HOMEMADE KIMCHI

I have been living with vegetarians for the past week and it has inspired me to get creative with new ways to prepare vegetables. The latest: Homemade kimchi! The maple glazed tofu in this photo is courtesy of Bon Appétit and can be found here.

Important note: This recipe is how you make kimchi if you do not have access to any specialty ingredients, like Korean chili paste or Gochugaru. I used things you could get at a standard grocery store because that was all I had access to when I made.

INGREDIENTS
1 small head napa cabbage
4 scallions cut into 1 inch pieces
8 red radishes, thinly sliced
1/4 cup salt
Water
6-8 cloves garlic (grated)
2 inch piece of fresh ginger (grated)
2 tsp granulated sugar
2 tbsp chili garlic sauce
4 tsp fish sauce
3 tsp red pepper flakes
3 tsp rice vinegar

Cut the end off of the cabbage and slice lengthwise. Remove the center core and cut into 4 pieces. Then cut crosswise into 2-inch-wide pieces and add to a large bowl.

Add salt to the bowl and fill with water until all the cabbage is covered. Mix around, then cover with something heavy like a pan. Let soak for about 2 hours (you can do it for longer, but at least 2).

Meanwhile, peel radishes and slice, chop scallions, and make spice mixture. Combine garlic, ginger, sugar, fish sauce, rice vinegar, 3/4 cup water, chili garlic sauce and red pepper flakes. Use anywhere from 1 tsp to 5 tsp of pepper flakes depending on how spicy you want.

Once cabbage has soaked, drain and rinse with more water. The first time I made this I don’t feel like I drained the water enough and it definitely makes a difference. Once it has thoroughly drained, combine cabbage, scallions, radishes and spice paste. Using your hands*, massage cabbage (kind of like what you might with kale) and make sure the cabbage is all coated with the paste.
*A lot of recipes say to use gloves for this part so your hands don’t smell. I did not end up doing this and it ended up okay BUT I would highly recommend using gloves if you do have them.

Once everything is all mixed together, pack kimchi into mason jars. Press down, and you will see some of the brined juice will start to rise (you will see more and more of this liquid come after a day or so). Seal jars and let kimchi ferment for 1-3 days. You can definitely let it continue to ferment, but it was very potent as most pickled things can be. Just something to consider! Check your kimchi every so often (about once a day) and press down on veggies and let the brine continue to appear. You might notice that some liquid escapes from the lid so add a little towel underneath. Once kimchi is to your liking, transfer to fridge. Enjoy!