Traditional Napa Cabbage Kimchi Recipe

Kimchi is delicious and great for you. Natural probiotics yo (I don't usually say yo, I don't know why that came out.). This is my favorite recipe for real fermented kimchi. I think I originally adapted it from a recipe in Food & Wine magazine. But I've tweaked a few things. Most notably, I don' use the traditional gochugaru (Korean red pepper flakes). In their place, I usually use a chili garlic sauce like the Huy Fong Foods version. It gives a bit deeper, more complex flavor while still giving it nice heat.

A few notes:

First of all, this recipe has pretty intense flavors and spice for most people. This isn't your supermarket kimchi, it gets spicy and stinky (in a good way). If you don't like that you can avoid the fish sauce (big mistake) or reduce the chili sauce for less spice (also a bad idea in my opinion, but to each their own). Both will rob the recipe of umami richness and depth of flavor.

If you aren't experienced with fermenting veggies, you might want to read up on the basic process elsewhere and I strongly suggest investing in some of the valved fermenting lids seen above, or something else like them. Also, weights or springs to hold down the veggies is important. You want your fermenting foods submerged and as little oxygen as possible hitting the top. Otherwise you can get mold contamination growing on top. With the valve lids and weights I've never had a batch go bad.

Finally, the original recipe calls for mostly napa cabbage with a bit of daikon radish. My family likes the satisfying crunch of the radish so I tend to shift the balance towards 50:50 or even mostly radish sometimes with much less cabbage. In the batch picture here you can see I used just one big head of cabbage but several large daikon. You can include other veggies as well. Sliced or shredded carrots are a nice addition, for example

Ingredients:
2 large head napa cabbage, halved, cored and cut into roughly 1-2 inch pieces, a few of the bigger out leaves reserved whole
2/3 cup kosher salt
10 garlic cloves, halved
1/2 medium sized onion, chopped coarsely
1-inch piece of fresh ginger, peeled and chopped coarsely
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup plus 3 tbsp Asian fish sauce (I strongly suggest you find Red Boat brand, it is by far the best I've found)
1/2 lb daikon radish, peeled and cut into dice-sized cubes (as mentioned above, you can use more daikon and less cabbage if you'd like)
1 bunch scallions/green onions, cut into 1/2" segments (both white and green parts are welcome)
3/4 cup chili garlic sauce or sambal oelek (the original recipe called for gochugaru but I like the added flavor and depth the chili sauces give)
Quart or 2 quart mason jars with fermentation lids and glass weights (optional but recommended)

1. In large bowls or pots, layer the cabbage with the salt. You want as much salt-to-cabbage contact as possible so spread in a layer of cabbage and then generously scatter salt over them and repeat. Don't worry, most of this salt gets washed off, you can't over salt at this point. Let sit for 45 minutes and then toss thee cabbage thoroughly. Let stand for another 45 minutes.

2. In the meantime, you can prepare the sauce. In a food processor or blender, combine the garlic, onion, ginger, and sugar and process until well puréed. Add the fish sauce and chili sauce or powder and blend briefly.

3. Clean out your sink (I use a small amount of bleach to sterilize and then rinse and clean well). Fill it with cold water. Add the cabbage and swirl around to rinse off all the salt. If your sink isn't very large, you may want to drain and repeat to be sure you've gotten off most of the salt. Drain the cabbage in a large colander and pat dry if needed.

4. Transfer the cabbage to a large bowl or pot and add the daikon radish, scallions, and the puréed sauce mixture. Use your clean hands or a hearty utensil to mix thoroughly, coating the pieces of cabbage and daikon as completely as possible.

5. Prepare clean mason jars. For large batches I use 2 quart jars as pictured here. You can use several quart jars instead. Pack the cabbage into jars. You want to leave some headroom because it will throw off liquid and as it ferments it will expand as carbon dioxide gas is produced. If too full, they can start leaking fluid out the valve on day 2 or 3 when fermentation is most vigorous. You want to pack in the veggies pretty tight, trying to eliminate air pockets as much as possible. As it sits the veggies will give off liquid which will fill the space and eventually cover the veggies. Use the reserved cabbage leaves (or some plastic wrap) to cover the veggies and use a glass weight to weigh down. You want the veggies pretty much completely submerged at all times. Then cover the jars with fermentation valve lids and use the suction tool to suck out as much air as possible. If the fluid given off by the veggies isn't enough to cover them first try pushing them down with a clean spatula or wood spoon. Add a small amount of brine (salted water) to cover if need be.

6. Let ferment for as many days as you'd like at room temperature. Keep it on a tray or bowl to catch liquid if they overflow which typically can happen on day 2 or 3 after starting the ferment. You should see bubbles forming and bubbling up when you shake the jar within a couple days. Within 3-5 days you'll have fermented kimchi, but it gets tangier and more intense the longer it ferments. Mine usually go for about 2 weeks, sometimes even 3. As it ferments you want to keep oxygen out and you want the veggies mostly submerged. If they float up on all the carbon dioxide being produced, swirl or shake the jar some to try to compact them and get the gas out. If all else fails take the tops off and push the veggies down firmly with a clean utensil. Close back up and use the suction tool to remove air.

7. When fermented to your taste (you can take the lid off periodically and taste a bit), simply put it in the fridge and it will keep quite a long time like that. After tasting, if you'd like more saltiness, simply add a bit to the jar, stir it up and put it back in the fridge. I find it tastes best after being in the fridge for a week or two but the flavor continues to evolve and even improve over several weeks or months in the refrigerator.

Enjoy!