Homemade Kimchi II

I have been wanting to make kimchi for the last couple of weeks and have kept postponing it till now and finally I had it done and it is now in the process of fermenting :) I love Kimchi and with this load that I made I can have my favorite Kimchi rice again and awwww my favorite kimchi stew - Kimchi Chigae !

Another little known fact about kimchi to westerners is that kimchi is a very healthy food. Because of the basic ingredients in kimchi, garlic, scallions and vegetables, kimchi helps to eliminate cholesterol and promotes intestinal health. so can you guess why this Momsie loves Kimchi and encourages her Piggies to love them too and I am glad that Piggy Jo loves it as much as I do. The other two are not so keen :P

The ingredients for making kimchi are easily available... garlic, cooked rice  , fermented shrimps ( cincalok) fish sauce, gochujang paste  , chilli flakes , scallions and napa cabbage  and sea salt as brine for the cabbage.  With this ingredients , your kimchi is going to be good :)   With the mortar and pestle pound the garlic and rice grains till fine. Add in fermented shrimps , fish sauce , gochujang paste and chilli flakes and mixed well. Add in the cut scallions into the mixture and leave it to rest till needed .  Meanwhile soak the napa cabbage in brine  for at least 4 hours. Take out and drain the napa cabbage . 

Apply the kimchi paste mixture on every layer of the napa cabbage until all the napa cabbage and paste is used up. Placed them in a pyrex or plastic container. Cling wrap the top and cover the lid . Leave to ferment at room temperature for a days. On the second day keep them in the fridge for another 6 days before it is ready for consuming.  I can't wait to eat my very own homemade kimchi. I can smell how flavorful it is going to be. And imagine all the wonderful korean dishes I can whip up with this kimchi.  Mmmmmm yummy !

Homemade Kimchi II

1 napa cabbages,quartered with stem still attached,washed and soak in brine 

6 heaped tbsp gochujang paste 

1 onion
1/2 bowl cooked rice
1 radish, sliced * I omitted this
50 gm spring onions, cut into 2.5cm lengths
50 gm chilli flakes
10 gm sugar
50 gm minced garlic
4 tablespoon fermented baby shrimps ( cincalok )
50ml fish sauce

Method:

Soak the cabbages in salt water for 4 hours, weighing the cabbages down with a heavy plate during the soaking process. Remove cabbages from the salt water and drain well.

Pound the garlic and rice till fine. Add in fermented shrimps , fish sauce , gochujang paste and chilli flakes and mixed well. Add in the cut scallions into the mixture and leave it to rest till needed .Combine with the rest of the ingredients and mix well.

Stuff the cabbage with the mixture, starting from the innermost leaves and making sure every part of the leaf is covered. Repeat until the entire cabbage half is covered with as much of the mixture as possible.

Put the kimchi into an airtight container and allow it to ferment for 3 to 6 days at a temperature below 20º C

Enjoy !

"Mat-itkae duseyo!"- thats korean for "enjoy your food!"

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