I’ve talked about the benefits of fermented foods before, I even have a whole category with fermented foods. Kimchi is fermented cabbage, as is sauerkraut. But this is the Korean recipe. There are many ways to make kimchi, just like there are many ways to make polenta in Romania. And, of course, everyone says their recipe is the best 😊.
I didn’t use a specific kimchi recipe, but used ingredients that I liked and in the amount that I found tasty. You can adjust the ingredients like I did, if you want it spicier or less spicy, more garlicky or vice versa.
Ingredients
- One large Chinese (napa) cabbage (1-1.5 kg)
- 15-20 grams of non-iodized sea salt
- 3-4 crushed garlic cloves
- 1 peeled carrot cut into sticks
- Grated ginger the size of a walnut
- 1 teaspoon of chili paste
- 2 tablespoons gluten-free fish sauce, oyster sauce or soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon of rice flour
- 1 teaspoon of sugar
- ½ glass of water
Recipe Method
Throw away the first leaves on top of the cabbage, then cut the spine. Cut the cabbage along the leafs, not across. The result will be long strips that then sprinkle with salt, mix well and leave to rest for 2-3 hours.
Mix water, sugar and rice flour in a small kettle. Put it on the stove and let it boil, stirring continuously. When the contents of the kettle have become a sticky paste, turn off the stove and let it cool.
We mix all the spices in the kettle with the rice paste, then pour this mixture over the cabbage. Add the carrot sticks and mix well, until all the pieces of cabbage are covered with the sauce.
Put the cabbage together with the sauce in a jar corresponding in size to the amount of the resulting cabbage. We push the cabbage well into the jar with our fist, so that there are no pockets of air inside, and all the sauce must rise to the surface.
We cover the jar with the lid, but do not tighten it completely. We put a plate underneath and let it ferment for 2-5 days, it depends on the temperature in the kitchen. After 2 days we check. We smell the contents, taste a little. If it seems sour enough, close the lid and put the jar in the fridge. From now on we can eat the goodness of kimchi.
It lasts up to several months in the refrigerator. That’s theoretically, because it’s so tasty that we don’t stand by the jar for that long.
