This homemade kimchi recipe is a spicy, simple, version of the transitional kimchi. It can be incorporated into soups or rice dishes.
{This post is an oldie from my first blog, Life Food, and Beer. I'm not cooking with beer like I once did, but I still love this recipe. To read more about my food philosophy now, click on the About Me page.}
A story about Kimchi
There is one food in this world I can honestly say I do not like! I'm not one to pass up food. If you offer me something, I'll probably eat it. And, I'll try everything once. I'm all for adventurous eating and trying new ingredients, but you will never see this one dish {I guess we can call it a dish} in my house.
Sauerkraut! Blah {Said in my best Oma impression}!! Luckily, my German hubby hates the stuff, too.
I'm not sure when my hatred for sauerkraut started. Growing up, I wasn't really a fan of cabbage. I HATED the smell of boiled cabbage, so I usually avoided eating it, and I wasn't a fan of coleslaw. I liked raw, plain cabbage and egg rolls. Over the years, I've started to like it more, but still can't get on board with the whole sauerkraut thing. I will admit, I tried some homemade kraut while in Germany and didn't hate it! I'm pretty sure 99% of it was left on my plate when I was finished with my meal, but it may have sparked an interest to trying to make homemade sauerkraut to see if I like it more.
I love Kimchi
I found it very surprising, that I LOVE kimchi! Really, it's the same thing. Fermented cabbage. But it's so much better! One of my favorite restaurants has a Kimchi Noodle Bowl that I order every time I go there. I actually haven't tried anything else there. When I decided to try to make more food from scratch, I wanted to try to recreate their noodle bowl at home. And having a huge jar of kimchi on hand at all times sounded like a good idea too.
Fun fact, kimchi is fermented, and fermented foods are full of probiotics. Probiotics help strengthen your immune system, so kimchi is good for you!
A few weeks ago, I wasn't able to find Korean Chili Powder at my local grocery store and had to go to the international food store to find it. You can also order it online from Amazon, and I tried making it with regular chili powder and it turned out good. Definitely not traditional but works in a pinch. You'll just want to cut back on the amount of powder you use because it's much hotter. I also read you can substitute crust red pepper flakes, but I didn't test these recipes using it.
Kimchi Uses
My favorite way to use my homemade kimchi is added to homemade ramen or as a side with a stir fry. I also like standing at the refrigerator and eating it straight from the jar!
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Homemade Kimchi
- Total Time: 30 minutes
- Yield: 6 Servings 1x
- Diet: Vegetarian
Ingredients
- 1 Napa Cabbage - Sliced
- 1 Tablespoon Salt
- 1 cup Filter Water
- ¼-½ cup Korean Chili Powder* - To Taste
- 2 Tablespoons Fish Sauce
- ¼ cup Filtered Water
- 3 Tablespoons Sugar or Honey - Omit if Whole30
- 2 Cloves Garlic- Minced
- ½ Tablespoon Ginger - Minced
Instructions
- In a large bowl, add salt and water. Once salt is dissolved, add cabbage and place a plate or bowl on top of the cabbage. Use a can to weigh down the plate to fully submerge the cabbage in the salty, water, mixture. Soak for 8 hours or overnight.
- Drain the cabbage and rinse very well to remove extra salt. Once rinsed, squeeze the cabbage to remove any extra water and add to large bowl.
- In another bowl, combine the chili powder, fish sauce, sugar or honey, garlic, and ginger. Add the mixture to the cabbage and using your hands, massage spices into the cabbage {I recommend wearing gloves for this step}.
- You can serve immediately or allow to ferment to desired taste.
- To ferment - place cabbage in a airtight container, like a mason jar, pressing the cabbage tightly into the jar. Leave at room temperature for 24 hours. Taste and stir daily until you reach the desired flavor. Once reached, place the jar in the refrigerator. I stir and repress my kimchi daily for 3-4 days.
- Kimchi will last for weeks in the refrigerator.
Notes
*If you can not find Korean Chili Powder you can use regular chili powder. Regular will be hotter, so use less spice.
Start with less spice to begin with and increase as desired. {One of the first time I made this I used way too much chili powder. We ate it, of course, but it was HOT!}
- Prep Time: 30 Mins
- Cook Time: 0 Mins
- Category: Side Dish
- Cuisine: Korean
Keywords: kimchi, fermented cabbage
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