Simple Kimchi Recipe (2024)

FAQs

What is the ingredients of Korean kimchi? ›

Napa cabbage

Baechu-kimchi / Main ingredient

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.

How long does it take to make Kimchi? Allow 1 hour to prepare the kimchi and get it in the fermentation jar. Plus 4 hours waiting while the vegetables salt. It takes 5-10 days to ferment depending on room temperature.

Early history

The pickling of vegetables was an ideal method, prior to refrigerators, that helped to preserve the lifespan of foods. In Korea, kimchi was made during the winter by fermenting vegetables, and burying it in the ground in traditional brown ceramic pots called onggi.

As your JIN Kimchi ferments like any other Kimchi, it starts smelling slightly sour and vinegary, this aroma gets stronger over time and is perfectly normal! However, if your Kimchi starts to smell rotten, it has most likely gone bad.

Kimchi should be stored in the fridge as chilling is the only thing that keeps its level of fermentation (i.e. the activity of those happy little probiotics) slowed down. If you leave kimchi outside of the fridge, over time it will become over-fermented and won't taste so great anymore.

Kimchi will continue to naturally ferment even when properly stored, but the flavor can grow dull or even sour. But not all "old" kimchi is bad!

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.

Kimchi is traditionally made with napa cabbage, but there's nothing to stop you from using another cabbage! Napa cabbage, Chinese cabbage, green cabbage, savoy cabbage, white cabbage, red cabbage, and bok choy (we could go on and on) are all part of the very large cruciferous family (Brassicaceae).

Brining is when you treat food with salt or when you soak food into a salty water solution. This process is important in Kimchi making because it helps the vegetables to draw out water, allowing it to become tender and pliable.

Why did my kimchi explode? ›

Sometimes, you may open a kimchi jar and no reaction will occur. Other times, you may hear a pop from gas release with juice fizzing/kimchi overflowing out the jar, similarly to a bottle of sparkling wine. Either way, your kimchi is still deliciously safe to eat!

Specific kimchi types also showed a positive effect. Three or more daily servings of cabbage kimchi among men was associated with a 10% lower prevalence of overall obesity as well as a 10% lower prevalence of abdominal obesity compared to those who ate less than one serving daily.

In fact, factory-produced kimchi in Korea is kept at a constant 4 degrees celsius - the temperature of your fridge. A mason jar is ideal, though any airtight container should do.

Kimchi can be made from a variety of vegetables, and even fruits, but the most recognized version — baechu kimchi — is made with cabbage. Alongside cabbage, it often contains radishes, scallions, carrots, garlic, ginger, chili flakes, and other flavorings. Kimchi has a sour, salty, savory, and often fiery taste.

Kimchi is a Korean traditional fermented vegetable made from Chinese cabbage (beachu), radish, green onion, red pepper powder, garlic, ginger, and fermented seafood (jeotgal), which is traditionally made at home and served as a side dish at meals.

Does Kimchi need a starter culture? No, unlike yogurt and cheese cultures, all of the beneficial lactic bacteria needed to kick-start the kimchi fermentation are already present on the surface of the vegetables.