How To Make Authentic Kimchi

This authentic kimchi recipe is, hands down, the Campbell family’s favorite ferment! If you’re looking for a little extra umph from classic German sauerkraut, you have to try this. The flavor is so fresh and complex. Gochugaru, a Korean chili used in traditional kimchi, is not very spicy at all (true spice wuss here attesting to that!) but adds a sweet chili-like flavor. I started making this when my youngest was 2 years old, and he would eat as much of this as I would give him!

Learning the Authentic Way

When we lived in Maryland, I bonded with a Korean friend over our love of fermenting. When she said that kimchi was her favorite food to preserve, I asked her to teach me her ways! Kimchi, like sauerkraut, is a total hit or miss when you buy it at the grocery store. And by “hit,” I mean like a seven out of ten. None of it is EXCELLENT, but I did have a good enough experience at some point to cause me to continue to risk buying the potentially rancid, fishy options out there! This homemade kimchi is NOT that. This is so bright and fresh with ginger, carrots, and green onions mixed with Napa cabbage and daikon radish. The joy of making it yourself is that you get to control how much of what you put in, according to your taste!

Along those lines, I do deter from the traditional methods in a few places. I’m sure there’s a reason for things being done the way they are, but we’re all for streamlining methods in this house! I tell you where I’m diverging from tradition, and how it is “supposed” to be done!

How Do You Make Authentic Kimchi?

• Quarter 2 medium heads (or 3 pounds) of Napa cabbage, leaving it attached at the root. Salt all the layers, and let rest for 30 minutes. (*I do not do this step!)
• While waiting, in a food processor, add salt, water, ginger, onion, garlic, *fish sauce, chili flakes and sugar. Pulse until finely minced.
• Chop remaining ingredients into whatever size you want it to be. We use a mandolin to evenly slice the root vegetables. Cut the Napa cabbage leaves and scallions into bite-size pieces. (Authentic kimchi is left in the quartered leaves. We found it a bit tough to chew and, overall, more awkward to deal with!)
• Add all the vegetables to a bowl and mix well with the chili puree. Let rest for 10 minutes, then mix again.
• Pack tightly into a one-gallon jar, cover with parchment paper, and loosely screw on the lid.
• Place in a cupboard. Check it twice daily, packing down with a wooden spoon, as it tends to rise throughout the day.
• Fermenting time will vary, based on the temperature of your house. Start tasting it around 5 days, and put it in the fridge once you are happy with the flavor. (If your house is cold, this could take up to two weeks or more!)

*Authentic kimchi calls for 2 tablespoons of fish “paste.” I am NOT a fishy person, so I had no desire to hunt down fish paste, and opted for sauce instead. It seems like sauce would be less potent, doesn’t it? I am totally cool with leaving out the fish sauce all together, but my husband loves it, so I add a scant teaspoon on his behalf.

Benefits of Eating Kimchi

Kimchi is low in calories but packed with nutrients like iron, folate, and vitamins B6 and K. This is all there in its fresh state. But when we ferment it, the process develops additional nutrients that are easily absorbed by the body…primarily: probiotics. Probiotics help heal/fight a myriad of diseases by strengthening the immune system and reducing inflammation. Gastroenterologist Dr. Will Bulsiewicz says, “…gut health is the key to boosting our metabolism, balancing our hormones, and taming the inflammation that causes a host of diseases. And the scientifically proven way to fuel our guts is with dietary fiber from an abundant variety of colorful plants.” I love the simplicity of sauerkraut, but I LOVE that kimchi has so many different vegetables in one dish that feed our microbiome in such a thorough way! (Maybe it’s because I love food so much, but he actually comes down hard on elimination diets, and his reasons resonate so well with me!)

I love being able to make high quality products that cost a lot of money to buy. Making my own facial moisturizer out of what many people throw away brings me way too much joy! And this is right along those same lines. The supplement industry is INSANE! People spend so much money on supplements and are often shooting in the dark, not knowing if it is a trustworthy company. (If I am having an acute issue, I do love using these probiotics. They heal yeast infections/uti’s faster than antibiotics and leave your gut in better shape than it was before! Contrasting that with antibiotics which leave your gut in shambles, this is clearly the way to go.) But for general microbiome health, we stick to home fermentations. The combination of drastically reducing sugar in my diet (even maple syrup and honey) and always having a fermented food has had me in the clear from those once-chronic issues for several years now!!

What Goes With Kimchi?

We eat kimchi with almost anything savory! Here are a few ideas. When I asked my kids with what they like to eat with it, they all agreed that they just love to eat it—with something, or on its own!

Breakfast:

• Eggs
• Avocado toast
• Hashbrowns/Potatoes

Lunch:

• Sandwiches (where you might put a pickle)
• Fried rice
• Chopped finely and added to hummus
• Hot dogs

Dinner:

• Steak
• Chicken
• Rice
• Veggie bowls
• Salad
• Roasted veggies

Make your own authentic kimchi!

Next time you’re at the grocery store and see some bright, crisp organic Napa cabbages, grab a few, along with the other ingredients and make your own! You will not be disappointed. Your body will love both the flavor and the benefits of adding this into your rotation! Don’t forget to comment below or tag ournomadichomestead on instagram when you make your own!

How To Make Authentic Kimchi