A delicious, healthy side of Korean Kimchi..Yummy! 😀
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Good morning, dear friends 😀
Heheh, of late since I started making cleaning enzymes, I have been caught in the mood for fermenting anything for health, such as Drinking Fruit Enzymes, Homemade Raisin Wine (I will only post this recipe when I harvest it on 02 Jan, 2010 and know then if it is successful or not 😉 ), and Kimchi. 🙄
I have always love Kimchi for its tangy, sour, spicy and crunchy taste. Every time my family goes for Korean Barbeque meals, I would ask for lots of Kimchi. I used to think making it was difficult as I didn’t know where to get the Korean ingredients but since I saw a Malaysian adaptation of the recipe, I made a huge batch of Kimchi a month ago and my family have been eating it as an appetizer or side dish with all our meals for health.
Why is Kimchi healthy? The Koreans have been consuming Kimchi for ages and it is a must to be had with meals. As usual, I did some reading over the Internet to find out about its wonderful health benefits and to learn about the various Kimchi recipes……and that was enough to give me the zest to make my own Kimchi for the first time. It is so much cheaper this way as I have seen a very small tub of Kimchi selling at RM12 or USD2-80 at the local supermarket (I would need to spend a lot to feed my family Kimchi! 🙄 ).
Here are some sites you can check out for a very interesting read :-
1) Why Kimchi prevents obesity – by Ann Olson
2) Say Kimchi – from my local newspaper, The Star
3) The Hidden Benefits of Kimchi – by Ann Olson
It was found that the fermentation process of Kimchi produces lactic acid to penetrate the food and forming healthy bacteria called Lactobacillus Kimchii, and the ingredients used in Kimchi are high in anti-oxidants. In summary, Kimchi is very good for :-
- prolonging endurance
- regulating the digestive system
- increasing metabolism (it is especially good for men)
- helping lose weight
- low in calories, high in fibre and vitamins
- improving absorption of Vitamin B12 (from garlic)
- good body immunity
- cooling to the body (good to counter heatiness)
Here is my version of Korean Kimchi :-
2 large Chinese or Napa Cabbage
Washed, cut into preferred sizes, and soaked in a brine solution consisting of 10 litres water (2.5 gallons) and 1 cup salt for 3 hours (I used my kitchen sink for this 💡 .) Remove cabbage from brine and rinse in water twice. Squeeze out all the water and put into a large container.
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Some Chinese radish or daikon, a good bunch of green onions, 2 whole bulbs of garlic, 2 thumb sizes of fresh ginger, 4 medium onions
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Slice radish or daikon thinly and cut green onions on the diagonal into 1-inch lengths
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In a blender, place the garlic, ginger, onions from above and the following ingredients ===>
1 Korean or any Yellow Pear and 1 Apple (peeled, seeded and cut into chunks)
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1 cup of Baba’s Pure Chili Powder (this is very spicy, reduce half if you prefer less spiciness),
1/3 cup of fish sauce (can replace with soy sauce or 1/4 cup anchovy paste)
and 1/4 cup of honey( or sugar)….or you can adjust all these ingredients accordingly
Blend everything finely and pour into the bowl containing Chinese Cabbage.
Wear gloves to protect your hands from the spicy chili and mix everything thoroughly in a large basin like below :-
I placed everything into a large Corningware casserole and left it overnight (covered) in the kitchen to ferment in a warm place
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This is how my Kimchi looks the next day…I had sprinkled some sesame seeds on it to make it look more yummy 😆
Warning :– It is best to put the Kimchi into clean, airtight bottles and refrigerate because the Kimchi gives out a very strong smell, which may affect the other foods and drinks in the fridge. 💡
The Kimchi gets more sour and the flavour improves as the days go by and my family finished all of it within one month.
It is delicious when eaten with hot cooked rice, with instant noodles or just add some cooked sliced beef into it to make it a main dish. Yummy! 😀
Hope you like this recipe …. 😀
With best wishes for good health,
choesf 😀
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