Meaning & use
bulgogi
Last updated
Meaning
noununcountable
A Korean dish of thin slices of beef marinated in soy sauce, sugar, and spices, then grilled or stir-fried.
Grammar: Uncountable: you say 'some bulgogi' or 'a plate of bulgogi', not 'a bulgogi'.
Patterns
- eat bulgogi
- make bulgogi
- bulgogi with rice
We ordered bulgogi and kimchi at the Korean restaurant.
My favorite Korean dish is bulgogi because the meat is so tender.
She learned to make bulgogi from her grandmother.
Common combinations
- beef bulgogi
- The menu offers beef bulgogi and chicken bulgogi.
- bulgogi sauce
- You can buy bulgogi sauce at the Asian grocery store.
- grilled bulgogi
- The grilled bulgogi was served with lettuce leaves.
- a bulgogi bowl
- I had a bulgogi bowl for lunch.
Synonyms and how they differ
- Korean barbecue
- This is a broader term for various Korean grilled meat dishes, while bulgogi specifically refers to marinated beef.
Commonly confused: bulgogi or bibimbap?
bulgogi vs bibimbap
Bibimbap is another Korean dish, a mixed rice bowl with vegetables and meat, often confused with bulgogi.
Practice
What is bulgogi?
Choose one answer.
Bulgogi is specifically marinated grilled beef from Korea. The other options are different dishes: Korean noodle soup (e.g., ramyeon), Japanese rice dish (e.g., sushi), and Chinese dumpling (e.g., jiaozi).
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “bulgogi”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.