Bulgogi and Kimchi Pizza… Sounds Weird but It’s Delicious!
Since we make our own pizza every week, we often try out some weird combinations. For months, Hubs has been talking about making a bulgogi and kimchi pizza. Frankly, I thought there was no way it would work. Spoiler alert: It totally does.
Disclaimer: The following post contains affiliate links. If you click a link and make a purchase, I receive a commission at no extra cost to you. This is how I keep the oven at Elle Jay at Home running, so I appreciate your support!
There are a few things we had to consider before proceeding with our bulgogi kimchi pizza, and I encourage you to read through to make sure your head is in the right space before you make your own.
Addressing the Kimchi Element
The flavor profile of kimchi is briny, spicy, peppery, a little carbonated, and just a tad sweet. It’s fermented cabbage (or you can do daikon radish as well; that’s really good) that has been rubbed with a chili mixture. This includes garlic, ginger, sugar, gochu powder (gochugaru), and fish sauce.
As a texture, you usually want to eat it cold, but it does well warmed in soups. It just loses a bit of its crunch, heat, and the soda-like nip when it’s cooked, though.
There are not that many recipes out there for pizzas with kimchi, but there are a handful of grilled cheese recipes. While those played a critical role in our research for the cheese element, the other thing we decided was that our kimchi would best serve as the sauce for our pizza.
This is simple enough. We chopped it up finely and layered it on the crust first. This did a couple things. It eliminated the need for tomato sauce, which has no place in this recipe.
Keep in mind that kimchi seems to lose some of its heat when it’s warmed, so if you really want that kick, choose a hotter kimchi or sprinkle on a pinch or two of gochu powder after it comes out of the oven (like red pepper flake).
Making Beef Bulgogi for Pizza
The bulgogi is arguably the most important thing to get right on this pizza. If you don’t marinate it correctly, it’s just a kimchi pizza with “meh” meat on it. That’s not worth it.
So, you’re going to start with a sharp knife and a semi-frozen cut of beef. Ribeye, sirloin, or tenderloin are all good, so just pick based on your budget and preference. You could also use chicken or pork. The important thing is that you slice it into very thin slices to really get that marinade soaked in.
The marinade is fairly simple, but it does take a few ingredients you might need to get from the nearest Asian market (or online if you don’t have one).
Bulgogi Marinade Shopping List
- Pear juice (you can juice 2 Asian pears or you can just get a bottle from the baby food section; this has served us well in a pinch)
- Gochugaru *optional but picks up the flavor of the kimchi
- Freshly grated ginger
- Minced garlic
- Soy sauce
- Light brown sugar
- Sesame oil
- Green onion
See the recipe for the exact proportions, but you can take some liberties to get it just how you like it. I’d even direct you to this blog post from Kimchimari because she has some insight into making authentic bulgogi.
One quick but very important note is to embrace the char. So, while you don’t want to burn the tar out of your meat, you do want to get a bit of color on it. Hubs has informed me that, in South Korea, it’s not done until it starts to turn black, and undercooking it is a crime.
You can either cook your meat on a cast iron skillet on the stove, or you can grill it. Either way, about 2 minutes on each side is good to get it cooked through. Time in the oven once it’s on the pizza will contribute the char.
Picking the Cheese for Bulgogi and Kimchi Pizza
Absolutely nothing about bulgogi or kimchi recommends it to pair with cheese. That’s why it was a critical part of the research process to find a good option for our pizza.
Obviously, we could stick to mozzarella, which is bland, creamy, milky, and melts well. However, to really lift up the flavors we’ve worked hard for, we need a proper cheese pairing.
We need something with almost a sheepy flavor to pair with the lactic acid in the kimchi, and something that melts nicely to maintain the expectation of cheese on a pizza. We want creamy and a only a bit sharp with a hint of sweetness and no pungent flavor of its own.
After consulting numerous grilled cheese recipes and a few cheese/sauerkraut recipes, we decided up Manchego and Monterey Jack.
Manchego, which is made from sheep’s milk, brings the gentle bite of its own lactic acid and unexpected fruity sweetness that mimics the nip of the kimchi and the pear in the bulgogi. Monterey jack cheese melts really well and has just a bit more flavor than mozzarella.
Other Toppings for Bulgogi and Kimchi Pizza
We thought long and hard about the order of the ingredients, how finely it would all be cut, and then we considered if anything was missing. Should we top it all with a runny egg? What about bean sprouts, spinach, or zucchini?
That’s when we realized we need to calm down and let the two stars of this pizza shine on their own. The only additional topping was a fresh garnish of green onion to brighten the flavors back up. It’s really simple, and we don’t need to turn this into a bibimbap pizza (this time).
Preparing the Pizza Crust Correctly
Of course, I have a whole post dedicated to the importance of making your pizza dough the right way, and what tools you need to help you along. You can read that here, and grab the pizza-making kit shopping list.
But because I love you, here’s the general overview of getting your pizza crust right. Your dough starts with warm water, sugar, yeast, salt, flour, and olive oil (so you can gather up your ingredients).
Wake Up the Yeast First
Measure you 1/2 cup of water from the tap and microwave it for 30 seconds. When it comes out, stir in 1/2 teaspoon of sugar until that’s dissolved. Stick your finger into the water. It should feel close to body temperature (or you can use a thermometer and aim for 100ºF). If it’s too hot, it’ll kill your yeast. Too cold, the yeast won’t liven up as well.
Stir in 1 teaspoon of active dry yeast, and allow it to bloom for 5 minutes. This is a good way to make sure your yeast are alive. They’ll be eating up the sugar and burping out gas, turning your water into frothy, foamy body.
Create a Quick Starter
In a mixing bowl, combine 1 cup of flour (bread or all-purpose… see the original post for my discussion on what each brings to pizza) with the yeast mixture, 1/2 teaspoon of salt, and 2 tablespoons of olive oil. Just stir it all to combine it; then cover it and let it rest for 1 hour.
Pull Together a Perfect Pizza Dough
Then dump this starter into your stand mixer with a hook attachment with another 1/2 cup of flour and let the mixer run for 15 minutes on medium-high speed. It’ll be tacky but won’t stick to the sides of the bowl anymore.
You can then cover it and refrigerate the dough for 6 to 48 hours, or proof it covered on the counter for 2 hours. This is a less flavorful option, but still perfectly good.
Assembling Your Bulgogi Kimchi Pizza
Turn the dough out onto a floured counter. It will deflate, and that’s fine. Preheat your oven with the pizza stone on the bottom rack as hot as it will go. For me, that’s 550ºF. Your oven might be different, though.
Prepare your pizza peel with a generous dusting of cornmeal. Keep it close by while you get your dough ready. If the dough is wet looking from condensation, you can reform into a ball. Just be aware that you won’t get the fun bubbles in the crust or as much rise if you do this.
Press or roll your dough out into a 14 inch round, and lay it on your prepared peel. Wiggle the peel a bit to make sure the dough isn’t sticking anywhere. If it is, lift the dough a bit and toss more cornmeal under the sticky spot.
Spread a thin layer of your chopped kimchi all over the pizza, and top with shredded monterey jack and manchego, then top with the cooked bulgogi. Shimmy the pizza onto your preheated pizza stone, and turn on the oven light to watch it.
It should take between 5 and 8 minutes to cook. You might want to turn on the broiler for a couple minutes to get a bit of char on the beef or some color on the cheese.
Sprinkle with chopped green onion and a bit of extra gochu powder. Cut and serve!
A Few Last Notes from the Chef
My husband has noted that this pizza is likely not everyone’s cup of tea, and that even he couldn’t finish his usual half a pizza for dinner. To that effect, Hubs recommends that you consider serving your bulgogi and kimchi pizza as an appetizer to share among 4 to 8 friends along with a variety of other options.
For me, I think you need to prepare this pizza alongside a couple of our other great pie ideas, and lean into the crazy pizza flavor experience. Seriously, though, I really need to post a “normal” pizza someday. HAHA!
Here are some other options to include on your buffet:
- Broccoli, Ham, and Cheese
- The Ultimate Breakfast Pizza
- Nashville Hot Chicken Pizza
- Italian Hero Stromboli
- Bocce Balls
If you do try this bulgogi and kimchi pizza recipe, please comment below and let me know what you think! I know it sounds weird, but trust me. It’s surprisingly delicious.
And don’t forget to subscribe and tell your friends to, too. The welcome email comes with a link for my downloadable menu planner and grocery worksheet.
Bulgogi and Kimchi Pizza
Equipment
- Large mixing bowl with lid
- Cast Iron Skillet
- Cutting board and knife
- Pizza Stone
- Pizza peel
- Pizza cutter
Ingredients
Beef Bulgogi Marinade
- 1/2 pound lean beef chilled in the freezer for at least 20 minutes for easier slicing
- 1 cup pear juice or substitute apple juice
- ¼ cup green onion finely sliced
- 2 Tbsp soy sauce
- 2 tbsp minced garlic
- 1 tsp grated ginger fresh
- 1 Tbsp toasted sesame oil
- 1 Tbsp brown sugar
- 1 tsp gochugaru
Bulgogi and Kimchi Pizza
- ¾ cup kimchi
- 1 cup white cheddar or monterey jack shredded
- ¼ cup manchego shredded
- 1 pound pizza dough prepared (recipe link in blog above)
- 2 Tbsp green onion sliced, for topping
Instructions
Making Beef Bulgogi
- Take your well-chilled beef out of the freezer, and finely slice it into the thinnest slices you can manage. Less than ¼ inch is ideal.
- In a large mixing bowl, combine all the ingredents for your marinade and toss them together with the beef.
- Marinate for 2 to 4 hours for the best flavor and tenderness.
- Heat a cast-iron skillet on the stove to medium-high heat, adding a little oil if needed to prevent sticking.
- Cook the beef slices in batches, careful not to overcrowd your pan. After 1 minute on the first side, check for doneness and flip. You want a good color on it.
- Remove the cooked beef before adding raw to the pan. Do not cross-contaminate.
- Allow to cool to room temperature before topping pizza.
Assembling Bulgogi and Kimchi Pizza
- Place your pizza stone on the bottom rack of the oven, and preheat to 550ºF (or as hot as your oven will go).
- Roll out your pizza dough to a 14 inch diameter, and lay on a cornmeal dusted peel.
- Chop the kimchi finely but rusticly so there are some larger bits to bite into. Spread this over the pizza. If there is liquid still on the cutting board, leave it there.
- Cover the kimchi with your chosen mixture of either white cheddar or Monterey jack and manchego.
- Place the bulgogi slices on top.
- Shimmy the pizza onto your preheated pizza stone and bake for about 10 minutes or until the crust is golden brown and the cheese is bubbly. The bulgogi should take on a bit of char, but it's okay if not.
- Remove the pizza from the oven and cool for 5 minutes before slicing into 8 pieces. Then top with additional sliced green onion to serve.
