• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
The Oven Light
  • Recipes
  • Breakfast
  • Dinner
  • Dessert
  • About Us
  • 30 Minute Meals
  • Make Ahead
  • Gluten Free
  • Healthy
  • Appetizers
  • Drinks
menu icon
go to homepage
  • Recipes
  • Breakfast
  • Dinner
  • Dessert
  • About Us
  • 30 Minute Meals
  • Make Ahead
  • Gluten Free
  • Healthy
  • Appetizers
  • Drinks
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
  • search icon
    Homepage link
    • Recipes
    • Breakfast
    • Dinner
    • Dessert
    • About Us
    • 30 Minute Meals
    • Make Ahead
    • Gluten Free
    • Healthy
    • Appetizers
    • Drinks
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
  • ×
    • 10 Easy Healthy Summer Meal Recipes
    • Soft and sweet with a delicate crumb, these Sugar Cookie Bars are made with a simple replacement gluten free flour. Topped with a not-too-sweet frosting and decorated with sprinkles. Kids and adults will love it! #sugarcookie #cookiebars #kidfriendly
      Gluten Free Sugar Cookie Bars
    • Creamy Orange Cinnamon Sandwiches — 5 ingredients & 5 minutes
    • Sausage Gnocchi Skillet Meal | Quick, Healthy and Simple
    • Close up of pumpkin muffin with crumb topping.
      Easy Healthy Pumpkin Muffins with Maple Syrup
    • Olive and Artichoke Chicken | Make Ahead Weeknight Meal
    • Stuffed French Toast
      Make Ahead Stuffed French Toast with Creamy Orange Pecan Filling
    • Mediterranean Vegetable Pie - perfect recipe for vegetarians - so full of flavor and make ahead friendly!
      Mediterranean Vegetable Pie | Make Ahead Recipe
    • Easiest Overnight Sticky Buns | Just 5 Ingredients
    • Old Fashioned Blueberry Muffins
    • Cinnamon Apricot Brie Appetizer
    • Lots of toffee cookies up close.
      Toffee Log Butter Cookies | Gluten Free Option
    Home / Dinner

    Korean BBQ Sliders | Kogi BBQ Copycat

    By 3 Comments

    I'm not saying that making these Korean BBQ Sliders will make you a better person, but they totally will. Your friends will certainly like you more. I'm preparing these little beauties for our Superbowl party this year. Because whenever there's a game on in my house (which is pretty often), I deserve a real treat. 

    Jump to Recipe
    Korean BBQ Sliders with simple kimchi and sesame mayonnaise. Made perfect on Hawaiian rolls. Trader Joe's recipe.

    How to make Korean BBQ Sliders

    • Combine all the ingredients of the BBQ sauce. Set aside.

    Korean BBQ Sauce Ingredients

    • Sambal Oelek or Gachu Jang
    • Sugar
    • Soy Sauce — or use Tamari or Coconut Aminos for a GF option
    • Rice Wine Vinegar
    • Sesame Oil
    • Combine "kimchi" ingredients and toss cabbage well. Set aside.

    Kimchi Ingredients

    • Shredded Green Cabbage — I used a bag of store-bought pre-shredded cabbage
    • Olive Oil
    • Rice Wine Vinegar
    • Sambal Oelek or Gochu Jang
    • Ground Ginger
    • Sugar
    • Sesame oil
    • Salt and Pepper to taste
    • Combine sesame oil and mayonnaise and stir well. Set aside. 
    • If you buy the Trader Joe's beef ribs, they'll be in large, thin pieces. Spread them out in a pan over medium heat and cook through, turning once or twice for even cooking. 
    • Once cooked, remove and slice into long, thin pieces, and place pieces back in pan to soak up juices.  
    • Now add about ½ of the BBQ sauce to the pan and simmer for 2-3 minutes until sauce is incorporated. Taste. If you want more heat, add more of the BBQ sauce.
    Korean BBQ Sliders with simple kimchi and sesame mayonnaise. Made perfect on Hawaiian rolls. Trader Joe's recipe.

    It all started at the Kogi BBQ Truck

    These sliders were born out of our Kogi BBQ withdrawal since we moved to Denver. If you don't know Kogi BBQ, it's because you don't live in the Los Angeles area.

    My chef crush, Roy Choi, created the most heavenly Korean/Mexican fusion food and regularly brings it to my neighborhood in a truck! I will always love him for that. This recipe was inspired by our favorite Kogi short rib sliders. The mix of the sweet roll, sesame mayonnaise and slightly spicy meat is just heavenly.

    When we first started eating from the Kogi truck, we would wait in line for over 2 hours and then wait another 30 minutes for our food! We were young and didn't have kids, or anything else to do apparently. Truth be told, I would still wait in that line for their food. Luckily, lines are rarely over 10 minutes now.

    Korean BBQ Sliders are a Make Ahead Friendly Recipe

    Ok, enough about food trucks, let's talk about this Korean BBQ Sliders recipe. My favorite thing about this recipe is that you can make all of the elements ahead of time and then assemble and heat up when you're ready to serve! Since they're little, they make perfect Game Day snacks or a heavy appetizer. Although, I often turn them into dinner for just me and the hubs.

    Can I Make These Gluten Free?

    The flavors used in this recipe also work really well wrapped in a corn tortilla for a taco. Or, of course, you can purchase some gluten free bread.

    However, the meat from Trader Joe's comes in a sauce heavy with soy sauce, meaning it has wheat and is not gluten free. To make an easy substitute, grab a flank steak (or your favorite cut of beef) and make a quick marinade with Tamari or Coconut Aminos soy sauce, diced garlic and ginger. Marinate for 2-8 hours and either cook on a grill, OR thinly slice the and cook on your stovetop.

    The sauce can also be made GF simply by replacing the soy sauce with a GF soy sauce, tamari or coconut aminos. My favorite is a GF soy sauce I find at the Asian market nearby. But the grocery store will usually carry at least one GF option.

    Korean BBQ Sliders with simple kimchi and sesame mayonnaise. Made perfect on Hawaiian rolls. Trader Joe's recipe.

    Easy Make Ahead Kimchi

    Please don't be afraid of the "kimchi" on these little guys. I have completely Americanized it, and it's ready much quicker than traditional kimchi. Although, if you've got the time and energy to make kimchi from scratch, then please do! It's amazing stuff. Or pick up a jar at your local grocery store.

    Korean BBQ Sliders with simple kimchi and sesame mayonnaise. Made perfect on Hawaiian rolls. Trader Joe's recipe.

    Gochu Jang or Sambal Oelek

    Creating this recipe is what made me discover everyone's new secret spice, Gochu Jang. It really encompasses all the Korean flavor in one awesome paste. It doesn't take much of this added to the kimchi and the meat to give it that really authentic flavor, but with much less work. I found this cute little box of Gochu Jang in the "Asian" aisle at my grocery store. 

    Since writing this, it's become harder to find regular paste and instead they're selling gochu jang ketchup (not great). I've found Sambal Oelek and it's a great substitute.

    Korean BBQ Sliders with simple kimchi and sesame mayonnaise. Made perfect on Hawaiian rolls. Trader Joe's recipe.

    Look at these little Korean BBQ Slider buddies! Aren't they adorable? When you order sliders from the Kogi truck, they're served in pairs, which I think is the perfect amount (even though I usually get a few tacos and a quesadilla too, don't judge).

    Korean BBQ Sliders so full of flavor, you have to make them right away! So deliciously savory and sweet with just a little heat.
    Korean BBQ Sliders so full of flavor, you have to make them right away! So deliciously savory and sweet with just a little heat.

    Korean BBQ Sliders

    Do your friends and family a favor and bring these babies to the next gathering. You'll be covered in kisses of appreciation!
    Total Time: 40 minutes minutes
    Servings: 18 Sliders
    PRINT RECIPE PIN RECIPE

    Ingredients

    • 1 package (1.5 lbs) Bool Kogi Boneless Beef Ribs or a flank steak, thinly sliced with a simple marinade of tamari sauce for a GF option
    • 18-24 Hawaiian rolls or corn tortillas for a GF option
    • 1 small bag Shredded Mexican cheese blend

    Korean BBQ Sauce

    • 1 tablespoon Sambal Oelek or 2 tablespoon Gachu Jang
    • 3 tablespoon Sugar
    • 2 tablespoon Soy sauce use Tamari or Coconut Aminos for a GF option
    • 1 tsp Rice wine vinegar
    • 2 teaspoon Sesame Oil

    Kimchi

    • 2 C Shredded green cabbage I used a bag of store-bought
    • 1 tablespoon Olive Oil
    • 2 tablespoon Rice wine vinegar
    • 1 teaspoon Sambal Oelek or Gochu Jang
    • ⅛ teaspoon Ground Ginger
    • 1 tablespoon Sugar
    • ½ teaspoon Sesame oil
    • Salt and Pepper to taste

    Sesame Mayonnaise

    • ½ C Mayonnaise regular works best
    • ¾ teaspoon Sesame oil

    GF Meat Option

    • 1.5 lb Flank Steak or your favorite cut of beef
    • ½ C Tamari or Coconut Aminos Sauce
    • 2 teaspoon Sesame Oil
    • 2 Cloves Garlic finely chopped
    • ½ teaspoon Ground Ginger

    Instructions

    • Combine all the ingredients of the BBQ sauce. Set aside.
    • Combine "kimchi" ingredients and toss cabbage well. Set aside.
    • Combine sesame oil and mayonnaise and stir well. Set aside. 
    • If you buy the Trader Joe's beef ribs, they'll be in large, thin pieces. Spread them out in a pan over medium heat and cook through, turning once or twice for even cooking. 
    • Once cooked, remove and slice into long, thin pieces, and place pieces back in pan to soak up juices.  
    • Now add about ½ of the BBQ sauce to the pan and simmer for 2-3 minutes until sauce is incorporated. Taste. If you want more heat, add more of the BBQ sauce.

    Assembly

    • Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
    • Once your elements are prepared, slice all the Hawaiian rolls in half. 
    • Generously spread mayo on both sids of buns.
    • Place meat on bottom part of buns. Spread evenly between 18-24 sliders. Be generous with the pan sauce, it's ok if the buns get a little soggy.
    • Spread kimchi evenly on top of meat.
    • Sprinkle cheese liberally on top of kimchi.
    • Place bottoms of buns (with meat, kimchi and cheese) on a sheet pan and put on top rack in oven. 
    • Only leave in oven until cheese is melted. About 3-5 minutes. 
    • Remove sliders from oven and put their tops on. Slice as desired and serve! YUM!!

    Preparing a GF Meat Option

    • Combine GF marinade ingredients in a large ziploc bag.
    • Thinly slice (¼ inch) flank steak and add to bag.
    • Allow to marinade 2-8 hours.
    • Heat a skillet to medium high heat, then add meat, flipping once to cook through. Remove and set aside until ready to use.

    Nutrition

    Serving: 0g | Carbohydrates: 0g | Protein: 0g | Fat: 0g | Saturated Fat: 0g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 0g | Monounsaturated Fat: 0g | Trans Fat: 0g | Cholesterol: 0mg | Sodium: 0mg | Potassium: 0mg | Fiber: 0g | Sugar: 0g | Vitamin A: 0IU | Vitamin C: 0mg | Calcium: 0mg | Iron: 0mg
    Korean BBQ Sliders with simple kimchi and sesame mayonnaise. Made perfect on Hawaiian rolls. #traderjoes #sliders #korean

    More Dinner Recipes

    • Super Greens Pesto
      Super Greens Pesto | Kale, Spinach and Basil
    • Up close Potato Soup with cheese, bacon and chives on top.
      Gluten Free Potato Soup
    • Hand holding a close up of taco
      Double Decker Tacos
    • tuna pesto pasta in a bowl with parmesan in background
      Tuna Pesto Pasta

    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Tom

      December 21, 2023 at 10:36 am

      5 stars
      I always try to make it to one of the Kogi trucks when in LA. First time I tried these sliders, I was hooked.
      This recipe is great! My go to appetizer for Superbowl parties and summer cookouts.
      Always a hit!

      Reply
    2. Cyn

      December 17, 2019 at 11:44 am

      These look amazing! When I click to print the recipe though, there's a bunch of error messages before the actual recipe. FYI.

      Reply
      • Amy

        December 27, 2019 at 7:43 pm

        Hi Cyn! I'm so sorry the site isn't looking right for you! I just checked out that page and all looks ok. Perhaps try clearing your cache to see if perhaps some old formatting is sitting around when you're viewing? Let me know how else I can help!

        Reply
    4.56 from 9 votes (8 ratings without comment)

    Leave a Reply Cancel reply

    Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

    Recipe Rating




    This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

    Primary Sidebar

    Hello!
    I'm Amy

    I’m excited to share with you my favorite recipes and time-saving tips—it's something I truly enjoy! Every recipe you discover here is one I personally prepare for my family, and each comes with my heartfelt guarantee.

    LEARN MORE

    Trending Recipes

    • Yellow Cake Mix Coffee Cake
      Yellow Cake Mix Coffee Cake
    • Berry Oat Bars with No Refined Sugar. Simple recipe, ready in less than 30 minutes. Raspberry preserves tucked inside layers of crumbly oat mixture. Perfect for breakfast or dessert!
      Berry Oat Bars | Healthy One Bowl Recipe
    • Pizza Dough
      Pizza Dough - Ready in Minutes with No Rise Time
    • Overhead view of four Korean BBQ tacos laying on a white plate.
      Korean BBQ Tacos with Quick Kimchi

    Footer

    ↑ back to top

    About

    • About Us
    • Privacy Policy

    Newsletter

    • Sign Up! for emails and updates

    Contact

    • Contact

    Copyright © 2023 The Oven Light

    Rate This Recipe

    Your vote:




    A rating is required
    A name is required
    An email is required

    Recipe Ratings without Comment

    Something went wrong. Please try again.