First Kimchee of the Season

In my mother-in-law’s house the whole neighborhood meets from kimchang (making kimchee). Out of all the kimchee we make there is some we can eat right away even before fermentation. This is called geotjeori kimchee. I shared this kimchee with the Korean teachers in our school and they loved it. That’s because my mother-in-law adds some special ingredients. This kimchee is a little spicy but goes well with any meat and also tastes good inside soups like sollangtang (beef broth soup) or galguksu (noodle soup).

There are two parts, the cabbage and the seasoning. Small cabbages are best for this kind of kimchee (about 2.5 pounds). If the cabbage is too big the leaves are not tender enough.

The cabbage:
1 small napa cabbage, baechu
3 Tbs coarse sea salt (It’s best with the sea salt but if you can’t find it then you can use like 1 Tbs of table salt)
2 scallions
2 ounces garlic chives called buchu, cut into 2-inch pieces
a few stalks minari (water dropwort), cut into 2-inch pieces
(These are the greens that go along with the gabage. If you don’t have any don’t worry. You can still make the kimchee without it.)

The Seasoning

4 Tbs of Korean red chilli pepper flakes called gochugaru
3 Tbs of myulchi aekjeot… This is a fish sauce made from small anchovies
2 Tbs of corn syrup – my mother in law uses honey and Maeshil a kind of Korean plum extract. Some also use Korean rice syrup. This makes the kimchee sweet.
1 Tbs of minced garlic
1 tsp of finely graded ginger… my mother in law uses fresh ginger
1 tsp of sesame seeds

Those are the basic ingredients but region by region varies. My mother in law adds raw oysters which makes a magic touch.

Now get to work at it:

First, separate the cabbage leaves and cut lengthwise and then across. It doesn’t have to be cut too small yet. You can cut it again right before serving. Remember to rinse out the leaves in water and drain them. Get a large bowl and put the cabbage leaves in the bowl and sprinkle with a little salt. After it is all sprinkled then you’ve got to mix it and toss it evenly. We use plastic gloves when we do it. After the salt is mixed well the leave it for 40 minutes to an hour

Toss well to coat evenly. Leave it for 40 to 60 minutes until softened, tossing once halfway through.
Chop the scallions.
Cut the optional minari and buchu about 2 inches long.
Combine all the seasoning ingredients in a small bowl, and mix well with 2 tablespoons of water.
Rinse the cabbage twice and drain well.
Add the seasoning to the cabbage.
Put on the plastic gloves and toss everything by hand until the cabbage pieces are well coated with the seasoning.
Add the scallion, minari, and buchu.
Add a little salt or more fish sauce to taste.
You can also add some fresh oysters. I think that’s what makes ours taste good.

It’s not easy to make kimchee and actually it is not even easy to write about but I can’t live without it. Kimchee is the best appetizer. Try it and then change the ingredients to your own taste. Good luck.
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Enjoy