Kimchi is a delicious and ultra-famous Korean fermented dish made from Napa cabbage, vegetables, and special Korean chili flakes called gochugaru.
It's an easy ferment to make and will be ready in only a few days. It only takes a few minutes to prepare, and the rest of the time is spent waiting for it to ferment.
Delicious just by itself and even better served with fried rice, steamed broccoli or a simple oven-roasted chicken breast.
There are a few ways of making kimchi and in all my years of cooking professionally, I find this method the easiest, quickest and most delicious. This kimchi recipe is also small-batch, made with one cabbage, and can easily be scaled up to make larger amounts.
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Ingredients
- Cabbage - Traditional kimchi is made with Napa cabbage also known as Chinese cabbage. If you can find it then definitely use it otherwise try to use a very young cabbage with soft leaves. It's not ideal, but it will do the job.
- Chili flakes - We need to use Gochugaru. It's a dried bright red Korean chili flake with a spicy taste. I've tried to use other types of chili like Cayenne pepper and it simply doesn't deliver the same result. Of all the ingredients in Kimchi I would say gochugaru is the most important ingredient, that can't be substituted for that Authentic taste.
- Shrimp paste - There are plenty of shrimp paste brands on the market. Either will do. Some are a little sweeter or the consistency different, but they are all extremely funky smelling and bring a delicious nuance to the final ferment.
- Fish sauce - Fish sauce does very much the same as shrimp paste, but it's much milder. I use both, but you can substitute the one for the other.
- Aromatics - Fresh garlic, ginger and white onion. These are a must, and a lot of the umami in kimchi comes from the breaking down of these pungent aromatics during fermentation.
- Vegetables - Carrot and daikon radish (those long white thick ones) are the standard veggies to use. I also add some scallions or spring onion. Some people also like adding herbs like cilantro but as far as I know, that's quite far from tradition and won't help to make it taste authentic.
- Rice flour - We use glutinous rice flour, also known as sweet rice flour, to cook a gelatinized slurry with water. It's not essential, but I highly recommend it. It aids with fermentation as well as improves the final consistency.
- Salt - Whenever you ferment foods, it's best you use natural salt like rock salt or sea salt without any added ingredients. Iodized salt, for instance, will impart a bitter soupy taste and hinder the fermentation process. Not very desirable.
- Sugar - If you have palm sugar or coconut sugar then use those, otherwise simple white sugar is fine. Most of the sugar will be consumed during fermentation and turned into healthy lactic acid by lactic acid-producing bacteria called Lactobacillus.
- Pear - Asian pear is an optional ingredient that does add some body and balance but if you can't find it simply leave it out.
See the recipe card for quantities.
Instructions
1. Wash the cabbage under cold running tap water, then cut it into 5-centimeter or 2-inch strips across. Rub the salt into the cabbage. Gently press it but do not bruise or break the cabbage. Let it sit at room temperature for 30 minutes.
2. Meanwhile, you cook the slurry. Combine the water, sugar and glutinous rice flour in a saucepan. Whisk and heat on medium until it simmers and thickens. Set aside to cool slightly.
3. While the slurry cools and the cabbage salts, you make the chili paste. Combine peeled garlic, peeled ginger, roughly diced onion, fish sauce, shrimp paste, pear, and chili flakes into a blender into a blender.
4. Blend until you have a smooth paste with no visible bits of garlic, ginger or other large chunks of ingredients.
5. Peel and then cut the carrot and daikon radish into thin strips about 5 centimeters long. Cut the cilantro at a slight angle into roughly the same size pieces and add to the rest of the veggies.
6. By now, your cabbage will be ready. It should have released quite a bit of water and will be sitting in a brine. Wash it off briefly to get rid of the excess brine and salt. Gently squeeze it dry, not breaking or bruising it too much.
7. Combine the chili paste, fresh vegetables and cabbage together into a bowl. Use latex food-grade gloves to mix it very well. Kimchi is full of spicy chili, and if you have sensitive skin, it could react and cause some discomfort.
8. Prepare a clean sterilized glass jar or fermentation crock. Fill the vessel 80% to the top. Allow the extra headspace for expanding gas production during fermentation. Close with a rubber glove or loosely fitting lid. Put a date onto it to keep track of when you started it. Ferment at room temperature for up to 5 days. Place a tray or container underneath the fermentation vessel in case it spills out. Release the gas buildup and taste it daily to track the progress. Once you are happy with it, store it in the fridge for up to 3 months.
Video
Substitutions
- Vegan kimchi - To make this kimchi recipe vegan you simply have to leave out the shrimp paste and fish sauce. Feel free to substitute it with soy sauce or miso paste.
- Gochujang paste - Gochujang is a fermented Korean chilli and bean paste. You can use it instead of the gochugaru chili flakes. Simply substitute the flakes for a ⅓ cup or 80 grams of gochujang.
- Cabbage - Although cabbage is the traditional vegetable to make kimchi with, it's by no means the only vegetable. Kimchi is delicious when made with thinly shaved raw squash-type vegetables like pumpkin, courgettes, and cucumber.
- Without rice flour or added sugar - You can simply leave out the sweet rice flour slurry and added sugar if you are following a keto or low-sugar diet. Likewise, simply leave out the pear. Your kimchi will still be delicious.
Serving suggestions
Kimchi is a versatile healthy ferment that pairs with a wide variety of food.
I love making kimchi fried rice, adding kimchi to my chicken and ginger soup, or simply a delicious cheese toasty with kimchi.
It's also great with a simple bowl of fluffy rice or served with bok choi or broccoli.
One of my favourite healthy lunch salads is steamed broccoli, kimchi, juicy oven-roasted chicken breast and a light lemony dressing. All the fibre, probiotics, protein and healthiness a person could ask for and it's packed with flavour.
Equipment
You don't need any fancy equipment to make kimchi. It does help to at least have a suitable container to ferment and store it in. I also recommend using inexpensive kitchen scales to accurately weigh ingredients for best results.
Electronic Kitchen Scales
Storage Containers
Mixing Bowls
Fermentation jars
Storage
Once your kimchi has fermented to your liking, it should be stored airtight in the fridge to halt fermentation.
It will keep indefinitely but it's best eaten within 3 months. After that, it starts to lose texture.
I don't recommend freezing kimchi unless you plan on using it in a blended soup or puree.
You can also dehydrate kimchi in a low oven or food dehydrator. Once it's dried you can blend it up into a powder which can be used to flavour soups, salads, salt or anything that needs a spicy funky finish.
Top tip
When fermenting always use good fresh ingredients and make sure your hands and equipment are extremely well washed and clean to prevent bad bacteria.
If you're fermenting in a container with a lid make sure to burp it to let out gas buildup every day.
Taste your kimchi with a clean spoon as it ferments. You might find that you prefer the taste of a 2-day fermented kimchi compared to a more fermented 5-day version.
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Recipe
Easy Korean Kimchi Recipe (Video)
Ingredients
Cabbage
- 900 g (2 lb) Napa cabbage - note 1
- 60 g (3 ⅓ tablespoon) salt - note 2
Slurry
- 16 g (2 tablespoon) glutinous rice flour - note 3
- 240 ml (1 cups) water
- 24 g (2 tablespoon) sugar
Chili paste
- 40 g (2 tablespoon) ginger - peeled
- 40 g (¼ cups) onion - peeled and roughly diced
- 50 g (½ cups) garlic cloves - peeled
- 25 g (1 ½ tablespoon) shrimp paste - note 4
- 30 ml (2 tablespoon) fish sauce - note 5
- 60 g (1 cups) chilli flakes - gochugaru (note 6)
- 100 g (¾ cups) asian pear - optional
Vegetables
- 50 g (1 cups) scallions
- 80 g (¾ cups) carrot
- 100 g (1 cups) daikon
Instructions
Prepare the cabbage
- Wash the cabbage under cold running tap water, then cut it into 5-centimeter or 2-inch strips across. Rub the salt into the cabbage. Gently press it but do not bruise or break the cabbage. Let it sit at room temperature for 30 minutes.
Cook the slurry
- Meanwhile, you cook the slurry. Combine the water, sugar and glutinous rice flour in a saucepan. Whisk and heat on medium until it simmers and thickens. Set aside to cool slightly.
Make the chili paste
- While the slurry cools and the cabbage salts, you make the chili paste. Combine peeled garlic, peeled ginger, roughly diced onion, fish sauce, shrimp paste, pear, and chili flakes into a blender into a blender.
- Blend until you have a smooth paste with no visible bits of garlic, ginger or other large chunks of ingredients.
Cut the vegetables
- Peel and then cut the carrot and daikon radish into thin strips about 5 centimeters long. Cut the cilantro at a slight angle into roughly the same size pieces and add to the rest of the veggies.
Mix and ferment
- By now, your cabbage will be ready. It should have released quite a bit of water and will be sitting in a brine. Wash it off briefly to get rid of the excess brine and salt. Gently squeeze it dry, taking care not to break or bruise it too much.
- Combine the chili paste, fresh vegetables and cabbage into a bowl. Use latex food-grade gloves to mix it very well. Kimchi is full of spicy chili, and if you have sensitive skin, it could react and cause some discomfort.
- Prepare a clean sterilized glass jar or fermentation crock. Fill the vessel 80% to the top. Allow the extra headspace for expanding gas production during fermentation. Close with a rubber glove or loosely fitting lid. Put a date onto it to keep track of when you started it. Ferment at room temperature for up to 5 days. Place a tray or container underneath the fermentation vessel in case it spills out. Release the gas buildup and taste it daily to track the progress. Once you are happy with it, store it in the fridge for up to 3 months.
Video
Notes
- Napa cabbage or Chinese cabbage is traditionally used, but you can use regular cabbage or even substitute the cabbage for other vegetables like pumpkin, courgette, or cucumber. Whatever you choose, use the freshest produce possible, as fermentation can not bring bad vegetables back to life.
- Use non-iodized medium coarse sea salt or rock salt for best results.
- Glutinous rice flour is also called sweet rice flour. As mentioned in the substitutions section, you can leave it out if you want. If you can't find it, you can also use corn starch or tapioca starch as an alternative.
- Shrimp paste varies wildly from one supplier or country to the next. Some are smooth, some are sweeter, and some even come in hard bricks. It doesn't matter which one you use. They are all equally smelly in a good way and add the necessary funky taste for classic kimchi.
- Fish sauce serves the same purpose as shrimp paste. You can substitute the one for the other or, if you're vegan, use soy sauce instead. If you are gluten intolerant, use tamari or miso paste.
- Korean red chili flakes are called gochugaru, and it's essential for the most authentic kimchi possible. I've tried making it with other chilies, and it simply doesn't work. Neither the color nor the flavor is right. So, unfortunately, there is no substitute for gochugaru. However, I have mentioned in the substitutions section, how you can use the Korean fermented chili and bean paste called gochujang, to great effect.
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