Hello, listeners. Thanks for tuning in. Let’s continue talking about Korea’s favorite foods. Today, I’m going to talk to you about galbi barbecue. One of my favorites. First of all, let’s straighten some stuff out. Galbi means rib meat. Originally the meat used would be beef and it would be cut through the bone. The big rib on the bone would be called King Beef Ribs or Wang Sogalbi. Doesn’t that just sound awesome? Wang Sogalbi. Delicious. Well, Wang Sogalbi or King Beef Rib is tops when it comes to eating barbecued beef in Korea.

Any way, these days, galbi can apply to pork rib as well or dweji galbi. I have also seen lamb rib barbecue places as well. Now they also have chicken ribs or dakgalbi, but you can just ignore it. Chicken ribs are so small that if you were just to eat that, you would starve to death.

So with Wang Sogalbi The meat around the rib would be cut around the bone with the end part still sticking to the bone. The meat would often be scored on both sides and it is marinated in a sweet and savoy seasoned sauce. Some people like to have it cooked plain but it is especially a treat when it is marinated in a sauce and then grilled over charcoal. The sugars and seasonings in the meat help caramelize the meat so it is sweet and savory and with lots of crispy nibs. The sauce is the secret of each house and restaurant and it is typically made from soy sauce, garlic, sugar, and pear juice. But I have seen recipes using sesame oil, rice wine, soju, cola, hot pepper paste, fruit juice, lemon-lime soda, honey, daechu, and more.

Now about LA Galbi and Suwon Galbi. These are both specialty places for the ribs. So how do they different from King Beef Ribs? Well, with LA Galbi it is cut through the ribs at a lateral cut and you can see the row of rib meat along the meat. They say the name LA or la galbi comes either from the laterally cut nature of the ribs or because they originated from the American city of Los Angeles or LA. They said the cut let the sauce flavor the meat faster.

Now Suwon Galbi is different from Wang Sogalbi or King Beef Rib because they use thicker cuts of beef and they traditionally used an ax to cut the meat from the bones so… it is a more rustic cut. Also, suwon galbi is salt marinated rather than soy sauce marinated so the meat is closer to a dry aged steak. The marinade is also heavy on garlic so it is a flavor bomb of meat that is not as sweet as other region’s galbi.

In Korea this beef ribs are not cheap and can cost 38,000 to 50,000 a serving. Just keep in mind that you are getting a special treat and it should be treated as such. You wouldn’t eat this everyday unless you were super rich.

So..if you are looking to have a real special meal then I would suggest you head out to a speciality restaurant for Wang Sogalbi. Now if your wallet is a little light, the pork ribs are also quite nice and will only cost you about 15,000 won a portion.