB]

Well, yes, I understood that. I just thought that it was the sort of dish that you wouldn't do as a takeout because of the hot bowl being such an integral part of the experience. Like you wouldn't do shabu-shabu as a takeout because it just wouldn't work at home unless you have one of these cooking tables.

[kc72]

bibimbap doesn't come in the hot stone bowl -- thats the dol sot bibimbap

[hannaone]

There are two basic types of Bi Bim Bap.
One is traditionally served chilled or room temp, and may or may not require some "assembly", as in rice and veggies served in separate bowls that are then mixed together.
Dol Sot Bi Bim Bap is the "hotpot" style, served in the hot stone bowl which continues cooking everything for some time after being taken off the stove.

[BobB]

I see, thanks for the clarification. I'm not that experienced with Korean food and have only had the Dol Sot style.

[Gio]

You're a breath of Fresh Air PG. You really are!

[purple goddess]

erm..

not after eating all that kimchi, I'm not, Gio!!!

But MAN what that stuff good!!!

The soup was a little fishy... I expected something more fragrant.. but it was pretty much straight fish stock.

The rest was wowza!!! I am now on official convert!

[bitsubeats]

i bet it was just stock made with dried myeolchi (baby anchovies).

oh and a future tip, bibimbop is much easier to eat and mix with a spoon and not with chopsticks. I always see non asians eating it with chopsticks and I wonder why? It's so much easier to eat it with the spoon and mix it for that matter. When mixxing it you kinda smash the gochujang (chile paste) and fried egg into the rice with all of the other "add ins"

[purple goddess]

I used the chopsticks and plastic fork they gave me..

Got a bit messy. I'll go the spoon tip next time

I just kinda smooshed it all together and it was grand!! The hot temp/hot spice was a fab counterpoint to the cold temp/sour pickled veggies.

I am definitely a convert!

[bitsubeats]

im glad you liked it so much (:

makes me want to eat some bibimbap right now ....oh well

[porker]

I don't know, It's just the best thread title ever!
Took me a few tries to pronounce, but once rolling in my head, I laughed my a$$ off. Reminded me of a great night in Mexico, drinking Negra Modelo and watching a live band doing a very poor rendition of bee bop a lula in phonetic english (they had no clue what they were singing).

[kc72]

Mix the rice, veggies, egg, chili paste together -- where's the meat (Beef)?

the container of stock w/ spring onions sounds like miso soup -- just drink as is.

the small containers of cole slaw(?), kimchi and turnip are banchan/panchan(sp?) -- meant to be eaten on the side w/ the bibimbap. Is the turnip pickled also?

[purple goddess]

Yup, there's definitely some ground beef in there, too.. so just smoosh it all up and scoff??

While sipping on the miso?

And eating the pickled turnip, kimchi and coleslaw on the side?

Gotcha!

Will report back.

[beelzebozo]

i'm so jealous. bibimbap sounds delicious right now.

[kc72]

Never had it w/ ground beef before.

What's a kimchi pancake?

[purple goddess]

It appears to be kimchi, on a thin crepe, , folded over and cut into little bite sized pices..

Yummy!

[hannaone]

Usually some sliced kimchi, pork or seafood, in batter and pan fried like a pancake.
This is one version. There are many more out there -

http://www.chowhound.com/topics/530450

[purple goddess]

hannaone,

that was pretty much it.. and it was amazing!

[beelzebozo]

i think it all gets combined in a big bowl, and you eat it together. at least, that's my understanding as gleamed from the episode of "boy meets grill" in which a korean girl helped him cook it.