Korean Sloppy Joes With Sweet And Spicy Cucumbers Recipes

KOREAN-INSPIRED SLOPPY JOES AND QUICK PICKLES

Steps:

• Gather your ingredients.
• For the pickles: Thinly slice the cucumber 1/4 to 1/8-inch thick. In a bowl, whisk up rice wine vinegar, sugar, chili flakes, salt and sesame oil. Add sliced cucumbers and toss.
• For sloppy joes: Peel and grate the pear on a wide tooth of box grater. Peel and chop the onion and slice or grate the garlic and ginger.
• Heat a skillet over medium-high to high heat. Add the oil, 2 turns of the pan, then add the meats and brown and crumble. Season with salt and pepper. Add pear, onions, garlic and ginger and stir a couple of minutes to soften. Add soy sauce, Worcestershire, chili paste, stock, sugar and sesame oil. Bring to a bubble and reduce heat to simmer, 10 to 15 minutes.
• Serve beef on rolls with scallions and fresh or pickled chili peppers and quick pickles.

KOREAN SLOPPY JOE

Steps:

• In a large bowl, mix the beef or pork, ginger, garlic, gochuang, sesame oil, sugar, soy sauce and black pepper. Cover and marinate, in the refrigerator, at least 2 hours and preferably overnight.
• Heat a large heavy-bottomed pan or cast-iron skillet over high heat with the vegetable oil. When shimmering hot, saute the diced onions for about 4 minutes, stirring constantly, or until soft. Add the marinated meat and saute, stirring, just until fully cooked through, 5 to 7 minutes. Drain any residual fat, if needed.
• While the meat cooks, toast the buns.
• Divide the meat and place it into the buns. Serve, ideally with pickles and shredded iceberg lettuce.
• Make the cure mix: In a small bowl, stir together the salt and 1 1/2 teaspoons of the sugar.
• Make the kimchi marinade: Add the pear, gochugaru, fish sauce, garlic, ginger and remaining 2 tablespoons sugar to a blender and blend until smooth.
• In a large pickling jar or lidded container, combine the cucumber and the cure mix; let sit for 15 minutes. Drain excess liquid, then add 1 cup of the kimchi marinade, stirring to coat. Refrigerate for at least 2 hours. This kimchi will keep up to 1 week in the refrigerator.

KOREAN SLOPPY JOES WITH SWEET AND SPICY CUCUMBERS

Steps:

• Put the sliced cucumbers in a colander set over a large bowl. Sprinkle them with the salt and toss to coat. Let the cucumbers sit for 30 minutes to draw out the water from them. After they've sat, squeeze them to remove more water then pat them dry with paper towels or a clean kitchen towel.
• Put the cucumbers in a small bowl along with the gochugang, rice vinegar and sugar. Toss everything to combine thoroughly.
• Cover and chill the pickles for 30 to 60 minutes, or even make them a day or 2 ahead. The longer you keep them the less crunchy they will become.
• In a small bowl stir together the hoisin sauce, gochugang, soy sauce, rice vinegar, sesame oil and lime juice. Set aside.
• Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat, swirl the oil to coat the bottom of the skillet. When the skillet is hot add in the onion and ground turkey. Use a wooden spoon to break the turkey up into small crumbles.
• When the turkey is nearly cooked through, turn the heat down to medium-low and add the ginger and garlic to the mixture, cook for a minute. Pour the sauce over the turkey and stir everything together until coated. Turn the heat down to low and simmer for several minutes or until everything is warmed through. Taste for seasoning and serve on buns topped with the sweet and spicy cucumbers.