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Korean Beef BBQ Tacos with Quick Pickled Cucumbers

Jul 23, 2020 · 24 Comments

This post may contain affiliate links, please see my privacy policy for details.

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Take your taco Tuesday to the next level with these incredible Korean beef BBQ tacos with quick pickled cucumbers, they’re so good you’re going to want to put them on the weekly rotation.

The best Korean BBQ beef tacos with quick pickled cucumbers perfect for taco Tuesday

I had one lone cucumber that needed to get used. I was also craving tacos (always am) and remembered I’d once had a Korean BBQ taco that had cucumbers on it and thought that would be perfect! So I googled far and wide and could not find a recipe for Korean beef BBQ tacos that didn’t require a slow cooker or hours and hours of time- maybe I was googling the wrong thing? Who knows. I just threw my hands in the air and said a mental “F-it” and decided to wing it, and I gotta tell you – these were some of the tastiest tacos ever!!

The best tasting Korean BBQ Beef recipe

Normally I’m not one for dishes that have a ton of ingredients – there are a few exceptions to that rule: tacos (like these slow roasted chicken tacos with radish and avocado slaw) or that time I made those ahi tuna poke bowls (here). I did not mind one bit that this dish required three bowls, multiple spoons, and ingredients galore, because the flavors come together like whoa. The beef is marinated and cooked in a slightly sweet, tangy sauce. The cucumbers are quick pickled and provide a nice crunch, and these are truly quick pickled, they’re ready in 30 minutes, and then there’s a spicy mayo sauce that ties it all together and then the tacos are topped with fresh cilantro. Bite after bite of deliciousness!!

The best recipe for Korean BBQ beef tacos with quick pickled cucumbers

I’m kind of obsessed with this recipe. There’s normally more of a lag time between when I make a recipe and when it actually sees the light of day on the blog, but with this recipe…I made it on Thursday, and then again on Friday, and I’m making it again this week…you get the point. I had to share it and hope you enjoy these Korean BBQ beef tacos with quick pickled cucumbers.

Korean BBQ beef tacos with quick pickled cucumbers are great for taco Tuesday

Other recipes you might enjoy:

  • Quick and Easy Chicken Tacos with Pineapple Salsa
  • The Best Ground Turkey Tacos
  • 5 Ingredient Cheesy Beef and Egg Noodle Casserole Recipe

Korean Beef BBQ Tacos with Quick Pickled Cucumbers

Take your taco Tuesday to the next level with these incredible Korean beef BBQ tacos with quick pickled cucumbers, they’re so good you’re going to want to put them on the weekly rotation.
5 from 2 votes
Print Rate
Prep Time: 40 minutes
Cook Time: 10 minutes
Total Time: 50 minutes
Servings: 12 tacos

Equipment

  • Glass Mixing Bowl
  • Mandolin
  • Large non-stick skillet

Ingredients

  • For the beef:
  • 1.5-2 lbs top sirloin beef thinly sliced
  • 2 garlic cloves pressed
  • 2 tablespoons soy sauce
  • 2 tablespoons brown sugar
  • 2 tablespoons hoisin sauce
  • 1 teaspoon sesame oil
  • 1 teaspoon rice wine vinegar
  • 1 teaspoon gochujang chili paste
  • For the quick pickled cucumbers:
  • 1 large english cucumber seedless, thinly sliced
  • 2 tablespoon rice wine vinegar
  • 1/2 teaspoon sugar
  • 1 jalapeno finely sliced
  • pinch of salt
  • For the spicy sauce:
  • 1/4 cup mayonnaise light
  • 1 teaspoon tomato paste
  • 1/2 teaspoon honey
  • 1 garlic clove pressed
  • 1 tablespoon water
  • 1 teaspoon gochujang chili paste
  • For the tacos:
  • 12 flour tortillas I like using small ones
  • 1 cup fresh cilantro mint or combination of fresh herbs

Instructions

  • For the beef: finely slice beef. In a bowl combine all ingredients for the marinade and mix to combine, then add in the beef and let marinade for 30 minutes or covered in the fridge up to 24 hours. Tap off excess marinade and put beef slices in a large skillet over high heat. Cook for 6-8 minutes, stirring occasionally, until no more pink shows.
    Korean BBQ Beef recipe from @Sweetphi
  • For the quick pickled cucumbers: slice cucumbers very thin (I use a mandolin) and put in a bowl, then add in rice wine vinegar, sugar, chopped jalapeno and pinch of salt, stir, and let sit in the fridge until ready to enjoy.
  • For the spicy sauce: Mix all ingredients in a bowl and set in the refrigerator. If you like spicy-spicy, add more gochujang, this sauce as is is mild to medium.
  • Warm the tortillas before serving.
  • To assemble tacos, spread a spoonful of spicy mayo on one side of a taco, spoon a few pieces of meat into the tortilla, and spoon cucumbers into the tortillas and then sprinkle a pinch of fresh herbs on top and repeat until all tacos are assembled, then enjoy.

Notes

Makes 12 tacos, 2-3 tacos per person.
The nutrition information presented on this site should be considered an estimate as the calculations will change based on the exact products you use in your own kitchen.    

Nutrition

Serving: 1taco | Calories: 221kcal | Carbohydrates: 21g | Protein: 16g | Fat: 8g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Cholesterol: 35mg | Sodium: 484mg | Potassium: 307mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 5g | Vitamin A: 136IU | Vitamin C: 3mg | Calcium: 53mg | Iron: 2mg

 

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Did you make this recipe? Hashtag with us! Be sure to follow/tag @PhiliaKelnhofer and hashtag #sweetphiblog – we love to see what you’re cooking up!”

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Chris Snelling says

    April 12, 2018 at 6:17 am

    I tried this recipe out last night. I left the jalapeno out due to having a 10 year old who doesn’t like hot things but kept everything else in the recipe. I actually added shredded carrots in on top of the cucumbers. It was great. I have a local brewery here in Vermont that serves a very similar recipe and it tasted almost identical to theirs. I am definitely going to cook this again!!!

    Reply
    • Sweetphi says

      April 13, 2018 at 11:13 am

      Hi Chris, thank you so much for your feedback. I’m so happy to hear you loved the recipe, and how neat that it tasted like a brewery there in Vermont. Korean BBQ tacos are totally a fave of ours too 🙂

      Reply
  2. Kelly Morgan (dad/chef-not-so-extraordinaire) says

    January 16, 2018 at 8:23 pm

    These were SOOOO good! Thank you for the awesome recipe. Even my 8 yr old girls loved them… without the pickled cuc of course. Wow! Will definitely make again and again!

    Reply
    • Sweetphi says

      January 17, 2018 at 9:22 am

      Hi Kelly, wow, thank you SO MUCH for your incredible comment and feedback. I am so happy your family loved this recipe, this is definitely one of my faves too 🙂

      Reply
  3. Rita says

    August 25, 2016 at 1:22 pm

    I’m going to make these phi, they sound great.

    Love ya, rita

    Reply
    • Sweetphi says

      August 27, 2016 at 11:11 am

      Can’t wait to hear what you think Rita, hope you love them!

      Reply
  4. Jess says

    August 25, 2016 at 3:48 am

    Love how all this started with one lonely cucumber! This looks delicious, and I’m sure it would be a huge hit around here. Thank you for always keeping your recipe so fresh and delicious !

    Reply
    • Sweetphi says

      August 27, 2016 at 11:01 am

      One lone cucumber definitely inspired this amazing meal, I need to have lone cucumbers hanging out in my fridge more often because they were SO good 🙂

      Reply
  5. Cheri says

    August 24, 2016 at 3:10 pm

    These will definitely show up in my weekly rotation, looks amazing. Thanks Phi!

    Reply
    • Sweetphi says

      August 27, 2016 at 10:58 am

      They’re definitely worth repeating over and over, i’m even making them next week too because they’re so good!

      Reply
  6. ThatGalKelly says

    August 24, 2016 at 11:59 am

    Aw man…I gotta make room on my already-done meal plan for these babies. Quick pickles. Marinated beef. Spicy mayo. In a taco. SOLD!

    Reply
    • Sweetphi says

      August 27, 2016 at 10:57 am

      Thank you so much for your sweet comment, I think you would definitely love these 🙂

      Reply
  7. Karen @ Seasonal Cravings says

    August 23, 2016 at 11:31 am

    My kids would love these babies and I’m all over those quick pickled cucumbers! Cheers!

    Reply
    • Sweetphi says

      August 24, 2016 at 7:05 am

      I think your kids would definitely love these, and girl, YES, the quick pickled cucumbers are amazing, and they’re actually quick – less than an hour, vs. some that are ‘quick’ pickles but it’s really like ‘oh hey, overnight them’ lol

      Reply
  8. Sues says

    August 23, 2016 at 5:57 am

    Gorgeous!! And these sound so, so flavorful and yummy 🙂

    Reply
    • Sweetphi says

      August 24, 2016 at 7:05 am

      Thank you so much, these are some of the best tacos I’ve ever had!

      Reply
  9. Susanne says

    August 23, 2016 at 2:55 am

    Oohh this looks really good! I’ll be putting this on my menu for next week!

    Reply
    • Sweetphi says

      August 24, 2016 at 7:06 am

      Yay! I’d love to know what you think when you make them. Thank you so much for commenting!

      Reply

Trackbacks

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    December 2, 2019 at 7:05 pm

    […] Korean Beef BBQ Tacos with Quick Pickled Cucumbers […]

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  2. Quick and Easy Chicken Tacos with Pineapple Salsa - Sweetphi says:
    May 8, 2019 at 6:05 pm

    […] and I’m all about tacos. I love tacos whether it’s the best ground turkey tacos, Korean beef BBQ tacos,  or slow cooker chicken tacos, there’s something about tacos that I never grow tired […]

    Reply
  3. Instant Pot Asian Shredded Beef Bowls - Sweetphi says:
    January 7, 2019 at 2:32 pm

    […] sauce. It’s a flavor combination I love whenever making Asian inspired dishes (like these Korean beef bbq tacos or these Asian ground turkey bowls). The recipe I used is adapted from The Essential Instant Pot […]

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  5. Quick Pickled Asian Vegetables - Sweetphi says:
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    […] and fermented vegetables) which my hubby is not that big a fan of. I thought back to when I made Korean beef bbq tacos with quick pickled cucumbers and how easy it was to make the […]

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Welcome to the SweetPhi blog, I’m Phi! I live in Milwaukee, WI. I’m a busy working mom (and cookbook author x2) to boy-girl twins and a toddler.

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