Bibimbap

Rice dishes

• Eggs (알류)Usually in itOnly this one→

  A fried or raw egg on top is a standard part of the bowl. Everything is stirred together before eating, so ask for it to be left off when you order.

• Soybean (대두)Usually in itOnly this one→

  Gochujang is made with fermented soybean powder (meju), and some places serve soy sauce or doenjang instead. Where the gochujang comes separately you can decide how much to add, but every sauce option carries soy.

• Sesame (참깨)Usually in itOnly this one→

  Sesame oil is poured over the bowl or left on the table for you to add. Where you add it yourself you can skip it, but namul such as spinach and bracken are dressed with sesame oil and seeds, so sesame is still there. The hot stone version coats the bowl with sesame oil to crisp the rice.

• Wheat (밀)Sometimes in itOnly this one→

  Many shop-bought gochujang brands contain wheat, and wheat-based soy sauce is a second route. Wheat-free gochujang exists but you cannot tell by looking.

• Barley and rye (보리 · 호밀)Sometimes in itOnly this one→

  Barley malt powder is a traditional gochujang ingredient and still appears in many brands, alongside rice-based recipes.

• Beef (쇠고기)Sometimes in itOnly this one→

  Sliced or minced meat is a common topping and is usually beef, but chicken, seafood or tofu can take its place. Some places serve yak-gochujang, gochujang stir-fried with minced beef, as the sauce, so beef can be in the sauce even without the topping.

• Garlic (마늘)Usually in itOnly this one→

  Minced garlic goes into the namul seasoning for spinach and bracken and into the gochujang sauce stirred through the rice at the table.

• Onion (양파)Sometimes in itOnly this one→

  Some named versions, such as stir-fried onion bibimbap, put a heap of cooked onion on the rice as the main topping.

• Fish (생선)Sometimes in itOnly this one→

  Albap, a named version, heaps fish roe such as flying fish roe on the rice.

• Shellfish (조개류 · 굴 · 전복)Sometimes in itOnly this one→

  Cockle bibimbap puts boiled cockles tossed in a dressing on the rice.

• Octopus (문어 · 낙지 · 주꾸미)Sometimes in itOnly this one→

  Nakji bibimbap tops the rice with spicy stir-fried long-arm octopus.

• Mushrooms (버섯)Sometimes in itOnly this one→

  Shiitake or oyster mushrooms are sometimes sauteed and added like the other vegetable toppings, and Jeonju bibimbap is topped with shiitake.

• Perilla seed (들깨 · 들기름)Sometimes in itOnly this one→

  Some places dress the vegetables or mix the bowl with perilla oil instead of sesame oil, and mountain-vegetable bibimbap may dress the vegetables with perilla seed powder.

• Asian pear (배)Sometimes in itOnly this one→

  Some recipes mix pear juice into the gochujang sauce or add shredded pear on top.

Usually in it

Most kitchens put this in. Assume it is there unless the staff tell you otherwise.

Sometimes in it

It depends on the recipe and the brand of sauce, so it is worth asking.

Rarely in it

The usual recipe does not call for it, but some kitchens still use it.

Checked 14 of the 33 ingredients this site covers. An ingredient that is not listed here has simply not been checked yet — that is not the same as it not being in the dish.

⚠This page describes how the dish is usually made in Korea. Every kitchen works differently, so always show your card and ask the staff before you order.