Home-made Kimchi

We’ve been making home-made kimchi for a couple of years now.

Actually it is my sister, Jen, who got this home-made kimchi recipe from a friend of hers. Her first taste of kimchi was at her friend’s home, the same person who gave her the recipe. It is an authentic Korean kimchi recipe because the husband of my sister’s friend is pure Korean.

And of course, we had to make it here at home as well. You will surely find this more affordable and easy to make once you try it. And perhaps you’ll eventually skip buying those bottled ones at the grocery which are very expensive.

Here’s the recipe of our home-made kimchi.

Ingredients:

3-5 heads Chinese cabbage (pechay baguio)
2 pcs large onion leeks, cut into 1 inch lengths, then thinly sliced
3-4 whole heads of garlic, crushed (use mortar and pestle)
3 Tbsp ginger, finely chopped
2 Tbsp thai patis (optional:bagoong)
3/4 Cup Korean Red Pepper Powder or Gochugaru
*if not available, Korean Red Pepper Paste or Gochujang can be substituted but Gochugaru makes for better kimchi
Salt
*optional, sliced carrots and radish

Kitchen Tools:

Large bowl
Colander
Mortar and Pestle
Un-reactive container for fermentation (use plastic food-grade container)

Procedure:

• Slice cabbages in half, sprinkle liberally with salt.
• Place in large bowl or container and refrigerate for at least 6 hours, better if overnight.
• The next day, remove accumulated liquid and wash the cabbages thoroughly,
  this could take 3-4 washes to remove excess salt.
• Drain cabbages in a colander, if you opt to cut up the cabbages instead of fermenting them whole, you can do so at this point.
• While draining the cabbages, peel and crush garlic, chop up ginger and onion leeks (also carrots and radish).
• Combine with red pepper powder, patis and make a paste. Spread paste all over cabbage (or mix well if cut up).
• Place kimchi on a nonreactive container (food-grade plastic, glass) and leave at room
  temperature for 24 hours before refrigerating. Or straight to the refrigerator and wait for 3-5 days before eating.

While waiting for your kimchi to age a bit – just a few days – you should think of the best dishes that can go with it. Grilled, fried and roasted meats are the best partners for kimchi. Try it this weekend and the following week you’ll be able to enjoy this for a few days.

You can keep home-made kimchi in an airtight container in the fridge for up to several weeks. You will notice intensity in flavor and spiciness over time. And the best thing about it — no preservatives!

Enjoy!