Recipe: Vegetarian Korean Bulgogi Wraps with Gochujang Marinade

The one and only time I've seen a vegetarian version of this dish was at a great restaurant called The Peaceful Dragon in Charlotte, NC. It's quite easy to make your own, and they're very tasty...

12 large leaves of red leaf lettuce or romaine lettuce
1 lb. wheat gluten strips

For marinade:

2 TB soy sauce
6 TB gochujang (fermented korean red pepper) paste
2 TB honey
1/2 tsp. white pepper
1 TB ginger, grated
3 green onions, minced
4 cloves garlic, minced

1 cucumber, peeled, seeded, and julienned
1 carrot, peeled and julienned
2 TB white vinegar
1/2 TB sugar
1 tsp. sesame oil

Vegetarian kim chi, as needed
4 oz. bean thread noodles, prepared
1.5 cups mung bean sprouts
4 scallions, thinly sliced

Combine marinade ingredients and marinate gluten strips for one hour. Meanwhile, combine cucumber/carrot strips, vinegar, sugar, and sesame oil in a bowl and refrigerate.

Remove gluten from marinade, reserving marinade, and grill over hot coals until browned and crispy on all sides. Heat marinade in a pan and simmer until reduced by half. Place reduced marinade in a serving bowl.

Serve cucumber/carrot salad, grilled gluten, marinade/sauce, bean thread noodles, bean sprouts, and kim chi on a platter with the lettuce leaves. Place a bit of all the ingredients in the leaf and wrap up to eat.