Bulgogi “Take-Out” with 40-Calorie Noodles

So about my first Bulgogi experience...

It all happened a few months ago when a few culinary friends wanted to introduce me to Korean BBQ. Now I had always seen those words on the front of cheap, low-scale, grade D Chinese food restaurants where they always have those specials that usually consist of abnormally low cost buffet lines... AKA the places you stay away from unless you want to eat cats and have the worst stomach pains of your life.

...but it was a Friday, and I'm usually adventurous on Fridays. So I said yes.. and thank Heavens I did.

Now even though those small plates we're quite tasty and all, they were just the bystanders. The true celebrity of the meal was the Bulgogi.

Bulgogi is what's being fired to the left there, and it's definition according to me is as follows: "beautifully marinated meats in a sweet, Chinese fashion." But seriously... these meats are, in my opinion, how Heaven cooks their skirt steak.

Although I couldn't completely replicate the taste of the meats I tasted at that totally non-sketchy Korean BBQ restaurant, I came pretty darn close. Also, since this meat reminded me of an upscale Chinese take-out, I figured it was best that I used as many green vegetables as I had sitting in the fridge as accompaniments (but seriously- you can basically use any kind of vegetable, because pretty much any vegetable tastes good with soy sauce).

I also decided to experiment with my grocery store find, which is tofu noodles. Just think of a noodle that tastes almost exactly like a normal noodle... but a little bouncier... and you can gobble up a WHOLE  bag for 40 smackin' calories. If that's not a seller, I don't know what is! And they beautifully absorb any flavor or sauce that surrounds them. What more could a girl on a diet ask for?

All in all, I hope that you experiment a little and try marinating some meat and consuming it with this healthy, 300-ish calorie dish. If you find yourself feeling lame and unadventurous, you can always add something like chicken-your-way or shrimp to this noodle dish... but just to reiterate, the marinade is SO easy-just pop it all into a blender and BLEND! Plus, half the ingredients are not completely necessary so you don't really have an excuse not to try it...

Just look at the caramelization on the skirt steak due to the sugar in the marinade.

Cue the drool.

Bulgogi “Take-Out” with 40-Calorie Noodles

Ingredients:

Marinade: Yields 6-8 portions of marinated meat

2 lbs. Flank steak

½ yellow onion, roughly chopped

3 garlic cloves

2 teaspoons Sriracha (not necessary if you don’t have it)

½ cup soy sauce

½ cup Worcestershire sauce (not necessary if you don’t have it)

1 pear, peeled and roughly chopped

5 scallions

½ cup sesame oil (or vegetable oil)

1 tablespoon toasted sesame seeds (not necessary if you don’t have it)

2 tablespoons brown sugar

½ tablespoon agave nectar or honey

For Service: Yields 2 portions

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 garlic clove, minced

¼ yellow onion, roughly chopped

6 asparagus stalks, chopped into 1-inch pieces

a handful of snow peas (about ¾ cup)

1 8-ounce bag Tofu Shirataki

1 ½ tablespoon low-sodium soy sauce

1 tablespoon garlic powder

salt and pepper, to taste

Directions:

1. For the marinade, place onion, garlic cloves, Sriracha , soy sauce, Worcestershire sauce, pear, green onions, sesame oil, toasted sesame seeds, brown sugar, and agave nectar/honey in a blender and pulse for about 30 seconds until well blended.
2. Slice flank steak in ¼ inch slices and into bite-sized pieces. Pour blended marinade in a bag or Ziploc container along with the flank steak pieces, seal, and let marinate for at least 3 hours (or overnight for best results… the longer the meat marinates, the more the flavors seep into the meat). I even had so much flank steak that I divided the marinade into two containers and froze one in the marinade (totally safe and do-able and lasts about two months-I love this whole freezing-ahead-for-a-future-meal thing... it's quite handy). 
3.  Once the meat has marinated long enough, heat olive oil in a non-stick sauté pan over medium heat. Place minced garlic clove, chopped onion, chopped asparagus stalks, and snow peas in pan and sauté until soft. In a strainer, quickly drain the Tofu Shirataki, discarding the liquid, so just the noodles are left. Add the noodles to the sauté pan along with the soy sauce, garlic powder, salt, and pepper. Mix well and cook long enough to heat the noodles through. Taste for seasoning purposes, and adjust seasoning accordingly. Once noodles are heated through, vegetables are soft, and seasonings are correct, pour into two bowls and keep warm.
4. Rinse out sauté pan and heat over medium. Once pan is hot, pull out the marinated meat. Scrape off some of the marinade with the back of a knife/shake off the marinade when taking the meat out and place meat into the pan (cook as much as the meat as you want to eat… keep the rest in marinade and place back in fridge for up to 3 days or freeze). Note: some of the marinate can be kept on the meat, as long as it is cooked for a proper amount of time (10-15 minutes) or once it reaches 160 degrees F.
5. Once meat is cooked through, place on top of the noodles and vegetables… or just combine the whole thing into a bowl for yourself.
6. Now go on and enjoy those 40-calorie noodles and Heavenly skirt steak. I sure did.