ADVENTURES IN DOMESTICITY: Slow Cooker Galbi Tacos

Not too long ago, I received a slow cooker from CSN Stores (who have a lovely variety of table lamps, I should note), and I was quite excited to put it to use. Sadly though, I totally messed up my debut dish after attempting to execute a dutch oven recipe in my new device. The whole thing was a mess. In the wake of this disaster, I received many tips from friends and commenters, all of whom said I should a) use a recipe dedicated for a slow cooker; or b) just throw in whatever looked good and let ‘er rip.

For my second effort, I decided to go the latter route. I was going to do something I’d always wanted to try: adapt my standby Korean galbi marinade into a braise. Results after the jump…

I start with a simple onion, sliced into four humble parts.

Next is garlic. The recipe calls for a cup of garlic. Rather than peel forever, I simply purchased a bag of the stuff already prepared. I then came up with the brilliant idea to pound the bag with the nearby mallet in an effort to release some of the garlicky goodness inside. I felt super smart.

The garlic joins its onion contemporaries in the slow cooker.

Also joining the mix is a kiwi and sesame seeds.

Next I add about a cup of soy sauce, some sesame oil, mirin, 7up, and a little water. I think I was supposed to add red pepper flakes, but I forgot.

Oh snap! The red pepper flakes make it in after all! And so does this chuck roast, which I trimmed the fat off of and cut into a few large pieces.

The cover goes on, and then it’s time to wait.

In the meantime, I go to the Hollywood Bowl with jash and Sly.

Upon returning home, the meat is ready; although, not terribly photogenic.

For the record, I cooked the meat on low this time. I’m hoping this will alleviate any dryness that I experienced when I cooked on high.

I easily shred up the meat (and whatever onions and garlic cloves that managed to travel to the bowl with the beef).

Into three tortillas the beef goes. I sadly had no scallions left. Otherwise, I would have garnished with them.

Macro taco!

I added some chili-garlic sauce to the tacos, as well as a little mixture of sesame oil and Korean fermented soybean paste. And yes, I clearly had already taken a preview bite before this picture.

The verdict: very tasty! This was a definite improvement over my last slow cooker recipe. However, I did find the meat still a touch dry. My friend Andrea, however, suggested that in the future I add more water since the salty soy sauce might dry out the beef. The good news was that with the chili sauce and some of the liquid from the stoneware, I was able to ultimately enjoy a moist taco (insert snickering here).

Also, when I returned to this dish for leftovers a few days later, rather that remove the meat from the liquid and shred it in a separate bowl, I instead just shredded it up all in the same container, thus effectively mixing the beef with the onion and the garlic and the sauce. The result was much better.

A perfect recipe? No. But certainly one worth trying!

Next up: I will use a real, bona fide slow cooker recipe for something.