Kimchi

I’ve been taking Tae Kwon Do for about 6 months now.  My instructor’s sister brought the most amazing kimchi I have ever had to the Christmas party in December.  I have been thinking about it ever since. I have only had kimchi at Korean restaurants and was never really crazy about it. I decided to try making kimchi for myself. I looked at several kimchi recipes online and watched a couple of videos of it being prepared. I put together this recipe based on the recipes and techniques I saw. It turned out half way decent. Overall, my first attempt at kimchi was successful. I’m starting to understand how people become so addicted to this stuff.

I  have the used sriracha instead of the Korean red chile powder and I think it’s a good substitution in a pinch.

Kimchi

1 head Napa cabbage, cut into 2-inch chunks
6 cloves garlic
1 1-inch piece of ginger
1 medium diakon radish, peeled and cut into small dice (or grated)
1/2 bunch green onions, cut into 1-inch lengths
1/8 cup fish sauce
1/4 cup Korean red chile powder
1 teaspoon sugar
salt

Place the cut Napa cabbage in a large colander and sprinkle generously with salt, turning to coat. Let sit for about an hour. Add the diakon radish and sprinkle with salt again. Let sit another hour. Rinse vegetables with cold water and drain. Squeeze excess water from the cabbage and diakon mixture.

Meanwhile, finely mince garlic and ginger in a food processor (or use a knife). In a large bowl, combine minced garlic and ginger, fish sauce, red chile powder, sugar, and green onions. Add the cabbage and diakon radish and mix well.

Add the mixture to a large (1 quart) mason jar, pressing the ingredients down to remove air bubbles. You should be able to get most, if not all of the mixture into the jar. Screw on the lid. Let stand at room temperature for 1 or 2 or 3 days. When it starts to ferment, it will begin to bubble a bit. At that point it is ready to be eaten. Refrigerate after opening.

Kimchi keeps for awhile in the fridge. It will continue to ferment and will get increasingly sour. Some people like it that way. After about 4 weeks, it will be very sour. I prefer my kimchi to taste fresh and not sour, so I probably wouldn’t keep it longer than 4 weeks.