Vegan Kimchi

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.  

Recipe 

 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.