Annie & Skyler We have a majorly deep passion for fermenting. Just think about it: tiny microorganisms—lactobacilli, in the case of kimchi—are busy, busy, busy eating up all the naturally occurring sugars in cabbage and other veggies to create tangy lactic acid and thereby a delicious (and healthy!) end product. And all this while it’s just hanging out on the counter while we’re off doing other things. Fermentation is the ultimate set-it-and-forget-it way to cook! Aren’t those “good bacteria” so amazingly cool?
Kimchi Love There are countless versions of this traditional salted and fermented Korean dish. Our version, based on the baechu-style kimchi, combines napa cabbage, ginger, garlic, green onions, and, of course, dried ground chili flakes. As the mixture ferments, it takes on a deeply savory, tangy flavor that is nothing short of amazing.
Kimchi for Health Since kimchi, like sauerkraut and yogurt, contains probiotics, consuming it regularly contributes to a healthy gut biome and supports digestion. And thanks to all that cabbage, kimchi is a good source of vitamins A and C, plus minerals and amino acids.
FIO’s Top Kimchi Tips
THE GREENS If you’re not getting it from your own garden, seek out the freshest napa cabbage, pak choi, etc. you can find. Head to the farmer’s market or local Asian food stores. Remember, the best cabbages always feel heavy for their size. |
BE FLEXIBLE The key to feeling the flow with fermenting is to let the season and your surroundings be your guide. Don’t force anything—instead work with what you have. We love napa cabbage, but you can also use pak choi or other Asian brassica greens—whatever looks fresh and delicious. We source our daikon from our local farmer’s market, but if you can’t find it, any regular garden radishes will work fine. Feel free to add fresh green peppers, snow peas, carrots, or even fruit, such as apple or pear, to add more natural sugar to the chili mixture (lactobacilli like sugar!). We also like using garlic scapes that are needing to be trimmed this time of year, but regular garlic is our standard in fall kimchi. Just use what you’ve got available and let the season be your guide.
THE CHILES For spring kimchi, we most often use various dried chiles harvested from the previous year (for extra flavor, toast them lightly before finely grinding them up!). You can also seek out ground dried Korean chile (gochugaru) from Asian food stores.
THE VESSEL Choose a ceramic crock or large glass jar for fermenting. Avoid old crocks that have questionable finishes or glazes which might contain lead. Also avoid anything metallic. Certain metals can react with acidic foods, which kimchi will eventually become.
THE CUT Sometimes we to coarsely chop my greens and simply toss them with the chile mixture. Other times it feels right just to cut the cabbage into wedges and rub the chili mixture into every crevice. And other times pull my greens apart into individual leaves, rub them with the chile mixture, and wrap each leaf up into a neat little package and arrange them into the crock that way. Just feel the flow and do what feels right. We believe the lactobacilli like it (and will perform better for you) when you follow your instincts and have fun with it.
COVER UP When all the kimchi is packed into your fermenting vessel and weighted down, make sure the brine is covering the cabbage mixture. This helps keeps out bad microorganisms, such as mold, yeasts, etc. Cover the whole crock with a cloth or loosely vented plastic wrap or, if using a jar, screw a plastic lid on very loosely, to allow it to breathe but keep dust and other stuff out.
TEMP CHECK Fermenting occurs more quickly at higher temperatures, so you may need to transfer it to the fridge after just two days if it’s particularly warm in your house. If you see any white stuff on top, no worries—those are wild yeasts that are perfectly safe and occur at higher temps. Just scrape it away, then put the kimchi in the fridge at that point.
Kimchi
Ingredients
- 8 cups filtered water
- ½ cup + 2 tsp. kosher sea salt
- 1 big head or 2 medium heads napa cabbage, washed well and cut into wedges or coarsely chopped or torn
- 2 or 3 daikon radishes or 1 bunch other radishes, julienned
- 1 to 2 Tbsp. Korean chili flakes or other dried ground red chili peppers
- 2 inches fresh ginger, peeled and chopped
- 1 Tbsp. raw coconut or cane sugar
- 3 or 4 green onions, chopped
- 4 garlic scapes, chopped, or 1 clove garlic, minced
Instructions
- In a large bowl combine ½ cup salt and water; stir until salt is dissolved. Add cabbage. In a small bowl combine daikon and the 2 tsp. salt. Cover both bowls and let stand at room temperature, stirring occasionally, 2 to 4 hours or until white parts of cabbage are softened. Drain cabbage, reserving a couple cups of the brine, and rinse well. Return cabbage to bowl. Rinse daikon and add to cabbage mixture in bowl.
- Combine chili flakes, ginger, sugar in a blender. And ½ cup of the cabbage brining liquid. Cover and blend until smooth, adding more brine as needed. Transfer to a medium bowl. Stir in rinsed daikon, green onions, and garlic scapes.
- Spoon chili mixture over cabbage in bowl. Rub cabbage pieces well to coat with chili mixture, then pack into a crock or jar. If necessary, add more brine to submerge kimchi mixture by at least ½ inch.
- Cover loosely and ferment 2 to 4 days or until bubbly when you jostle it and slightly sour. Chill at least a few days before serving. Kimchi will continue to evolve in flavor and get more sour in the fridge.
