Radish Kimchi

Written by Published on in recipes

Ingredients:
1 bunch young radish*
1 bunch green onions, green part cut into 1 inch pieces
1 inch knob ginger, grated
4 cloves garlic, grated
5 tablespoons anchovy sauce and/or 1-2 tablespoons fermented shrimp paste**
4 tablespoons sea salt
2 tablespoons red pepper flakes
2 tablespoons Korean red pepper powder
1 tablespoon sugar

Directions:
Cube or halve the radish. Prepared radish kimchi is normally sold with the radish halved but I like to cube it so it is easier to eat. Fill a nonreactive bowl with water. Add the radish and sea salt. Allow to soak for 20 minutes. Meanwhile, whisk together the ginger, garlic, pepper flakes, sugar, sauce and green onions. Drain the radish and rinse slightly. Place in a large nonreactive jar and add the red pepper powder. Stir until well coated. Add the sauce. Stir to coat. Cover tightly and allow sit unrefrigerated for about 2 full days. Place in refrigerator.

* Available at most Asian groceries, they are white and about 4 inches long and 2 inches in diameter.
**Fermented shrimp paste is preferred, but I find it is more difficult to find than anchovy sauce. A combination of the two is a tasty but pungent option.

My thoughts:
Having not grown up making (or eating) kimchi, I generally stick to buying jars of it at the store. Every time I bought it I looked at the ingredient lists and saw how short it was. How hard could it be to make a small batch of kimchi at home? As it turned out, not too hard. I chose to make a radish-based kimchi, because it is my favorite and it seemed easier than the layers and layer of cabbage variety. A quick trip to my local Korean superstore supplied me with everything I needed and with in a half hour of getting started, I was on my way to fermentation. I just purchased the same ingredients listed on the label of my favorite store bought kimchi and played around with the measurements and proportions until it was perfect. Now I am not claiming this is a 100% authentic recipe nor am I a kimchi expert, but it came out exactly as I hoped, a homemade version of the prepared kimchi I love.

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5 Comments

  1. Larissa
    November 5, 2007 at 5:52 am

    I never thought about making kimchee either. I’m so inspired by the fact that you simply looked at the ingredients of the bottle and played around with the measurements. Very cool.

  2. Anonymous
    November 6, 2007 at 1:11 am

    I didn’t konw kimchi was so easy! My husband loves it. I should give it a try.

  3. tavolini
    November 9, 2007 at 9:46 pm

    yum! I adore kim chi 🙂

  4. zlamushka
    April 19, 2008 at 5:57 pm

    Hey,

    I just posted my ultimate kimchi recipe and cannot wait to try it again. Your radish kimchi looks like the one I ve been looking for. I ll be trying it next time I am fermenting another batch of this goodness. What else can go, mustard seeds? kohlrabi?

  5. Rachel
    April 19, 2008 at 6:28 pm

    I think kohlrabi would be great in this!