My husband can always tell when I’m really into a cookbook, because he will find it in various locations around our apartment (on the sofa, splayed out in the kitchen, and resting upright against the back of my desk chair). Once such book that has been spotted in all these locations lately is Korean Home Cooking by Sohui Kim and Rachel Wharton.
My copy is riddled with sticky notes and the edges are already a little stained from the time it has spend in the kitchen with me. On Monday night, I even demoed the Quick Chopped Cabbage Kimchi over on Facebook. Click the link if you’d like to see the recipe in action.
If you tuned and want to try the recipe, you can find it after the jump. Just know that in the demo, I made a half batch. I’ve included the recipe in it’s entirety here.
Quick Chopped Cabbage Kimchi from Korean Home Cooking
Ingredients
- 2 large 3 pounds/1.4 kg each napa cabbage
- 1 cup 240 g kosher salt
- 1 1/2 cups 180 g gochugaru
- 1/4 cup 25 g minced peeled fresh ginger
- 1/4 cup 35 g minced garlic
- 3 tablespoons salted shrimp optional, but recommended
- 1 tablespoon fish sauce
- 2 bunches scallions cut into 2-inch (5 cm) pieces
Instructions
- Tear each cabbage into long quarters and slice horizontally every 2 inches (5 cm). Cut the thicker part, towards the bottom, a bit smaller.
- In your largest mixing bowl, mix and rub salt gently into the cabbage until it's nicely coated. Let the cabbage sit, covered, for 3 hours.
- Rinse the cabbage well under running water and drain thoroughly.
- Place the rest of the ingredients in a mixing bowl with the drained, chopped cabbage and mix everything together with gloved hands until the cabbage is well coated.
- Add more salt or other seasoning to your liking.
- Put the kimchi in a large nonreactive container and press it down to remove the air between the leaves. Let it sit, covered, at room temperature overnight, then refrigerate.
- You can eat this immediately or after a few days, though this kimchi is best eaten within a week.
I would like to start fermenting (the fresh and fermented book has a lot of good recipes https://www.amazon.com/Fresh-Fermented-Delicious-Carrots-Kimchi/dp/1570619379) but I am so worried about doing it wrong. I tried once but I don’t think I had everything submerged. I have a tiny kitchen so I don’t want a huge crock. Do you have a mason type kit you like? Are you able to ferment in the summer? I let my apartment get a bit warm (79) in the summer.
This looks promising https://www.krautsource.com/collections/frontpage/products/kraut-source
I like pairing a quart sized mason jar with a Pickle Pipe and a Pickle Pebble from Masontops, but the Kraut Source products are also good. I would say that 79 is a bit too hot for good fermentation, but given that it’s fall now, you’ve got plenty of time to practice.