When my oldest son was a baby, we received as a gift the book Bee-Bim Bop! by Linda Sue Park (affiliate link).  It’s a fun story book for kids, but also includes a great recipe for a family dinner my crew loves.  Which of course, as usual, I have tailored to my own specifications….the kids all love to help make this one and eat it too!  “Bee-Bim” means to mix everything together, which you do right before eating!

The kids love to help “squish” the meat, and are much more willing to eat a dinner they build themselves.

Bee-Bim Bop (serves 4-6)

Ingredients:

• 2 cups rice (uncooked, we use brown, but you can use whatever you enjoy)
• 1 tsp. minced garlic
• 5 TB soy sauce
• 2 TB sugar (or honey – or whatever sweetener you like)
• 1 TB avocado oil (or the vegetable oil of your choice)
• 1 TB sesame oil
• 1 tsp roasted sesame seeds
• 1/8 tsp black pepper)
• 1 pound of tender, lean beef (I use sirloin cut into strips)
• 2 green onions, minced
• 4 carrots
• 4 c. fresh baby spinach
• 1 pound bean sprouts (we frequently don’t have these, as they are hard to find! I have substituted other sprouts or sometimes use broccoli slaw)
• Any other veggies you’d like (we sometimes use broccoli slaw instead of the sprouts if we can’t find them)
• 4 eggs
• salt and pepper
• avocado or other vegetable oil for frying
• Go Chu Jang (Korean Chili Paste) (optional)

Directions:

1. Cook the rice in a rice cooker or pot.
2. While the rice is cooking, mix the garlic and chop the green onions. Mix together in a bowl with the soy sauce, sugar, oils, sesame seeds and pepper. This is the marinade for the meat.
3. Slice the beef into very thin slices. Place in a bowl with marinade. (The exact instructions in the book read: “…stick your hands into the bowl, grab handfuls of beef, and squish it all around for 2-3 minutes. This makes it nice and tender.”)
4. Break the eggs into a measuring cup and whisk together. Heat a nonstick frying pan. Pour about 1/4 of the egg into the pan and let the egg spread out into a thin layer. Cook for one minute on each side. Repeat until all the egg has been used. Cut the cooled “egg pancakes” into thin strips.
5. Peel the carrots and cut into small sticks. Stir-fry over high heat until tender. (You can also buy the carrots that are already chopped into small sticks at the store)
6. Stir-fry the spinach until tender, season with salt and pepper.
7. Stir-fry any other veggies you are using.
8. In a hot pan (I use a stove top wok) stir-fry the beef (in its marinade) until cooked through.

To Serve:

1. Put bowls of all the different meal components on the table, so that everyone can serve him or herself.
2. Start with rice in a bowl and add the meat and vegetables to the top.
3. Add the egg.
4. Adults or adventurous children who like some spice might enjoy adding some Go Chu Gang (Korean chile paste – affiliate link) as well.
5. Mix it all together (“bee-bim” means “mix”) and enjoy.