Kimchee Recipes

KIMCHEE

Steps:

• Chop cabbage coarsely and place in a large dish.
• Sprinkle cabbage with salt; let stand 3-4 hours.
• Squeeze cabbage dry with hands and place in another bowl.
• Add remaining ingredients except sesame oil, and mix well.
• Refrigerate at least 24 hours before serving.
• Sprinkle with a few drops of sesame oil on each serving, if desired.

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.

QUICK SPICY KIMCHEE

Steps:

• Remove outer leaves from cabbage. Cut cabbage in quarters and remove the tough inner core. Slice across sections into 1/2-inch slices. Put into a colander, add salt, and mix well. Place over a bowl and let drain, covered, until wilted, about 2 hours.
• In a large bowl combine the vinegar and sugar and stir to dissolve. Add the chili paste, ginger, garlic, and scallions and stir. Rinse the salt off the cabbage with a couple of changes of water. Dry well and add to the vinegar mixture; stir well to combine. Put into a sterilized glass jar and pack the cabbage down; add enough water to cover. Close the jar and refrigerate for at least 4 hours. This is spicy and gets spicier the longer it sits - add or subtract chili paste to your taste.

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.

MR. N'S KIMCHEE BASE

Steps:

• Combine first 7 ingredients in a bowl and refrigerate.
• Put the napa cabbage in a large bowl.
• Stir and rub the scant 1/4 cup of salt onto the napa cabbage.
• Press overnight until the liquid rises out of the napa cabbage -- don't add water and don't drain.
• To press, use a lid that is smaller than the bowl you are using and put some sort of weight on the top.
• Add TO TASTE the kimchee base that you prepared the night before to the napa cabbage and its liquid.
• Mix in the green onions, if desired.
• Refrigerate and serve the next day.
• The base can be used for cucumbers instead of napa cabbage, following the directions above but substituting cucumbers instead.

KIMCHI

Steps:

• Chop the Chinese leaf into bite-size pieces, weighing it until you have 2kg, then wash under running water. Mix the Chinese leaf with the salt and the seaweed in a large bowl. Set aside.
• Every now and then, over the course of 3-4 hrs, mix the salted Chinese leaf and seaweed with your hands. (You will start to see liquid being released.) You want to be able to bend the Chinese leaf without breaking the pieces.
• Meanwhile, shred the carrot and leek, and chop the spring onions. Set aside. Make the chilli paste by blitzing the onion, garlic, ginger and pear in a food processor until puréed. Add the chilli flakes, then blitz again to combine. Drain the Chinese leaf mixture, removing as much water as you can. This may take about 10 mins.
• Toss the Chinese leaf mixture with the other vegetables, then mix in the chilli paste to coat everything. Tip into a 2-litre sterilised jar. Try not to have too many air pockets and leave a 1-inch space under the lid. Put a fermentation weight on top, or if you don't have one, try using some baking beans in a bag. Keep a plate under the jar in case of overflow. After 24-48 hrs you will begin to see bubbles appearing. That means fermentation is underway.
• At any point during the fermentation, you can taste the kimchi to see how you like the flavour. I prefer to keep mine in the fridge after day 3 to slow down the process and start enjoying it. You can transfer the kimchi into smaller jars for easy access from the fridge. It also makes a great present for family and friends.

QUICK KIMCHI

Steps:

• Slice the cabbage into 2.5cm strips. Tip into a bowl, mix with 1 tbsp sea salt, then set aside for 1 hr. Meanwhile, make the kimchi paste by blending the garlic, ginger, fish sauce (if using), chilli sauce, sugar and rice vinegar together in a small bowl.
• Rinse the cabbage under cold running water, drain and dry thoroughly. Transfer to a large bowl and toss through the paste, along with the radishes, carrot and spring onions. Serve straight away or pack into a large jar, seal and leave to ferment at room temperature overnight, then chill. Will keep in the fridge for up to 2 weeks - the flavour will improve the longer it's left.