Name: Easy Homemade Korean Kimchi
Prep time: 30 min
Total time: 30 min
Yield: 3
Cuisine: asianinspired
Ingredients: 1 tablespoon Fish sauce; 1/2 tablespoon Soy sauce, (optional); 2 cups Korean hot pepper flakes; 1/4 cup Gochujang, korean chili paste; 1/4 cup Red pepper flakes; 8 cups Water, to cover chopped cabbage; 2 cups Salt; 2 heads Napa cabbage, chopped; 1 head Green cabbage, chopped; 1 Red onion, sliced; 1 bunch Green onions, rough chopped; 2 carrots, shredded; 1 tablespoon Ginger, grated; 2 cloves Garlic, grated; 1 Korean radish, shredded; 1 Apple or pear, shredded

Easy Homemade Korean Kimchi is a sour, robust condiment and side dish from Korea. It is easy to make, and has many amazing health benefits.

You gotta try these Korean Seared Pork Tacos and this Kimchi Fried Rice! Two great recipes to use your homemade kimchi.

Have you ever heard of, or tried Kimchi?

Moment of honesty, I had not even heard of this supremely famous Korean side dish/appetizer until a dear friend of mine introduced it to me; and that was merely 4 or so years ago.

I met my true kindred foodie-soulmate when I was in hygiene school (meh- that brings back daunting memories). Anyway, this amazing person named Alison sat behind me in class, and one thing we realized we had in common very early on, was our love for foodie adventures (check out her Instagram, her food adventures are admirable)!

She was definitely ahead of the game when it came to trying to foods, new restaurants, and she even introduced me to the elite Yelper lifestyle- we’ll talk about that another day! Nonetheless, she raved about this little Korean spot that she HAD TO take me to. It didn’t take much convincing, I was most certainly ready to ride.

We get to this tiny little house, with a handicap ramp, and a gravel parking lot driveway, and I began to have doubts! She assured me that this Korean Noodle House was some of the BEST Korean food she has had in all of Houston.

So I went with it, and I most certainly agreed with her after we ate our hand-made noodles, complimentary kimchi, and amazing soup! This little gem of a house-restaurant changed my love of kimchi FOREVER!

Fast-forward a few years- the restaurant has since moved to a strip-center, and their re-opening was HIGHLY HIGHLY ANTICIPATED! If you look back at their Yelp account, you may even find me or Alison questioning their re-opening!

^^^The old house restaurant^^^ ^^^New strip center location^^^

So, what is Kimchi?

Easy Homemade Korean Kimchi is fermented cabbage and other veggies. It is a staple in Korean households. Kimchi is great for gut health and is primarily a healthy side dish. This kimchi recipe is quicker than traditional methods due to the difference in the brining method.

Ingredients needed for Homemade Kimchi:

Napa cabbage (and a head of green cabbage)
Ginger
Onions- yellow and green
Shredded carrots
Apple, or pear
Gochujang
Korean red pepper flakes
Fish sauce
Soy sauce

Fun facts about kimchi:

Kimchi is a must-have side dish for almost all Korean meals
Kimchi is a generic name for “pickled” in Korean
It is a fermentation of various vegetables (hence the strong smell)
Fermentation creates natural lactic acid bacteria (probiotics) which have amazing health benefits
An acquired taste, but highly addictive once you learn to love it

What does the Easy Homemade Kimchi taste like?

The flavor of kimchi is very sour, strong, robust, and can be spicy (depending on preference and making adjustments to the recipe). So you may be repelled by the smell and taste at first bite, but I can almost guarantee that you will go back for more! Having purchased many store-bought jars of kimchi, I finally decided to make it on my own.

It seems intimidating at first, but when you make it once, you will realize how easy it really is. Homemade is also better because you can adjust your level of spiciness and how sour you want it.

If you’ve never had it before, I encourage you to try it ASAP! If you’re already a kimchi fan, give this recipe a go, and let me know all about it!

Yield: 3 16 oz. jars