If Dukkah isn`t on your radar, you must try it!  An Egyptian condiment consisting of ground nuts (typically hazelnuts), seeds and spices. It's delicious and so simple. Dip bread (or veggies) in olive oil then into the nut and spice mixture....it's heaven. While my favourite way to eat it is with bread & olive oil, it's also fun tossed into a salad or sprinkled on some hummus for an added pop of flavour. 

This is a quick meal I really enjoy making for myself. Sautéed mixed mushrooms and tofu, brown rice, kimchi, all tossed together with Korean BBQ sauce then garnished with scallions & black sesame seeds. I also use a bit of kala namak in this dish (It's a black salt high in sulpher that mimics the flavour of eggs. It's totally optional but I like to use it. Kimchi Fried rice is often served with a fried egg on top, so using a bit of kala namak is how I achieve the eggy flavour, without the egg!) 

Don't be afraid to use what you have on hand to make this a meal. No tofu? leave it out. Don't like mushrooms? Leave those out too. I tossed in asparagus to some of my leftovers. I would probably add shredded kale to this for the added nutritional boost. The kimchi has cabbage, carrot, daikon radish & green onion and the benefit is both that it is the vegetable component of this dish and adds a ton of delicious flavour.  

I make kimchi at home because it can be pretty expensive to purchase. The great thing about making Kimchi at home, is you can make a big batch very inexpensively. My last bucket lasted almost a year. If you aren't familiar with it, Kimchi is a traditional Korean side dish consisting of salted and fermented vegetables. It is a bit spicy from the korean chili powder. I really love it. If you don't want to make kimchi, you can definitely find it in many grocery stores, but if it is something you enjoy eating, you really need to give my recipe a shot. It's super good for you and is very simple, so really it is a win win. Buckets of delicious healthy kimchi on the cheap!!!

The other main flavour component to this dish is Korean BBQ sauce. I make a batch of the BBQ sauce to keep in my fridge at all times. It is great for flavouring quick veggie rice dishes on the fly when you don't want to spend a lot of time on dinner. This Korean BBQ sauce is a thin sauce, almost like a vinaigrette really. I see many recipes that thicken Korean BBQ in a pan with cornstarch but I prefer it this way for my purposes. It packs a flavour punch. Use it in this recipe, then save the leftovers to drizzle wherever you want!!

You can buy Kimchi but it's totally worth it to make it yourself. (so easy and way more affordable)

It's October and I finally have time to start cooking for myself again after the busy tourism season. I have been dreaming about Kimchi for awhile. I think my new goal is to always have some on the go because it's simple, delicious, inexpensive, & the flavour improves the longer it hangs out. Kimchi is a Korean dish of fermented and salted vegetables. Hundreds of variations do exist but common ingredients include nappa cabbage, carrot, dikon radish, & scallions, which is what I use. The vegetables are typically seasoned with Korean chile powder (gochugaru, available at most global/Asian food markets) , ginger, garlic and some type of salted dried seafood. To keep mine vegan I replaced the seafood with some miso paste. I'm no expert when it comes to fermentation so if the entire process sketches you out probably do some research. I leave my Kimchi out for several days and then it lives in my fridge.  This is the process and recipe that works for me so I'm sticking to it. As far as what to eat your Kimchi with... the possibilities are endless. I eat it most often with rice, tofu, mushrooms & Korean BBQ sauce....but a simple Kimchi grilled cheeze is damn good too. Kimchi doughnuts or pancakes are definitely going to make an appearance soon too.  

 This is a loose recipe in the sense that I didn't measure or weigh everything out, and I'm cool with that. This batch might have a bit more carrot,  or be a bit more gingery etc. I find even though it isn't the exact same each time, the flavours always blend and evolve in a pleasing way... the Kimchi becomes it's own unique & delicious thing. You will need a few tbsp of flaked kosher salt for this recipe. I get mine in bulk and prefer it to table or fine salt in most recipes. 


Ingredients:

Veg

• 2 medium nappa cabbage, cut into 1 inch chunks
• 1 dikon radish, I cut it twice length wise giving me 4 long pieces and then cut into 1/8 inch thick slices (my radish was huge so didn't use whole thing...the nappa cabbage should be predominant vegetable) 
• 4 or 5 carrots, peeled and washed. Use peeler to make long carrot curls or cut into match sticks.
• 1 or 2 bunches of scallions, sliced diagonally

Seasoning

• 3/4 cup Korean Chile Powder
• 1/2 cup soy sauce
• 1 rounded tbsp miso paste
• thumb of ginger
• 4 cloves of garlic

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Method:

1.  Wash cabbage. Cut into roughly 1 inch square chunks. No need to be exact here. 
2.  Get a giantttt mixing bowl and add washed and cut cabbage. Sprinkle liberally with a few tbsp of kosher salt. I sprinkle a little raw sugar in there too. 
3.  With clean hands begin massaging the salt into the cabbage. You keep working it until the cabbage softens and begins to release it's liquid. (somehow this is a really fun task)
4.  Now I cover with a dishcloth and let it sit overnight.
5.  Next day I rinse the cabbage right in the bowl. I don't have a big enough strainer so I just pour off as much liquid as I can. 
6.  Add all of your remaining veg to the bowl with the cabbage
7.  Use a food processor and blend together Korean chile powder, soy sauce, miso paste, ginger & garlic (you could do it by hand if you prefer)
8.  Now add your seasoning mixture to vegetables and using your hands (i wear gloves) massage mixture into vegetables until evenly coated. 
9.  Now I transfer the kimchi to a large clean plastic bucket  (i got it from my work) 
10.  I add a bit of water just so that all the vegetables are submerged in liquid
11.  Cover with the lid. Remove lid next day to release any gases. I repeat this process for a few days and then transfer to the fridge....but even if you don't leave it out for a long time, it's still delicious.