Instant Pot Korean Beef is tender, flavorful Korean beef made in a pressure cooker. Recipe includes an explanation of gochujang and a gochujang substitute.
This Instant Pot Korean Beef recipe is a variation on my slow cooker Korean beef recipe, which is one of my favorite crock pot recipes.
The Korean beef is super tender and packed with flavor. The recipe makes plenty of sauce, and I love to serve it spooned over the beef.
Rather than having to slow cook it all day, the Instant Pot cuts the total time cooking from 6-8 hours to just over an hour. Most of that time is hands-off, which makes this a pretty easy dinner recipe.
How to make Korean beef in the Instant Pot
This is a really easy dinner recipe!
Step 1: Simply stir the first ten ingredients together for the sauce.
Step 2: Place the cubed meat in the inner pot, and pour the sauce over the meat.
Step 3: Close and lock the lid.
Step 4: Turn the pressure release valve to sealing position. Press the meat button and adjust the time to 40 minutes.
Step 5: Let the pressure release naturally for 25 minutes, and then turn the pressure release valve to venting position.
What is gochujang?
Gochujang is a key ingredient in this Korean beef. It's a sweet and spicy red chili paste that's commonly used in Korean cooking.
Not to be confused with Thai sweet chili sauce or a spicy chili sauce like Sriracha, gochujang sauce adds unique flavor to this dish.
There are several different brands of gochujang sauce available, and I've seen it everywhere from my local supermarket to Walmart, Target, and Amazon.
We prefer it to Sriracha. Even my kids love the flavor of the sweet and spicy sauce.
**Note - be sure to get gochujang sauce, not paste. The paste is more concentrated and will give you a much spicier result.**
What can you substitute for gochujang?
I highly recommend buying a bottle of gochujang sauce.
If you can't gochujang sauce (or just don't want to purchase it), you can substitute a mixture that consists of a little Sriracha, a dash of additional soy sauce, and a little additional brown sugar to taste instead.
What to serve with this dish
I usually serve this beef topped with sesame seeds and sliced green onions over rice with steamed broccoli on the side. It goes well with any number of steamed veggies (snow peas are also really good with this).
You can also serve it as Korean beef tacos in tortillas topped with shredded cabbage.
Storage
Any leftovers should be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator. The beef will keep for up to 4 days when properly stored.
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Instant Pot Korean Beef
Equipment
- Instant Pot/electric pressure cooker
Ingredients
- ½ cup reduced-sodium soy sauce
- ⅓ cup brown sugar packed
- ¼ cup reduced-sodium beef broth
- 5 cloves garlic minced
- 2 tablespoons sesame oil
- 2 tablespoons rice vinegar
- 2 tablespoons freshly grated ginger
- 2-4 tablespoons Gochujang sauce1 depending on desired heat
- ½ teaspoon onion powder
- ½ teaspoon pepper
- 3-4 pound boneless beef chuck roast cut into 1-inch cubes
Instructions
- In a medium bowl, whisk together first 10 ingredients (up to roast).
- Place cubed roast into Instant Pot.
- Pour sauce over cubed meat.
- Close the lid, and make sure the pressure release valve is turned to "SEALING".
- Press the MEAT program button, and adjust time to 40 minutes. The pot should reach pressure within 10-15 minutes.
- Once the pot reaches pressure, it will begin counting down.
- Once it has finished cooking, it will beep and switch to keep warm.
- Allow beef to remain in pot for 25 minutes NPR (natural pressure release).
- Carefully release any pressure left at that time by turning the pressure release valve to "VENTING".
Video
Notes
- See notes above recipe for an explanation and substitute. Also, be sure to get gochujang sauce, not paste.
- Nutrition facts are estimates.
Christina Rea
We love this so much! I'm add more meat and veggies so should I be doubling the spices and liquids?thank you
Kate
Hi - it depends on how saucy you want it to be. If you're happy with the recipe, doubling everything may be the easiest.
Kristin
We make a lot of Asian food in our house and can be pretty picky about how it turns out. I made this exactly as written and it was DELICOUS!!! We will definitely be adding this to our instant pot meal rotation; so much tastier than making a pot roast. My husband, who is pretty particular, kept saying "this is delicious." Thank you for publishing this one.
Kate
Thank you so much!
Robbie
This looks amazing. However I am wondering if it could be done in a slow cooker, as I don’t have an instant pot nor a pressure cooker.
Kate
Thank you! I have a slow cooker version, and you can find that recipe here.
Esther
I thought you needed 1 cup of liquid for the Instant Pot. I’m confused.
Kate
Hi! The sauce makes more than 1 cup of liquid.
Sharese
If have a 3-4lb chuck roast. If I want shredded Korean Beef, can I leave it whole when I cook this recipe? Then shred when done and put back into sauce? If so, how should I adjust the cook time? Thank you.
Kate
The larger the piece of meat, the longer it takes to cook. So, cooking a whole 3-4 pound roast will take much, much longer than a cubed roast. When I make pulled pork and similar shredded meat, I cut the larger piece of meat into 4-6 pieces and then cook those pieces. With the larger pieces of meat, you're looking at about 25 minutes per pound for tender, shred-able meat. I hope that helps!
Courtenay
Fantastic! So delicious, thank you!
Kate
Thanks!
Jan
Love this recipe. I have made it several times. It’s easy and a flavour pleaser for everyone. I could only find the gochujang paste and find 1/2 tablespoon of that is spicy enough for us
Kate
Thank you so much! I'm so glad that you like it!
Laura S.
What cut of beef works best in this recipe? Thanks!
Kate
Chuck roast works well. You could also use stew meat if that's easier.
Jen
This was DELICIOUS! my husband was craving kor an beef and this totally hit the spot! Adding to our rotation.
Kate
Yay!! I'm so glad that you liked it!
Vanessa Ashley
Hi,
I'm just wondering if you should cook this on the High, Medium or Low Pressure setting?
Thanks,
Kate
Hi! You can either use the meat button or use manual high pressure.
Jeanette
This was an awesome recipe. It turned out so good. I used tri tip steaks cut into 1 inch cubes. This is a first time must try success. Thanks for the recipe.
Kate
Thank you!
Amy
Hi! I was just wondering what brand of gochujang sauce you use? Want to try this recipe out and can't seem to find the sauce ?
Kate
Hi! I've used Bibigo and Momofuku's gochujang sauces. I've ordered it on Amazon because I can't always find it in my local store. If you decide you don't want to buy the sauce, also have directions for making a DIY gochujang substitute above the recipe.
Terrenia
Could I use frozen stew meat?
Jeanette
This was an awesome recipe. It turned out so good. I used tri tip steaks cut into 1 inch cubes. This is a first time must try success. Thanks for the recipe.
Kate
Thanks!