Name: Homemade Kimchi
Prep time: 6 h
Total time: 6 h
Ingredients: Water; 1 cup sea salt, unrefined; 2 heads of napa cabbage; 2 cups daikon radish, sliced thin and cut into half-moon shapes; 3 cups carrots, julienned; 1/2 onion, thinly sliced; 3/4 cup Chinese chives, cut into 1 inch pieces; 12 garlic cloves, minced; 3 tablespoon ginger, minced; 2/3 cup gochugaru (Korean chili powder); 1 tablespoon granulated sugar

Description

Homemade kimchi is a tangy, spicy, and pungent dish made by fermenting napa cabbage, radishes, carrots, onion, and other vegetables with a mixture of gochugaru (Korean chili powder), garlic, ginger, and salt.

Ingredients

Units Scale

Water
1 cup sea salt, unrefined
2 heads of napa cabbage
2 cups daikon radish, sliced thin and cut into half-moon shapes
3 cups carrots, julienned
1/2 onion, thinly sliced
3/4 cup Chinese chives, cut into 1 inch pieces
12 garlic cloves, minced
3 tablespoon ginger, minced
2/3 cup gochugaru (Korean chili powder)
1 tablespoon granulated sugar

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Instructions

To a large bowl (feel free to divide all the ingredients accordingly and separate into different bowls if you don’t have a large enough bowl), add 1 gallon of water and the sea salt.
Cut your washed cabbage into fourths and reserve about 5-6 leaves of the cabbage for later (this is important, don’t forget!). Place the cabbage leaves into the salt water and allow to brine for 4 hours. Make sure the cabbage is completely submerged (I use the weights from my fermentation jar to hold it down).
While your cabbage is brining, begin chopping your vegetables and mincing your garlic and ginger. Add them all into a large bowl.
When your cabbage is done brining, reserve about 2 cups of the brine and set aside for later (don’t forget this step!).
Chop your cabbage into bite-sized pieces and add to the bowl with the other vegetables.
Add the gochugaru and sugar and mix well to ensure all the vegetables are coated in the gochugaru.
Use a pair of tongs to transfer all of the vegetables to your fermentation jar, using a stomper to periodically press down the vegetables to ensure they are packed in.
Using the reserve cabbage leaves from earlier, place them on top of the packed-in vegetables. This ensures the vegetables stay coated in the brine that will go on top.
Place the weights from the fermentation jar on top, and pour in your reserve brine from earlier.
Seal the fermentation jar (for mine, this includes pouring about 1/2 inch of water into the little moat area around the lid) and wait 1-3 weeks before opening and consuming. Note that the longer you allow it to ferment, the more pickley the flavor will become.
Store in jars in your refrigerator for up to one year.

Prep Time: 6 hours