Keto Bulgogi Beef Sushi Rolls
by Keto Bulgogi Beef Sushi Rolls without rice is the best Paleo sushi rolls. These low carb and Whole30 sushi rolls are filled with cooked ground beef and crunchy vegetables in a sweet and savory sauce. Perfect for low carb healthy sushi rolls for portable healthy lunch boxes!
Keto Bulgogi Beef Sushi Rolls (Bulgogi Kimbap without rice)
I love Korean Bulgogi Kimbap (cooked beef sushi rolls) sometimes even more than Japanese sushi. They are portable and filled with cooked protein and crunchy colorful vegetables. No wonder my mom makes them all the time for me and my brother when we were little.
What’s Kimbap ?
My Korean friends probably can explain what Kimbap is better than me but to my knowledge, kimbaps are Korean style rice sushi rolls without the raw fish. My favorite type is ground beef or very thin sliced beef simmered in a sweet and savory bulgogi sauce.
Kimbap comes in various variety and flavor from tuna rolls to kimchi rolls you name it. Since all the proteins are cooked these Korean sushi rolls last longer in school lunch boxes. No wonder parents love making kimbap sushi rolls for their kids, especially when they go on school field trips!
Bulgogi ground beef
If you aren’t a nori (i.e. seaweed wrapped) sushi fan, I want to mention that you can absolutely make the Bulgogi ground beef without the sushi wraps. Just follow the same seasonings and cooking methods below and make a Bulgogi ground beef bowl. Add any toppings you want and drizzle with my Paleo Gochujang Sauce and you’ll have a lovely bowl of Bulgogi beef bowl!
Paleo, Keto, and Whole30 Sushi Rolls without rice
I like to keep things easy. Instead of making cauliflower rice for my Keto Bulgogi Beef Sushi Rolls, I decided to skip the cauliflower rice. In this particular occasion, I don’t feel that there’s anything that can substitute the real rice. Because the real rice in sushi rolls not only provides starch content but also texture in the mouthfeel. It’s difficult to recreate the same texture and flavor using cauliflower rice. So I vote for keeping things easy and keep my sushi rolls lower in carbs. I’m very happy how delicious these paleo sushi rolls turn out!
How to make sushi rolls without bamboo mat
Fill the shin (Nori sheets) with all the delicious and healthy fillings. If you have a sushi mat, definitely use that to help making the rolls. In my case, I simply layer a piece of shin (glossy side down) over a cutting board, fill the fillings around ⅓ of the way up from the bottom of the seaweed. Layer other ingredients down on top and roll from the bottom while gently press down and push in to make the filling stay in.
More Sushi and nori wraps recipes
- Nori Wraps with canned tuna
- Temaki Sushi with canned tuna
- Whole30 Korean beef bulgogi bowl
- Keto egg rolls with coconut wraps
- Crispy rice sushi with smoked salmon avocado
So my readers, this Keto Bulgogi Beef Sushi Rolls recipe is –
Low carb
Paleo, Whole30, Keto
Portable
Savory and naturally sweet
& easy delicious!
If you give this Keto Bulgogi Beef Sushi Rolls a try, be sure to leave a comment and rate the recipe below. It’ll help me and my blog tremendously. Thanks in advance!
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Keto Bulgogi Beef Sushi Rolls (Paleo, Whole30, Low Carb)
Video
Ingredients
Beef seasonings:
- 1 lb. shaved steak , , a blend of rib and round beef or ground beef
- 2 tbsp coconut aminos
- 3 tsp toasted sesame oil
- 3-4 cloves large garlic , , grated
- ½ tsp coarse salt
- 3 tbsp apple juice
- 1 large shallot, , thin sliced lengthwise
- ½ tsp onion powder
- 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 1 tsp arrowroot powder, , if use shaved steak
- ½ tsp baking soda, , if use shaved steak
Other:
- 2 large carrots, , julienned, using a julienne peeler
- 1 English cucumber, , julienned, using a julienne peeler
- 1 whole butter lettuce
- Pickled cucumber or pickled daikon radish, , sliced to thin strips (optional)
- 6-8 sushi nori sheets (AKA shin), , about 8 x 8-inch
Instructions
- Prep: Season the beef with ingredients under ‘’beef seasonings”. Mix well and set aside in the fridge while preparing carrots, cucumber, lettuce, and pickles. Place the julienned cucumber over a large plate lined with paper towel and store in the fridge until ready to use.
- Ground Beef Bulgogi: In a well-heated skillet, add 2 tbsp cooking fat and saute the marinated beef until they are cooked through (about 4 minutes). If use ground beef, break the meat with a wooden spoon and cook until they become finer pieces. Taste test to make seasoning adjustments. You want it to be slightly on the more savory side because we won’t season other ingredients in the sushi rolls. Once the beef is cooked through and break up to fiber pieces let it sit in the skillet to soak up more juice flavor. Set it aside to cool.
- Make Sushi Rolls: Place 1 nori sheet (glossy side down) over a flat cutting board. Lay the beef down around ⅓ of the way up from the bottom of the seaweed, lay other ingredients down on top. Roll from the bottom while gently press down and push in to make the filling stay in. As you continue to roll, leave about half to one-inch top seam and spread a few dabs of water over to help hold the roll together. Set the roll seam side down over a large flat plate and continue with others.
- To serve: Cut into 6 to 7 pieces with a clean sharp knife before serving and pair it with your favorite dipping sauce or my Paleo Thai peanut sauce.
Notes
Nutrition
Love savory juicy beef? Check out my Instant Pot Vietnamese Beef Stew Bo Kho, Taiwanese 5-Spice Beef Stew, Vietnamese quick tomato beef pho, Whole30 Mongolian Beef, Keto beef and broccoli, and Paleo Crispy Sesame Beef!
This is a lovely take on the original! I learned to make traditional kimbap soon before going low carb. Tried it with cauli rice and it was a colossal fail. I’m trying this instead!
What greens did you fill the rolls with? I’m seeing them in the pics but not in the recipe.
Hey Sarah, thanks! It’s the “one whole head of butter lettuce”! :))
This is a great recipe!! Although I love traditional sushi, I didn’t miss the rice here because there was so much great flavor. Also, your thai “peanut” sauce goes so well with these rolls. If the actual rolling is intimidating to anyone (I must admit I’m pretty bad at it myself), I had everything left over the next day so I decided to make a salad with all the ingredients. I put the beef on top of the vegetables and then drizzled the “peanut” sauce and put nori strips on top. It was SO GOOD!
Thank you, Angela!
Oh my gosh – how good AND doable do these look? So excited that there is no rice in them, too. While I love traditional sushi, I can’t do grains so this is perfect for me!
These look so fresh and full of flavour! Perfect for lunch and love that they are rice free!
Thanks, Hope!
I’ve made quite a mess of the rolls themsel6, but the taste was absolutely fantastic and it was a lot of fun. This is going to be one of my favorite recipes!
I love how creative these rice-free rolls are and that sauce is magical!
Thank you so much!
What an interesting concept! Love bulgogi and sushi!
Oh, man! These look so good. Full of all the good things. YUM!!
Love sushi…and even without rice, this looks to good to be true! So beautiful!
So colorful, healthy and delish! A must try!
Oh what FUN! I really am intimidated by sushi, but I know my girls will get a kick out of this – I really need to try!