Good Kimchi, is like a good chutney, or a fine cheese, or
even a perfectly baked loaf of bread: after much experimenting, and after
making many mistakes, the perfect ratio and combination of ingredients is
found, and stuck to for all future batches. So for my first ever batch of
home-made kimchi, I expect there to be a few flaws, and for a few changes to be
made in the future. Although to avoid it tasting totally rank, I did a fair bit
of research…. Internal and external…. What makes good Kimchi for me?
Findings? Well, texture of good Kimchi is as important as
the level of spice. The use of crunchy Chinese (nappa) cabbage is absolutely
essential. Other cabbages like savoy just don't have enough crunchy stem that
retains some bite during the pickling process. The nappa cabbage also has more
of an equal leaf to stem ratio, which means you don't end up with a total mush
when the cabbage starts to ferment. To add extra crunch, some recipes call for
radish, spring onion, or even cucumber. But that is when personal taste comes
in, I prefer not to have too many extra bits in my Kimchi as it doesn't really
suit me when making kimchi-based soups and stir-fries. I added roughly sliced
leeks though, as I like the taste, and I feel it gives the mixture an extra dimension.
The way the cabbage is cut also depends on the individual. Some prefer to keep
the cabbage whole, and this is the traditionally method, peeling back each
layer and stuffing it with the spicy paste, then finally placing it in large
clay pots which are buried under ground for up to a year. I don't have large
clay pots… so I chose to chop my cabbage up as it makes it easier to pack into medium
sized jars. Once chopped, I left the cabbage to soaked in a water and salt solution
for about 3 hours before being used.
I have tried a fair few batches of kimchi, and I have never
been too keen on excessive, complicated flavours in the paste. I like my kimchi
paste to be a little bit acidic, very garlicky and spicy, and very very smelly…
the good kinda fermented kimchi smelly. Kimchi has a reputation for attracting
flies, and this is defiantly down to the fermented/fishy smell. I know it
doesn't sound all to attractive, but this is what gives the pickle its distinctive
aroma. So to keep things simple, I blitzed up one onion, six gloves of garlic,
one inch of ginger, two small skinned apples, 8 generous tbsp of fish sauce, 1
tbsp of sugar and a pinch of salt, 6 heaped tbsp of red pepper powder and 8 heaped tbsp of Gouchujang or red
pepper paste. Kimchi recipes normally calls for just red pepper powder, but I also used a
ready made paste, which is a mixture of fermented soya, rice and red pepper
powder. My reasoning for this is simply to speed up the fermentation process.
I’m not sure how it will effect the kimchi in the long run, but I don't think
it’ll make too much of a difference. I like the taste of Gouchujang as well, so
I doubt it will ruin the flavour too much. A final tasting before jarring is
crucial. Be warned, you ay be left with a raw/hot taste in your mouth for the
rest of the day. The Koreans have a saying, that after a meal, your guests
should be sweating and burping… so I made sure to make my kimchi really hot!
So my spicy pickled cabbage, jarred and stored in the
fridge, is left to ferment till it smells bad enough to eat. How to tell if
your kimchi is fermenting successfully? Open the jar a few days into the
fermenting process and you should notice bubbles in the red sauce. I could eat
the it straight away, but I think I’ll test my patients and wait for a week at
least. Kimchi can last up to a year in the fridge. The older the kimchi is, the
more sour it tastes. Old kimchi is ideal for soups, stir-frying with rice or
noodles, simply eaten as an accompliment to a main meal, or even on a toasted,
buttered slice. Stir frying kimchi before using it in cooking brings out more
flavour, just like when making a stock. I’ll will update on how it turns out
and if its good to use will use it to make Kimchi Jigae… fingers and toes
crossed.
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