Mom's Kimchi Recipe | Korean Food 김치 (2024)

FAQs

What is the ingredients of Korean kimchi? ›

Napa cabbage

Baechu-kimchi / Main ingredient

Napa cabbage is a type of Chinese cabbage originating near the Beijing region of China that is widely used in East Asian cuisine. Since the 20th century, it has also become a widespread crop in Europe, the Americas and Australia. In much of the world, it is referred to as "Chinese cabbage".

Wikipedia

This fermented cabbage dish can be served as a side dish, over a bed of rice, folded into scrambled eggs, whirred into tomato sauce, or even just eaten as is.

A few hours before you're going to make the kimchi (we usually do this 5-6 hours before but a couple of hours to overnight is also fine) pour the water into a large mixing bowl, add the salt and stir to dissolve. This makes a 5% brine which we've found works well.

In general, kimchi is made using Chinese leaves (Napa cabbage) or radish as the primary ingredient, with red chilli pepper powder, garlic and spring onions used as supplementary ingredients.

Along with fiber, vitamins, and minerals, kimchi contains natural probiotic bacteria. If you eat them regularly, the probiotics in fermented foods can be beneficial to your gut microbiome. Studies suggest that eating kimchi on a daily basis could help to improve some digestive problems.

If you have store-bought kimchi that's been opened, it will be good for 3-4 days at room temperature and up to 6 months when refrigerated. Signs of your kimchi going bad include mold growth, an alcoholic smell, and an extremely sour taste.

The kimchi fermentation process is very short in comparison to making sauerkraut. Kimchi ferments at room temperature in only 1-2 days or more slowly in the refrigerator. For safety, kimchi should be stored refrigerated and is best eaten within 1 week, as the quality of kimchi deteriorates with longer fermentation.

Probiotics may improve heart health by reducing cholesterol and inflammation. The fiber, antioxidants, and nutrients in kimchi can also help lower blood sugar and cholesterol levels, which can boost heart health. Early research suggests kimchi may strengthen your immune system.

That being said, Kimchi will and does go bad when stored incorrectly! It can go rancid and result in Kimchi that smells rotten. Sourness is usually not used as an indication for spoilage as Kimchi naturally ferments to produce good probiotics causing it to become more sour (which we know some of you love!).

Should kimchi be eaten hot or cold? ›

So do you eat kimchi hot or cold? If you are eating kimchi because of the amazing live cultures and nutrient availability it offers, we recommend eating it cold. Try some of our own favorite cold kimchi recipes to get started: Cold noodles with kimchi.

If only a small amount of liquid is needed to cover vegetables, add plain filtered water. If a larger amount is needed, make up some extra brine and add it to the jar to completely cover the vegetables. Keeping vegetables under the brine will help prevent the vegetables on the surface from drying out or molding.

Rinse cabbage leaves under cold water, at least 2 to 3 times, to remove most of the salt; drain and squeeze out any excess liquid. Place rinsed cabbage in a large container with a tight fitting lid. Stir in fish sauce, green onions, white onion, garlic, sugar, and ginger.

I want to take a moment here to emphasize that selecting the right type of salt for kimchi is incredibly important. Natural sea salt is the salt of choice for most Koreans making kimchi, but I've found that kosher salt is a very good substitute.

What is the difference between the two foods? Per the CNN report, 'kimchi' is a term for fermented vegetables in Korea, mostly referring to fermented napa cabbage with seasonings — including red chili pepper, garlic, ginger and salted seafood. Pao cai, on the other hand, means 'soaked vegetables' in Chinese.

Kimchi is often served as a side dish alongside other healthful vegetables and proteins. Researchers noted in the study that consuming more than three servings of kimchi a day could have the opposite benefit. Participants who ate more than five servings of kimchi per day were more likely to be at a risk for obesity.

According to the 2022 iteration of the Codex Alimentarius international food standards, kimchi is vegetarian in that it's simply “prepared with Chinese cabbage as a predominant ingredient and other vegetables which have been trimmed, cut, salted and seasoned before fermentation”.