kimchi 101

Traditionally, Koreans used to make kimchi using whole cabbage (poh-ghee) and would cut it into bite-size pieces at the time of consumption. The following is a general process of making poh-ghee kimchi.

1) Salt the cabbage whole. Leave it for about 2 to 3 hours.

2) Meanwhile, make the sauce. Mix together the following ingredients:
salted shrimp
red pepper flake
scallion
garlic
radish (julienned)
ginger
sweet rice flour and water (mix together and bring to a boil to attain a gelatinous texture)

3) Rinse cabbage with fresh, unsalted water. Drain.

4) Finally, take handfuls of the sauce and place them evenly between the leaves of the cabbage until the whole cabbage is full of red kimchi sauce.

* The key to great tasting kimchi is to press and pack it tight into a jar. The least amount of air that gets into that jar, the better your kimchi will taste.

From here on out, the fermentation process takes place.

After the kimchi has been jarred, you want to let it sit for about 20 days in the fridge because the fermentation has started. If it’s consumed too early on, the acidity of the kimchi will not have set in and the taste of the cabbage will overpower your sauce.

Streptococcus (a genus of spherical Gram-positive bacteria belonging to the phylum Firmicute and the lactic acid bacteria group) actively grows in the early stage of fermentation. Pediococcus (a genus of Gram-positive lactic acid bacteria, placed within the family of Lactobacillaceae) in the mid-stage. L. plantarum and L. brevis in the late stage, which could affect the ripening of kimchi.

Kimchi will never go bad in your fridge. Once it’s become too fermented, you can actually cook it any which way you want. Some recipes include: kimchi stew, kimchi sauteed with tofu, kimchi burger patties, kimchi goes well with any type of meat (steak, pork, chicken, etc).

The next entry will include some everyday recipes with a twist of kimchi so stay tuned and come back for more kimchi 101.