Slow Cooker Korean Beef

This slow cooker korean beef is one of those recipes you’ll want to make over and over again. It’s tender, flavorful, and honestly way easier than it looks.

The sauce is a mix of sweet, savory, and just a little spicy. It coats the beef perfectly as it slowly cooks and all the flavors come together.

What I love most about this recipe is that the slow cooker does all the heavy lifting. You basically toss everything in, set it, and come back to an incredible meal.

Serve it over some steamed rice with a sprinkle of sesame seeds and green onions, and you’ve got a dinner that looks and tastes like it came from a restaurant.

If you’ve been looking for a simple but impressive beef recipe, this one is definitely worth trying.

What Makes This Recipe So Good

Incredibly Tender Beef – The slow cooker transforms flank steak into melt-in-your-mouth tender pieces you would expect from a restaurant.

That Sauce Is Unreal – The mix of soy sauce and brown sugar with sesame oil creates a sweet and savory glaze that coats every single slice of beef perfectly.

Set It and Forget It – You literally toss everything in the slow cooker and walk away for hours while it does all the work for you.

Bold Korean Flavors at Home – Fresh ginger and garlic with sriracha give this dish that authentic Korean beef taste without needing a takeout menu.

Ingredients

• 2 lb Flank Steak, thinly sliced against the grain
• 1/3 cup Soy Sauce
• 1/4 cup Brown Sugar, packed
• 2 tbsp Sesame Oil
• 1 tbsp Rice Vinegar
• 1 tbsp Sriracha
• 4 cloves Garlic, minced
• 1 tbsp Fresh Ginger, grated
• 1 tbsp Cornstarch
• 1 tbsp Cold Water
• Sesame Seeds for garnish
• Green Onions, sliced for garnish
• Steamed Rice for serving

Directions

Step 1

Place the thinly sliced flank steak in the slow cooker.

Step 2

In a bowl, whisk together the soy sauce, brown sugar, sesame oil, rice vinegar, sriracha, minced garlic, and grated ginger until the sugar dissolves. Pour the sauce over the beef and toss to coat all the pieces.

Step 3

Cover and cook on low for 5 to 6 hours or on high for 2 1/2 to 3 hours, until the beef is very tender and the flavors have melded together beautifully.

Step 4

In a small bowl, mix the cornstarch with cold water until smooth. Stir the slurry into the slow cooker.

Step 5

Turn the heat to high, cover, and let the sauce thicken for about 15 minutes, stirring once.

Step 6

Serve the Korean beef over steamed white rice, generously garnished with sesame seeds and sliced green onions. For extra freshness, add a quick cucumber salad on the side.

Pro Tips

Freeze the Steak Before Slicing

Flank steak is tough to slice thin when it’s fully thawed because it’s soft and the knife just pushes through unevenly. Pop it in the freezer for about 30 to 45 minutes until it’s firm but not frozen solid.

This makes it so much easier to get those thin, even slices against the grain. Thin slices are important here because they soak up way more of that sauce and get tender faster in the slow cooker.

If your slices are too thick, you’ll end up with chewy pieces of beef even after hours of cooking.

Don’t Skip Cutting Against the Grain

Look at the flank steak and you’ll see long lines running through it – those are the muscle fibers. You want to cut across those lines, not along them.

When you cut against the grain, you’re shortening those tough fibers so each piece of beef basically falls apart when you bite into it. If you cut with the grain, the meat will be stringy and chewy no matter how long you cook it.

This one step makes the biggest difference between beef that melts in your mouth and beef that feels like you’re chewing on rubber bands.

Make Sure the Sugar Fully Dissolves

When you whisk the sauce together, take an extra 30 seconds to make sure the brown sugar is completely dissolved. If it’s not, you’ll get pockets of burnt sugar stuck to the bottom of the slow cooker.

Brown sugar that settles at the bottom can scorch during the long cook time, and that bitter burnt taste will get into the whole dish. Whisking it well before pouring it over the beef prevents this completely.

Related Recipes

• Instant Pot Mongolian Beef
• Slow Cooker Beef & Broccoli
• Instant Pot Teriyaki Chicken
• Instant Pot Short Ribs

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I use a different cut of beef instead of flank steak?

Yes, you can use chuck roast, skirt steak, or even sirloin. Chuck roast is actually a great option for the slow cooker because it has more marbling, which means it gets super tender and almost falls apart after hours of cooking.

If you go with chuck roast, just cut it into thin strips or bite-sized pieces before adding it to the slow cooker. Keep in mind fattier cuts may release more liquid, so your sauce might need an extra minute or two to thicken at the end.