Fresh Kimchi Recipes

SPICY CABBAGE KIMCHI

Steps:

• Cut the cabbages in half lengthwise and trim the ends. Rinse and cut into pieces about 2 inch square. Place the cabbage into large resealable bags and sprinkle salt on the leaves so they are evenly coated. Use your hands to rub the salt in to the leaves. Seal the bags and leave at room temperature for 6 hours.
• Rinse the salt from the cabbage leaves and then drain and squeeze out any excess liquid. Place the cabbage in a large container with a tight fitting lid. Stir in the fish sauce, green onions, white onion, garlic, sugar and ginger. Sprinkle the Korean chile powder over the mixture. Wear plastic gloves to protect your hands and rub the chile powder into the cabbage leaves until evenly coated. Seal the container and set in a cool dry place. Leave undisturbed for 4 days. Refrigerate before serving, and store in the refrigerator for up to 1 month (if it lasts that long!).

EASY, FAST KIMCHI RECIPE {MAK KIMCHI}

Steps:

• Cut the napa cabbage in half longways, then in half again longways. Cut the core out of the four quarters. Cut the cabbage into squares (about 2-3 inches square), pop it in a bowl with the carrots. Sprinkle with the 1/2 cup kosher salt, massage so everything is coated in salt and starting to soften and wilt. Fill with cold, chlorine free water to cover it well and let it soak for at least 1 1/2 hours.
• Pour the cabbage and carrots and liquid into a strainer. Let the brine drain away.
• Lob off the white bits of the green onions and put them in a food processor with the garlic cloves, ginger, miso paste, and korean pepper powder. Zap it on high 'til it's smooth-ish. Add in the fish sauce and a couple of slops of pear juice and zap it more until it's about pancake batter consistency... maybe a bit thinner.
• Put the brined cabbabe/carrots in a big, anti-reactive (glass, enamel, or stainless steel) bowl. Rough chop the green parts of the onions and add those to the cabbage/carrots. Pour the chili paste combo over the cabbage and wear gloves to massage it all over the cabbage/carrots green onions so everything is completely covered.
• Pack super tight in canning jars. CRAM it in there. Add a two-piece lid, but just set the ring in place to hold the lid down without screwing it in place. Place it on a rimmed baking dish to catch any spill-over. Let it sit at room temperature for up to 72 hours, until it is bubbly and fragrant. Once every day, insert a clean chopstick or butterknife to release air bubbles. If needed, pour in some additional brine to keep all the vegetables submerged.
• Store on a rimmed sheet in the refrigerator for up to six months, being sure that the vegetables are submerged the whole time. The older it gets, the stronger it will become.

TRADITIONAL KIMCHI (NAPA CABBAGE KIMCHI)

Steps:

• Cut the thick white part of the cabbage lengthwise in half. Then, slowly pull apart by hand to separate into two pieces. Do the same for each half to make quarters. Running the knife through all the way would unnecessarily cut off the cabbage leaves.
• In a large bowl, dissolve 1/2 cup of salt in 5 cups of water. Thoroughly bathe each cabbage quarter in the salt water one at a time, shake off excess water back into the bowl, and then transfer to another bowl.
• Using the other half cup of salt and starting from the outermost leaf, generously sprinkle salt over the thick white part of each leaf (similar to salting a piece of meat). Try to salt all the cabbage quarters with 1/2 cup salt, but you can use a little more if needed. Repeat with the rest of the cabbage quarters. Pour the remaining salt water from the first bowl over the cabbage. Set aside for about 6 - 8 hours, rotating the bottom ones to the top every 2 - 3 hours.
• The cabbages should be ready to be washed when the white parts of the leaves are easily bendable. Rinse thoroughly 3 times, especially between the white parts. Drain well, cut side down.
• Meanwhile, make the optional dashima broth by boiling a small piece (2 to 3 inch square) in 1.5 cup of water for 5 minutes, and cool. Mix the rice powder with 1/2 cup water (or optional dashima broth) and simmer over low heat, stirring occasionally, until it thickens to a thin paste, and cool.
• Prepare the garlic, ginger and saeujeot. Combine all the seasoning ingredients, including the rice paste and about 1/2 cup water (or the optional dashima broth), and mix well. Set aside until the red pepper flakes to dissolve slightly and become pasty.
• Cut the radish and optional pear into matchsticks (use a mandoline if desired), transferring to a large bowl. Cut the scallions diagonally into about 1-inch long pieces. Add the prepared seasoning mix to the radish, and mix well by hand. Throw in the scallions, and mix everything lightly. Taste a little bit. It should be a little too salty to eat as is. You can add salt, more salted shrimp or fish sauce, as needed. Let it sit for about 30 minutes to allow the flavors to meld nicely.
• Cut off the tough stem part from each cabbage quarter, leaving enough to hold the leaves together. Place one cabbage quarter in the bowl with the radish mix. Spread the radish mix over each leaf, one to two tablespoons for large leaves. (Eyeball the stuffing into 4 parts and use one part for each cabbage quarter.)
• Fold the leaf part of the cabbage over toward the stem and nicely wrap it with the outermost leaf. Place it, cut side up, in a jar or airtight container. Repeat with the remaining cabbages. If you have lose large leaves, you can use them to cover the top of the kimchi (see note 1). Once all the cabbages are in the jar or airtight container, press down hard to remove air pockets. Rinse the bowl that contained the radish mix with 1/2 cup of water (or any remaining optional dashima broth) and pour into the kimchi container. Close the lid.
• Leave it out at room temperature for a full day or two, depending on the weather and how fast you want your kimchi to ripen. A half day is recommended during hot summer days. Then, store in the fridge. (See note 2.)

KIMCHI

Steps:

• Place the cabbage in a large bowl, sprinkle with 2 tablespoons (17 grams) of the salt, and toss to coat. After 15 minutes, massage and squeeze the cabbage until it begins to release liquid. Set aside for another 15 minutes, then massage again and set aside for another 15 minutes.
• Place the daikon in a medium bowl and season with the granulated sugar and 1 teaspoon of the salt. Set aside for 15 minutes.
• Whisk the gochugaru, water, brown sugar, and the remaining 1 teaspoon salt in a third medium bowl to form a coarse paste.
• To make the kimchi flavor paste, use either a mini-food processor, mortar and pestle, or immersion blender and a jar to puree the pear, onion, 10 grams (about 1/6) of the ginger, 6 grams (about 1/4) of the garlic, and the salted shrimp until smooth. Add this to the gochugaru mixture and stir to combine.
• Squeeze as much liquid as you can from the daikon without breaking the pieces and add to the cabbage, along with the scallions, the remaining ginger and garlic, and the kimchi paste.
• Position a gallon-size zip-top bag inside a pitcher or some other vessel that will allow it to be held open for loading. Wearing disposable gloves, mix the kimchi paste into the cabbage mixture with your hands, being sure to thoroughly coat the cabbage with the paste (see Cook's Note).
• Transfer the mixture to the plastic bag, then ditch the gloves and seal the bag, working out as much air as possible. The lactic acid bacteria that will magically transform the humble ingredients into kimchee prefer anaerobic environments.
• Place the sealed bag flat on a sheet pan or large baking dish and leave at room temperature until the mixture has bubbled enough to inflate the bag, at least 24 hours, but possibly up to 3 days. Transfer the kimchi and its liquid into two wide-mouthed quart-size glass jars with lids and refrigerate. Consume immediately for very fresh kimchi, or leave it for a month for a kimchi that's deeply flavored, well-rounded, and slightly effervescent.
• Refrigerated, kimchi will basically never go bad and will actually improve in flavor for months after going into the jar. Cooking will mellow its flavors, so if it gets too funky for you, it's time to make kimchi fried rice.

FRESH KIMCHI

Steps:

• Quarter the cabbage and remove the thick, white core at the base. Halve each quarter. Place the cabbage in a large strainer set inside a large bowl. Toss the cabbage with 2 tablespoons of the salt. Place another large bowl on top of the cabbage and fill it with heavy cans or other weights so that the cabbage is compressed. Set aside to drain for 5 hours.
• Rinse the cabbage briefly under running water and wrap it in clean tea towels to remove excess water. Cut cabbage into strips and transfer to a large, clean bowl along with the daikon, scallions and watercress.
• In a small bowl, combine the remaining ingredients and stir until the sugar is dissolved. Pour mixture over the vegetables and toss until well coated. Season with additional salt, if necessary. Serve at room temperature.

TRADITIONAL KIMCHI

Steps:

• Place cabbage and radish in a large colander. Sprinkle liberally with salt and mix to combine. Set aside for 1 hour. Add additional salt, mix, and set aside 1 hour more. Rinse cabbage and let drain.
• Meanwhile, combine garlic, onion, ginger, and rice vinegar in a blender. Add water and blend aromatic mixture on high power.
• Transfer drained cabbage to a large bowl and add aromatic mixture. Add persimmon, cucumber, green onions, and red pepper flakes and mix well.
• Transfer kimchi to airtight containers and refrigerate for 3 days.