⏳ Limited stock: Buy 1 Get 1 Free on selected lines — automatically applied at checkout →

Korean BBQ at Home: A Beginner's Guide (With Shopping List)

Korean BBQ (gogi-gui) is grilled, marinated meat cooked at the table and wrapped in lettuce with rice, kimchi and punchy dipping sauces. The good news: you don't need a restaurant or special kit to do it well at home — a heavy frying pan or a tabletop grill, the right marinades, and a few sides are all it takes. Here's exactly what to get and how to put it together.

What you need (the shopping list)

The meat. The three classics are thinly sliced beef (bulgogi), beef short rib (galbi), and pork belly (samgyeopsal). Ask your butcher to slice it thinly — that's the key to that quick, caramelised grill.


The marinade. This is where it all comes from, and it's the easy bit. Use a ready marinade:



Prefer to make your own? Mix gochujang with soy sauce, sesame oil, sugar, grated garlic and a splash of water.


The sides (banchan). Korean BBQ is all about the spread. At minimum: steamed short-grain rice and kimchi. Add pickled radish or seasoned seaweed if you like.


The wraps and dips. Little gem or red leaf lettuce (and perilla leaves if you can find them) for wrapping. For dipping: ssamjang (a savoury soybean-and-chilli paste) is traditional — or simply mix a little gochujang with sesame oil. A dip of sesame oil with a pinch of salt and pepper is classic for pork belly.


Browse the full Korean range to stock up in one go.

How to do it, step by step

  1. Marinate the meat. Coat your sliced meat in the marinade and leave for at least 30 minutes (longer is better — a few hours, or overnight).

  2. Prep the table. Cook the rice, open the kimchi, wash and dry the lettuce, and set out your dips in small bowls. Korean BBQ is a "everything on the table" meal.

  3. Get the pan hot. Use a tabletop grill if you have one, or a heavy frying pan or griddle on the hob. You want it properly hot.

  4. Grill in small batches. Lay the meat out without crowding the pan, and turn once it's caramelised. Thin slices take only a minute or two each side.

  5. Wrap and eat. Take a lettuce leaf, add a little rice, a piece of grilled meat, a dab of ssamjang or gochujang, and a bit of kimchi. Wrap and enjoy in one bite — then go back for the next.


Tuk Tuk tip: cook in small batches and eat as you go, rather than grilling everything at once. That's how it's done in Korea — it stays hot, and it makes the meal last. Open a window; it gets smoky, in the best way.

Make it easy

For a fuss-free first go: pick one ready marinade, one kimchi, a bag of rice and a bottle of sesame oil, and grab lettuce and meat locally. That's a proper Korean BBQ for very little money.

What do you need for Korean BBQ at home? Thinly sliced meat, a marinade (or gochujang, soy and sesame oil to make your own), rice, kimchi, lettuce for wrapping, and a dipping sauce. You can cook it in a heavy frying pan if you don't have a tabletop grill.


What meat is best for Korean BBQ? The classics are thinly sliced beef (bulgogi), beef short rib (galbi) and pork belly (samgyeopsal). Thin slices are key for a quick, caramelised grill.


What sauces are used in Korean BBQ? A sweet-savoury bulgogi or galbi marinade for the meat, and dips such as ssamjang or gochujang. A simple sesame oil, salt and pepper dip is classic for pork belly.


Do you need a special grill for Korean BBQ at home? No. A tabletop grill is nice, but a heavy frying pan or griddle on the hob works perfectly well.


What sides go with Korean BBQ? Steamed short-grain rice, kimchi, lettuce for wrapping, and extras like pickled radish or seasoned seaweed.