“Pickled radish slices make a good summer side-dish,
Radish preserved in salt is a winter side-dish from start to end.
The roots in the earth grow plumper everyday,
Harvesting after the frost, a slice cut by a knife tastes like a pear”— Yi Gyubo, Dongguk isanggukjip (translated by Michael J. Pettid, in Korean cuisine: An Illustrated History)
Kimchi is a staple in Korean cuisine its typically served as a side dish consisting of fermented vegetables and it’s usually spicy. There are hundreds of varieties of kimchi and this recipe is a pretty solid one. The origins date back to the 37BC in Asian where fermenting vegetables and fruits was a staple to get through the winter months.
1 head of Napa cabbage
¼ cup of gochujang paste
2 TBSP Kosher salt
½ cup of Korean chilis – gochugaru
3 ½ TBSP water
4 garlic cloves
¼ cup of rice wine vinegar
1 TBSP grated ginger
½ cup of thinly sliced onion and daikon radish
4 scallions – cut into 3” pieces
Remove the bruised leaves of the cabbage, quarter washing it well and allowing it to dry.
Place the cabbage quarters in a large working bowl and salt it, ensuring that you’re thoroughly coating in between the leaves with the salt. Set aside for about 30-40 minutes.
In the bowl of a food processor, add the gochujang, gochugaru, water, ginger, garlic cloves and vinegar and pulse to create a paste. Rinse the cabbage and remove all traces of the salt even between the leaves and then dry well with a kitchen towel to absorb as much of the water as possible. Cut each core into medium slices (about 1½ “thick) and add the other sliced vegetables. Spread the paste all over the veggies and pack them into a large mason jar. Refrigerate for about 2 days before using to allow the flavors to marry. Keeps up to a week and makes about 1 quart of kimchi.