Kimchi, the easy version

Every once in a while I have this strong urge to make kimchi.., it must be the Korean blood in me!

So I made a simple cabbage kimchi called "mak-kimchi".

I have posted 3 episodes of how to make the authentic cabbage kimchi about a year ago.

Although the method of that type of kimchi in those posts will yield truly amazingly tasting kimchi, it is quite time and labor demanding work.

This version is basically quick and easy. "Mak" literally means whatever fast.

I will show you how easy it is to make delicious kimchi with its pungent yet refreshing flavor.

Even a novice to kimchi making can succeed with a great result. 

I bet you would like that.

Cabbage Pancakes

Hello there!!!!

Have I gone too long?

I am so sorry that it took so long to be back, but boy! what a summer I had...

First of all, I traveled to Korea to visit my hometown.

Then, my family had to cross the pacific ocean again to relocate onto a tropical land in SE Asia. Where? well, I will let you know in my next post.

It always takes some time to settle into a new place no matter where you go. I finally was able to put my family onto a routine so that I can come back to blogging.

Kimchi or Kimchee, mastering the art of Kimchee vol 3

No matter how festive Korean meals are, how fancy everything looks, if there is no Kimchee on the table, then, that Korean feast is not completed. That's how important our Kimchee is.

There are over 200 different types of Kimchee. Every region in Korea has developed their unique way of making it with different ingredients. This version of cabbage Kimchee method is good for winter time when the cabbages are in good season so that Kimchee can be stored through the winter. 

In 2008, Health Magazine announced Kimchee (Kimchi) as one of the 5 world's healthiest foods.  According to the recent study the good bacteria called "Lactobacilli" in Kimchee help digestions in the body and prevents yeast infection, even the growth of cancer. However Kimchee has its weakness as well, the sodium intake and the spiciness. Using the solution of 1:10 (salt : water) ratio over a long period time rather than burying the cabbages in the salt directly will keep the sodium level on just right amount.

What is good Kimchee like? The texture. It should be crunch and cool. Good Kimchee should not be too salty nor spicy. Even Koreans won't eat if the Kimchee is too spicy. Sometimes red chili flakes from Mexico yields strong spiciness. Chinese chili flakes tends to be darker in color, which means less appealing in the eyes, and not as flavorful as Korean origin.

Also You should be able to taste the pungent flavor in the mouth that is almost unforgettable if you never tried Kimchee before. Once you get used to the flavor, you are hooked. You will crave the flavor.

Welcome back to my final episode of Kimchee class. We are going to wrap up our cabbages to make scrumptious Kimchee.

Remember the Kimchee filling "soh" from the last session? If you are ready to move on to our last chapter of Kimchee making, there are two important items you need to have before we start. 

First, go to your closet and find your husband's (or boyfriend's) hideous shirt that you hate. If you are a boy, put on the shirt that your grandma or mom gave you last Christmas that you don't dare to wear in the public but can't donate either for emotional reason. This is not a time to wear fancy Dolce and Gabbana silk blouse. Chances are you will get some splashes of chili filling on you and this will make a genius excuse to recycle them. Smart, huh!

Second, get a pair of plastic glove.

Don't you even think about a pair you have in your house that you used to clean the bathrooms. If you do, I won't talk to you! This cost only about $1.60(USD) and you should declare them as the Holy Kimchee glove. They will be your guardian angel of your delicate hands.

Now, are you ready? Let's get to work.

Chapter III : The grand assembly

 If Edward has scissor hands, then, I have Kimchee hands. Put them on proudly.

 Now I am going to have you imagine yourself changing a baby's diaper. Have you done it before? If not, this will be a good practice. With your left hand hold up the cabbage just like you would hold the baby's legs and release the most outside leaf to be flat. (You will need a large somewhat shallow mixing bowl to do this) With right hand spread the filling onto the leaf just like on the photo. Make sure you reach to all the nooks and crannies like you would clean the baby's bottom. Sorry to make you imagine that! :-)

 Repeat the layers one leaf at a time. Do not put too much "soh" on each leaf.

I don't need Picasso on the wall. This is artistically good enough to inspire me everyday.

Fold the end leafy part of cabbage toward the stem holding them together.

Remember the rough green leaves we reserved? Just scrunch it with a little bit of "soh". (It was not easy to do wrapping with only one hand and trying to take a picture with the other)
If my fairy godmother would grant me one wish at that moment I would ask for an extra arm, and then later I will regret rest of my life for not asking a pair of glass slipper.

Tightly wrap around the cabbage. She needs to hibernate. Wrapping will help the cabbage to keep its flavor during fermentation process.

My Kimchee sisters are nicely stacked in an airtight container.

Add about 1 cup of water to your mixing bowl you assembled Kimchee in, swirl around to rinse the "soh" and pour over the Kimchee. This will make some Kimchee juice later on to use in soups and stews. The "soh" amount I gave you in the recipe should be more than enough for 2 cabbages. Keep the leftover in the fridge for later use.

"Behold the power of Kimchee!"



My container comes with airtight seal cover in it. It is better to keep your Kimchee not to contact with too much air. You don't have to have this fancy container, of course. You can put your Kimchee in a ziplock back and let the air out, seal it, and then put in a container. That will help to shut out the air from Kimchee.

Let your Kimchee rest in the room temperature for a day or two depends on the room temperature in your house and how much of fermentation you desire. I left mine for a day and half in a 74ºF room and it was just right for me.
Put them in the fridge. They will continue to ferment in a slower speed than room temperature. Your Kimchee can last several month in the fridge.

Yes, Kimchee making is a work but it pays off. Think of how many dishes you can create; the soups and stews, fried rice, dumplings, noodles, stir-fries, and so on..., the possibilities are endless. I will be enjoying the fruit of my labor throughout this winter.

So next time you go to Korean market and see the gorgeous cabbages? Think hard.

Make it or buy it? That is the question.

The Kimchee class is now officially over.
The recipe is written below.

Thanks for all your kinds words and encouragements.

It is my favorite season of the year.
Hustle and bustle, fun to observe people shopping in the stores...
And
This petite Korean woman is getting in the mood of baking cookies.
Perhaps I will share with you one of my favorite holiday cookie recipe next posting.
I have been spicy for couple of weeks, so
I better show you the sweeter side of mine.
I am a sweet Ajumma after all,
Although I hate to admit that I am an Ajumma...

 Cabbage Kimchee or Kimchi

(배추김치, Baechoo Kimchee)

makes 8 cabbage quarters

For the soaking
2 whole nappa cabbage (about 5 lb or 2.3 kg each)
3 cups Korean coarse sea salt plus 1 cup more for sprinkling
30 cups water

For the rice glue
a handful of each dried anchovy, shrimp, kelp, and Pollock fish
3 cups water
2 Tbsp sweet, glutenous rice flour

For the filling
1 Korean radish (about 3 lb or 1kg) sliced thin and julienne to 1/8" sticks
2 bunch green onion, cut into 1 1/2" long both white and green
4 cups Korean red chili flakes
1/2 large onion roughly diced
10 cloves garlic
2" piece ginger peeled and roughly chopped
4 Tbsp anchovy sauce
4 Tbsp shrimp sauce (salted shrimp)
1 1/2 Tbsp sugar
2 Tbsp toasted sesame seeds

For the soaking;
Remove the most rough outer leaves (about 2-3 leaves) from each cabbage, set aside. Give a 2"
slit to the stem part of cabbage, open up and rinse them. You can give another 2" slit on the center stem part of the cabbage halves.
Sprinkle some salt onto the white stem part of each leaf of the cabbage, make sure you salt each and reach to the tip of the stem. Be careful not to break the leaf. In a deep large container dissolve 3 cups of salt with 30 cups of water. Place the cabbage facing up and press them down so the solution will sip through each layer. It is okay if your cabbages are not completely immersed in the solution at this point.
Cover the cabbage halves with the reserved green leaves, put plastic cover, and place something heavy on top. Let it soak for 8 hours, turn the cabbages to the other side, place the covers and heavy item back to push down, let it soak for another 4 hours. After 12 hours, try to bend the stem part of each cabbage. If they are willing to bend,  it is done. If not, Sprinkle a little more salt on the stem part and soak for 2 more hours.
Remove the cabbages and the rough leaves from the solution and rinse 3 times. Cut the cabbage laves into another half. This will make 8 cabbage quarters. Drain the cabbages in the colander or basket for at least 2 hours so the water will drain out thoroughly. You can cover them with a large bowl or plastic to prevent them from drying out during this step.


For the rice glue;
Bring to boil water with dried seafood in a pot, covered. Reduce the heat to low and simmer for 10 minutes. Remove from heat and let it sit for 20 minutes to intensify the stock. Strain the stock and reserve 2 cups.
In a small pot, whisk 1 1/2 cup of stock with rice flour, bring to boil whisking continuously until it gets bubbly and thickened. Let it cool. Reserve 1/2 cup of the stock for other use later.

For the filling;
In a blender puree onion, garlic, ginger and the reserved 1/2 cup of seafood stock until smooth.
Pour chili flakes in a large mixing bowl, add the garlic mixture puree and the cooled rice glue, anchovy sauce, shrimp sauce, sugar, sesame seeds. Mix well.
Add sliced radish and the green onion to the chili mixture and mix again. It will look like mostly radish and green onion at this point. Let them sit for 30 minutes so the radish will extract their moisture and get wilted. Your filling should be spreadable consistency. You can adjust with more stock in case your filling seems too thick.
Break a little piece from cabbage,  put a little bit of chili filling and taste to see if it is seasoned right. You might need more fish sauce or salt depends on the sodium level in the soaked cabbage.

For the assembly;

You will need large shallow mixing bowl to do this job.

Hold the cabbage quarter upward with your left hand and release the outside leaf to be flat in the bowl. With you right hand take some of the chili filling and spread all over the leaf, put down another layer one at a time and repeat. Don't put too much of filling on each leaf, just enough to cover. When all the layers are spread with chili filling, fold the leafy part of the cabbage toward the stem holding them together and wrap with the reserved rough green leaves tightly. Place each cabbage quarters in the air tight container. Add 1 cup of water to the mixing bowl and swirl around to rinse the filling residue in the bowl, pour it over the cabbage in the container. Seal the container and let it sit in a room temperature for 1-2 days depends on the room temperature or the fermentation level you desire. Keep your Kimchee in the fridge after that. It can store for several month to enjoy.

Note: The filling amount is perhaps more than enough for 2 heads of cabbages. I always keep the leftover in the fridge and make Bean Sprout Kimchee with it.

Printable recipe

Kimchi or Kimchee, mastering the art of Kimchee vol 2

Welcome back to my Kimchi (Kimchee) school. We are entering the second session of Kimchee making. If you miss the first session, click here.

In a previous post I have explained how to soak the cabbage in the salt water solution, which is the most important part of Kimchee making. If you master that process you can graduate Kimchee school with an honor degree, the Kimchee Cum Laude.

Today I will show you how to make the cabbage stuffing.
We call the stuffing, Kimchee Soh (김치소).

They are the sidekicks of the show, which makes the look and the taste. They are the ones who makes the important final touch. Just like the impressive supporting actors or actresses who adds the real kick in the movies, this Soh makes the Kimchee to another level.

FACT : Did you know that Kimchee(Kimchi) was originally white, not red? Koreans have been making Kimchee for over 1000 years but never been spicy, which means no chilies had been used. Chilies simply did not exist in Korea. The introduction of chili pepper in the 1800's via Japan, which was from Portugal, of whom they got it from South America, changed the look of Kimchee. Japanese didn't care much of chili when it was introduced by Portuguese but Koreans were the one who went nuts over.  We love CHILI! Thanks to South America. In fact if you look into the history of some food, you will be amazed how many are originated from S. America. Columbus did not only contributed the course of world history but he also influence the cuisines of the world. I wonder what Europeans ate before the arrival of potatoes, because every restaurant I went in Europe served fries as a side.

Ooops! my lectures has detoured to somewhat different course. Sorry! Let's come back to our original point and begin the class. Kimchee! here we come...

 

Chapter II : the Sidekicks

The supporting crews of the show.

Anchovy sauce, sesame seeds, chili flakes, sweet rice powder, sugar, shrimp sauce(salted shrimp), Korean radish, green onion, ginger, garlic, onion.

Now,

 Before I tell you how to prepare the sidekicks of the show, 

I need to show you my hidden jewels of Kimchee recipe.

The sea quartets!

Pollock fish, shrimps, anchovies, sea kelp, all in dried form.

You can be creative and use your own choice.

 If you have access to fresh fish head (such as cod or yellow croaker),

it will make gorgeous flavor to Kimchee. Weird?

Adding these sea flavor to Kimchee is one discovery that you won't regret to adapt.

Trust me on this.

 Put them all in a pot and add about 3 cups of water.

 Boil and simmer for 10 minutes, covered. Let it rest for 20 minutes.

You need to make this stock real intensified.

Gorgeous!  Strain the stock and reserve 2 cups.

You wan to separate this into 1 1/2 C to make rice glue + 1/2C for another use.

 Pour 1 1/2cups of reserved stock into the sauce pan and add 2 Tbsp sweet rice flour.

Mix and boil to thicken whisking constantly, about 3-5 minutes. Let it cool

 You are making the rice glue. This will make the filling to be spreadable consistency and help bond to the cabbage better. 

Do not try to taste this. It is disgusting now but will raise your Kimchee to a whole different level.

Now, let's move on.

Make your knife to be proud.

Korean radish!
Peel off her cloth. She performs better in nude.

 Slice her into 1/8" thick.

It is okay if you made a few slices thicker or thinner. Nobody is perfect in this world.

 Cut them into 1/8" sticks, just like that.

Why, oh, why on earth am I so good at slicing?

 Cut the white part of green onion in half lengthwise and slice them into 1 1/2" long.

 In a big bowl place 4 cups of chili flakes and pour the rice glue.

Add the anchovy sauce,

 add these alien looking shrimp sauce, aka salted shrimp.

No need to chop them. They will eventually melt in the process. Aren't you glad?

Mix together. It will be like thick paste.

 As you know, this is a garlic. They hold on each other like the United Nation.

 How many lives can you get out of one head of garlic?

 You count and let me know.
You will need about 10 cloves out of this pile.

This is ginger. She flew all the way from Brazil to help me out.

Ola, Como Vai, Ginger?

Cut 2" long slice off from her and peel her with spoon. Roughly chop her.

In a blender put diced onion, garlic, ginger and the reserved 1/2 cup of stock.

Puree their lives until smooth.

Mix in to the paste.

 

 Add sugar and sesame seeds, mix.

 Take a little piece of cabbage and put some paste, EAT! 

You need to test if the paste is rightly seasoned. 

Depends on how much sodium level in your cabbage,
you might need to add more fish sauce or salt in this stuffing.
It should be slightly saltier than you would usually taste from other food.

Remember the radish and green onions?

Mix them into the paste. You need to let this filling sit for 30minutes so that the radish will extract their moisture and get wilted. They are too stiff to use right away.

Now the Kimchee filling is created and well rested.
If you want to be more exotic at this point, you can add fresh shrimp, or fish to the filling.
(When I mean "fresh" it means alive, not dead. They have to stare at you and crawl in front of your eyes. I couldn't find the live crawling shrimps nor jumping fishes at any grocery stores so I skip them)

Adding fresh sea creature might sound so bizarre to you, but that puts your Kimchee to rise above all.
Many Korean home cooks add that to the winter cabbage Kimchee and everyone loves it.
My mother always put fresh, clean cod pieces in the cabbage during winter time and I remember how good her Kimchee tasted.

Some add raw oyster instead and it makes Kimchee very refreshing, that's what we call, but you can't store too long with oyster. They get mushy and unpleasant after a while.

Well, well, well...
I need to end my second Kimchee post right here.

My buns aren't that tired this time and my kiddos are gone to bed, but I am hungry...
I better go eat some of my Kimchee with rice.
The photo on top is my Kimchee that has been fermented for about a week in my fridge.
It is too die for...
Can't be compared with store bought. Not even close...

I will come back again in a few days with the last chapter of this process.

Thank you so much for being patient with me.
It is so cold outside, keep yourself warm. Or if you live in tropical, stay cool!

With XOXO,

H

Kimchi or Kimchee, mastering the art of Kimchee Vol 1

I came to realize that the whole world is spelling Kimchi rather than Kimchee. Whatever people prefer to write, it is the one and only side dish that Koreans can't live without. I finally took myself out of comfort zone and made some Kimchi the other day. I am very thrilled to introduce the "how to" of Kimchee but I can't put all the detail in just one post. So I am going to split the post into sections.
Yes, there are many easy and fast version of cabbage Kimchee of course. But it is fall cabbage season now and this is the way we prepare Kimchi at this time of the year.

November through December is busy season for most Korean home cooks. It is the time we prepare endless batches of Kimchee (Kimchi) to last through the winter.  We call it "Kimjang(김장)". We store them in a big stone earthenware jar and bury in the ground to keep them outside so they don't go frozen in the below zero temperature.  However the arrival of Kimchee refrigerator has changed the life of most Koreans. It keeps the fermentation level of Kimchee in the most ideal temperature so that you can enjoy full flavor of Kimchee all year round.

I remember my mother used to make 200 heads of cabbage into Kimchee every November. Yes, 200! We had a big family... It was a pure labor and of course, she had help from neighbors. It was beautiful culture in my home town, when I was growing up, that we look after each other. Whether it was delicious goodies, or needed a shoulder to cry on, we all shared as neighbors. Rain or shine... 

The slices of radish flying out of the chopping board, the pounding sound of smashing garlic and ginger in a stone mortar, and Oh! the smell of fresh fish sauce my mother makes...  As kids my sisters and I squatting down next to the ladies pinching our nose to observe the wondrous moments in life.  I still remember the loud sounds of middle aged Korean Ajumma-s chatting and laughing. They made fun of their husbands (in a good way), gossiping about the celebrities (who got the nose job done recently), talking about their lost dreams and hopes in life, they mingled and shared their thoughts as a wife, a mother, and a woman. When the Kimchee making is over, it was boy's job to dig the ground to bury those jars. And the feast of eating freshly made Kimchee with hot rice and yellow bean paste stew...  my, oh, my!
I wish I could have painted those scenes on the canvas to preserve the memory. How I miss those times!

So I am going to share with you how we make our Kimchee in authentic way. The ultimate cabbage Kimchee recipe you will ever find in the internet. Of course I am not going to make 200 cabbages, not in a million years! I am only going to use 2 cabbages. But this will last a few weeks in our home.

If you are looking for how to make easy and fast version, this is not the right tutorial for you. Kimchee making is a work but you will enjoy the fruit of your labor for a long time and it is not that difficult to master the skill as long as you learn some know-hows.
I will guide you step by step. Enjoy this online tutorial class for free. If you enjoyed it a lot, you can thank me by leaving some words for me. That will cheer me up.
So follow me, my apprentices...

Introducing the 3 important key ingredients;

 The main ingredient, Cabbage!

Select the ones that are heavy and dense. Greener outside and yellower inside.

 

Salt, perhaps the most important ingredients in Kimchee.

I highly recommend to get Korean coarse sea salt.
You can use Chinese product, which is common in Asian grocery market, but I often find the Kimchee made with Chinese salt yield bitter taste.
DO NOT substitute with TABLE SALT!
Your Kimchee will be beyond imagination salty and your kidney will hate you.



Korean chili flakes. Look for coarse flakes (even thought the package says powder)
I always use chili flakes produced in Korea, not from China nor Mexico.
Check their origin in the back side of package.

Got the above ingredients right?  

Now, you are about to enter the school of Korean Kimchee making.

Welcome!

Chapter 1

The cabbage baptism by immersion

Tear off the rough outer leaves, about 2-3 leaves from each cabbage. Set aside. 

They will be used to wrap Kimchee later or make wonderful cabbage soup.

 Cut a slit on the stem about 2" deep all the way down.

Open up and reveal their inner beauties to the world.

 Give another slit on the top end part about 1 1/2" and rinse each cabbage half.

 Look for a large container to make salt water in.
The best ratio of salt to water is 1:10.
You will need to soak the cabbage for at least 12 hours. Yes, you heard me right, 12 hours!

I recommend to do this at night before you go to bed or in the morning before work.

Dissolve salt in the water.
I use 3 cups of salt and 30 cups of water.
Hmmmmm, when was the last time I took my salt bath...?

Before you dunk the cabbages into the salt water, sprinkle some salt onto white stem part of each leaf of cabbage. The white stem part requires more time or salt than leaf to loose its moisture



 Put cabbage halves in salted water, press down so the solution can sip through the layers.
 Don't panic if the water doesn't cover the cabbage completely. It is okay!



 Sprinkle a little more salt on top of the stem part of cabbage.



Cover them with the reserved outer leaves.
Getting ready for holy ceremony...



 Cover with plastic and place something heavy on top to keep them immersed in the water.
 Now you can go to bed. You need your 8 hrs of beauty sleep and cabbages need their rest.



After my 8 hrs of sleep, this is what my cabbage look like in the morning.
Somewhat submissive but not quite there yet.



You need to turn them to the other side and continue to soak for another 4 hours or so.


Bend their stem to see if they are willing to be submissive to you without breaking.
If they bend like that, your cabbage is reborn. If not, put it back for 2 or more hours.
My cabbage was baptized over the night and she was reborn. Hallelujah!



Break the the cabbage half into another half. That will make cabbage quarters, right?



Rinse them 3 times.



Drain them thoroughly. You need to drain well. I let them rest on the colander for 2 hours.

Now the long soaking business is over.
The success of making good Kimchee depends on this soaking part.
If you master this step, your Kimchee is 80% done.
So, go out and celebrate your accomplishment! Cheers!

Well,
I am going to end the first section of Kimchee making class here today.
I can only write so much in one sitting because my buns are getting tired and my kiddos are nagging for some snack. Hope you understand...
I promise I will come back in a few days with the next step, the sidekicks of Kimchee!

Until then, Hasta la vista, baby!

Love,

H