Made some Kimchi

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reinhard

Master of the Pit
Original poster
OTBS Member
Feb 6, 2013
1,192
288
Andover Minnesota



Made some cucumber/daikon kimchi last week. Sorry for the picture mix up but sometimes i get it right and sometimes not.  Here is what i used:

1 1/2 pound piece of daikon radish

10oz pack of shredded carrots

11 pickle size cukes

49 1/2 oz can of chicken broth

8 cups cold water

3 T kosher salt

2 bunches of green onions

2 T sugar

6 T korean red pepper

1 T minced garlic

1 T minced fresh ginger

1 T fish sauce

pic 1. this is all of the vegies in salted water. mix salt well and put vegies in there and leave at room temp for 24hrs. i put a plate on top to make sure everything is underwater.

pic 2. slicing dicon radish thin

pic. 3. drained the salted water after 24hrs.

pic 4. some of the vegies used minus the green onions that i forgot to put on the pic.

the final product i will put on the next post [could not get it on this one]. Reinhard


 
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Here is the finished product.


Here is all the vegies after they are drained of salted water and replaced by the chicken stock. Then i put in all the rest of the spices and mix well and refrigerate. Cucumber kimchi ferments faster than nappa cabbage kimchi for example so i make enough to last for a week for myself or make a batch like this to give away to both of my daughters. Korean red pepper is not as hot as crushed red pepper or cayanne pepper so i would cut the amount of hot pepper [cayanne or crushed red pepper] in half for the first try.  Reinhard
 
Sorry Dirt Sailor, i was trying to adjust the pics and lost track of the process. Here goes: I take the small cukes as shown in one of the pics and quarter them lengthwise and then cut them in half or smaller. I then slice the daikon radish thin. Then i cut the green onions in about 1 inch pieces green and white. Carrots are already shredded and i put them in a large plastic bowl along with the rest of the veggies.

I then take the water and put it in a container with the salt and mix till the salt is dissolved. I pour the salted water over the veggies and put a plate on top of them to make sure everything is under the liquid. I leave this stand in room temp for 24 hours. Then i drain the salted water and add everything else back into the plastic bowl and mix it up well. I put a large dinner plate again on top to keep everything in the liquid. I put this the next day in a couple of glass jars [used to have large dill pickles in the jars, i now use for this]. It's important to press down some on the kimchi when storing in a jar and then just put enough liquid from the kimchi to cover the kimchi. The recipe is in the original post. Reinhard
 
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With cucumber kimchi i put it in the fridge right after the 24 hr room temp with only the salt water.  Cucumber kimchi ferments faster than other kimchi's like nappa cabbage for example. So I let this sit for a day or two in the fridge before i start eating it. I usualy just make enough for my wife and myself which is a smaller amount to only last me a week or so. I made a bigger batch to give away to my daughters for them to take home with them. Nappa cabbage for example i leave in the fridge for a week before i start eating it [after the 24 hr room temp soak in the salted water]. We normaly eat it fairly quickly before it reaches the smell level LOL.  When i read your Kraut thread i had to chuckle because i noticed that "skum" forming on top of the veggie after the 24 hr soak. Not much but now I understand it.  I have been making kimchie for years and never gave it much thought LOL. Reinhard
 
With cucumber kimchi i put it in the fridge right after the 24 hr room temp with only the salt water.  Cucumber kimchi ferments faster than other kimchi's like nappa cabbage for example. So I let this sit for a day or two in the fridge before i start eating it. I usualy just make enough for my wife and myself which is a smaller amount to only last me a week or so. I made a bigger batch to give away to my daughters for them to take home with them. Nappa cabbage for example i leave in the fridge for a week before i start eating it [after the 24 hr room temp soak in the salted water]. We normaly eat it fairly quickly before it reaches the smell level LOL.  When i read your Kraut thread i had to chuckle because i noticed that "skum" forming on top of the veggie after the 24 hr soak. Not much but now I understand it.  I have been making kimchie for years and never gave it much thought LOL. Reinhard
I understand about the fast fermentation of cucumber as I make what is called a quick cucumber kimchi, buy using a pickle press it can be ready to eat within an hour.  As you well know kimchi with cucumber in it does not keep as long as the kimchi without and must be eaten within a short time.  The kimchi that was made one year ago is becoming very good now.  As far as a smell, mine doesn't have that characteristic (LOL), but mine doesn't contain raw fish, but fish sauce instead. 

I will post the recipe for the Quick Kimchi shortly.   

Tom
 
I understand about the fast fermentation of cucumber as I make what is called a quick cucumber kimchi, buy using a pickle press it can be ready to eat within an hour.  As you well know kimchi with cucumber in it does not keep as long as the kimchi without and must be eaten within a short time.  The kimchi that was made one year ago is becoming very good now.  As far as a smell, mine doesn't have that characteristic (LOL), but mine doesn't contain raw fish, but fish sauce instead. 

I will post the recipe for the Quick Kimchi shortly.   

Tom
Tom, does your pickle press resembled your potato masher
laugh1.gif
I'll be watching for your Kimchi recipe!
 
Sorry Dirt Sailor, i was trying to adjust the pics and lost track of the process. Here goes: I take the small cukes as shown in one of the pics and quarter them lengthwise and then cut them in half or smaller. I then slice the daikon radish thin. Then i cut the green onions in about 1 inch pieces green and white. Carrots are already shredded and i put them in a large plastic bowl along with the rest of the veggies.

I then take the water and put it in a container with the salt and mix till the salt is dissolved. I pour the salted water over the veggies and put a plate on top of them to make sure everything is under the liquid. I leave this stand in room temp for 24 hours. Then i drain the salted water and add everything else back into the plastic bowl and mix it up well. I put a large dinner plate again on top to keep everything in the liquid. I put this the next day in a couple of glass jars [used to have large dill pickles in the jars, i now use for this]. It's important to press down some on the kimchi when storing in a jar and then just put enough liquid from the kimchi to cover the kimchi. The recipe is in the original post. Reinhard
Thanks Reinhard, Kimchi is something that I want to make. 
 
Thx Reinhard...looks good. I'm a recent kimchee first timer so always interested in various methods of others. I have not seen chicken broth used before and yours has a lot of juice.....something my first batch didn't have (an excess of juice). I do like making it, not near as hard as I imagined. And I'm checking on my garage kraut daily....LOL....like an expectant father
 
Mr. T i dont use fish in any kimchie's and i do use fish oil. I learned how to make this from my x-wife who was Korean and has passed away. I'll be waiting for your recipe, and the famous cuke press LOL.  i seen somewhere that there are over 180 different kinds of kimchi with many different versions in different countries. i also seen in a health magazine that kimchi was one of the top 5 healthiest foods in the world. Chef-- there is a lot of juice in this batch as you can see. However when i store it in jars i do compress it and add enough juice to top it off. After i put any kimchi in these jars there is always plenty juice left over and tossed [maby i should drink some LOL]. I'll be waiting for the kraut to be born and deliverd to you, that is on my list next with the help of Mr. T's thread as well. Adding fish oil realy is optional. I know some that add it and some that dont. Kind of like when I make rolladen. some add pickles to the mix and some dont, i do add them. Reinhard
 
Reinhard, There is probably several different recipes for each kimchi kitchen. Each of mine is a little different as the ingredients seem to change somewhat each time. The following link will take you to a good video and recipe that I have used several times with excellent results. http://www.maangchi.com/recipe/easy-kimchi

I substitute a good grade of fish sauce in place of the squid.  Is the recipe you are using one of your wife's?

There are many who feel that kimchi is one of the healthiest foods in the world and the juice is the best part (imho). 

Quick Kimchi

http://www.smokingmeatforums.com/t/140989/kimchi-quick-hot-pickled#post_981206

Tom
 
Reinhard, There is probably several different recipes for each kimchi kitchen. Each of mine is a little different as the ingredients seem to change somewhat each time. The following link will take you to a good video and recipe that I have used several times with excellent results. http://www.maangchi.com/recipe/easy-kimchi

I substitute a good grade of fish sauce in place of the squid.  Is the recipe you are using one of your wife's?

There are many who feel that kimchi is one of the healthiest foods in the world and the juice is the best part (imho). 

Quick Kimchi

http://www.smokingmeatforums.com/t/140989/kimchi-quick-hot-pickled#post_981206

Tom
Tom....found that site to be very informative & she is very cool. I based my first KimChi on her recipe and used the fish juice as well, no squid or anchovies. I especially liked the many comments left by novice and experienced kimchi makers alike. A real treasure trove of information. Her way of making that slurry was awesome for getting every thing combined and spread out equally IMO.
 
Mr. T, first let me thank you very much for your time and effort and giving me those sites. Maangchi, is a site my daughter told me about some time ago and i love that site for Korean foods and more..I will check that out about kimchi and thank you again. My x wife never realy gave me a specific recipe but i watched her make it many times. I realy never measure anything when i make it, regardless what type of kimchi it is. I only measured this one because i knew someone would ask about it.  When my xwife made kimchi she had all her friends over and i'm talking huge amounts. The reason i said earlier about the "smell", is because my x and her friends would let cabbage kimchi age forever and when you opened a container after some months, it would just about knock me over LOL. Not much for any romantic kisses let me tell you.

I can see future threads on pork and beef and poultry on Korean dishes in the future especialy if folks look at the Maangchi site. Awesome food in my opinion. One more thing about the Korean crushed red pepper. I dont know what the brand name is for it is in Asian writting but it is imported by Chicago Food Corp. Is it 100% crushed red pepper? i dont know, but it gives a certain flaver along with the heat, but not as hot as the crushed red pepper you would buy at a store here. Therefor i use more than i would with regular crushed red pepper bought here domesticly. Again thank you very much for the quick kimchi recipe Mr. T and i'm also looking forward to making kraut as is the Chef looking forward to the birth of the krout brewing getting ready for consumtion

 Reinhard
 
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I get mine from a local Korean Store here called Seoul Foods.  Not that brand but I bet it's about the same.  The Korean red pepper flakes have a much different flavor than the red pepper flakes you buy normally.  While it is on the hot side, it's not as hot as the red pepper flakes bought in stores.  Really love that stuff and it makes a difference in my Korean cooking and of course Kimchi making. Reinhard
 
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