The Hype of Kogi Korean BBQ Taco Trucks

From a show of hands, how many of you have heard of the Kogi Korean BBQ Taco Trucks? It is the latest LA craze since Pinkberry and Sprinkles! I have to say that I am among one of these people who have never waited in line for any of the above-mentioned fads. But, I do have tremendous respect for the masterminds behind these businesses. To achieve that much hype, attention, and popularity is genius! I just don’t have the patience nor craving to wait in line for yogurt, cupcakes, or in this case, Korean BBQ tacos. In order to find out where these trucks will be, you have to follow their Twitter page. The wait can be as long as 3 hours, and sometimes you may not even get what you want because they ran out. Kogi offers Korean Short Rib Tacos, Spicy BBQ Chicken Tacos, Spicy Pork Tacos, Tofu Tacos, and of course, burritos for the mighty hungry! I would love to try Kogi’s tacos or burritos one of these days - perhaps when the novelty eventually dies down, or when they open a real restaurant without wheels.

In the meantime, we thought it would be fun to try our own version of the famous Kogi tacos by combining Korean flavors with Mexican ingredients. We may not have their super duper secret sauces or their cilantro-lime relish, but we do have the inspiration from Kogi to create our own tacos at home.

Start by marinating 2 lbs of beef short ribs: 1/2 cup soy sauce, 1/2 cup rice wine (sake), 1/2 cup pear juice, 1/3 cup packed brown sugar, 1 tsp of sesame oil, 1/3 cup of green onions, 1 tbsp minced garlic, 1 tsp of sesame seeds, and pepper to taste. Marinate this overnight, or up to 2 days.

We grilled the beef short ribs in our backyard BBQ grill. I bet the neighbors were wondering what was smelling so good...

To make our Korean-Mexican tacos, we packed the corn tortillas with the marinated and grilled beef short ribs, kimchi (which we bought at the market), cilantro, and a squeeze of lime. The meat was tender, juicy, and full of flavor and the kimchi gave it a fresh and crisp texture. It may not be as good as Kogi's, but it was satisfying nonetheless!

If anyone was lucky enough to try the Kogi truck, please leave a comment and let us know about your experience and what you tried!

To view or print-out this recipe, click here: Korean BBQ Tacos