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Preparation
30 minutes
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Cooking
30 minutes
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Difficulty
Easy
If you love Korean cuisine, then you must be familiar with this famous napa cabbage kimchi, right? So what are you waiting for? Let’s get cooking with TasteVN to learn how to make this super simple authentic Korean dish for the Tet holiday!
Ingredients for Napa Cabbage Kimchi Serves 4
Napa cabbage 2 pieces (large ones) Carrots 2 pieces Onions 2 pieces Green onions 130 gr Chives 120 gr Apples 2 pieces Garlic 100 gr Ginger 1 piece (about 20gr) Dried shrimp 100 gr Korean chili powder 120 gr Vietnamese chili powder 30 gr Fish sauce 50 ml Coarse salt 500 gr Toasted sesame a little Salt/MSG a little
How to choose fresh ingredients
How to choose fresh cabbage
- Choose cabbage with bright colors, light green at the top and gradually white from the body to the root.
- The cabbage leaves should be intact, not bruised or infested with pests, and the size of the cabbage should not be too large.
- Avoid choosing cabbage with dark green color, as it is usually old, not sweet and crunchy, damaged, wilted, or has a strange smell.
How to choose fresh carrots
- Choose carrots of moderate size, elongated towards the tail, with smooth skin, and feel heavy and firm when held.
- Good carrots will have bright, dark orange skin, fresh green tops firmly attached to the body.
- Avoid selecting carrots with wilted tops, bruised roots, or spots.
- Refrain from buying overly large roots with thick tops and shoulders, as these are usually old roots, fibrous, and low in nutrients.
How to choose fresh and delicious onions
- Choose onions with thin, smooth, shiny skins that are evenly colored, tightly attached to the bulb, and not peeling off.
- The darker the skin color of the onion, the stronger the smell and sweeter the taste, and it should feel firm when held.
- Round and short onions are usually tastier than long and slender ones.
- Onions with many long roots indicate that they are still fresh. Conversely, onions that have completely lost their roots are usually older and will not be as tasty and will spoil faster.
- Avoid choosing onions with sprouts, those that are hard in some places and soft in others, wilted, or unevenly colored, as these are often not fresh and may be bitter.
Tools needed
Blender, pot, induction cooker, bowl, spoon,…
How to prepare Napa cabbage Kimchi
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Prepare the Napa cabbage
Cut the Napa cabbage in half and then split the bottom half as shown in the picture so it will be easier to store after preparation.
Dissolve 2 tablespoons of salt in 1 liter of cold water, then place the Napa cabbage in and splash the saltwater onto the cabbage to ensure the salt penetrates evenly into the leaves.
Next, place the Napa cabbage in a tray, use your hands to separate each leaf, then gently and thoroughly rub salt into each leaf, adding more salt to thicker parts of the cabbage.
Once all the leaves have been salted, soak the cabbage in the bowl of saltwater used to wash it for at least 2 hours (if you have time, you should soak it for 4 – 5 hours).
After soaking, check the cabbage; if it appears cloudy white, soft, and chewy, it is successful. Rinse it under running water about 5 – 6 times to reduce the saltiness.
After rinsing, gently squeeze the cabbage to remove excess water or let it sun-dry until it wilts!
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Prepare other ingredients
Peel the carrots, wash them clean, and then cut them into thin strips.
Remove the dirty outer layers of the green onions and chives, wash them clean, and cut them into short pieces about 2 – 3 finger lengths.
Peel the apples and cut them into small cubes. Peel the onion and cut it into wedges.
Wash the dried shrimp and then soak it in warm water for about 15 minutes until it softens, then remove it and let it drain.
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Cook the glutinous rice flour
Put a pot on the induction stove with 500ml of filtered water and 70gr of glutinous rice flour, stir well until the flour is completely dissolved, then turn on the stove to cook over medium heat.
During cooking, to prevent the flour from clumping at the bottom of the pot, you must keep stirring until the flour becomes clear and thick, then turn off the heat and let it cool completely.
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Blend the kimchi seasoning mixture
Add in order: apple, onion, ginger, prepped garlic, softened dried shrimp, 1/2 teaspoon of monosodium glutamate and 50ml of fish sauce into the blender and blend until smooth.
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Mixing kimchi
Prepare a bowl and put on food gloves, then add the chopped onion, chives, carrot, cooled glutinous rice flour, Korean chili powder, Vietnamese chili powder, and the blended mixture, and mix well.
Put the prepped napa cabbage into another bowl, then add the mixed mixture and spread it evenly and thoroughly onto each leaf of the napa cabbage.
Then place the kimchi into a plastic container, and add the remaining mixed mixture on top of the kimchi, then close the lid tightly.
To ferment the kimchi, if the weather is hot and humid, you should leave the kimchi at room temperature for 1 day. If the weather is cold, you should leave the kimchi at room temperature for 2 days!
After the kimchi has fermented, put it in the fridge to store and use gradually.
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Completion
When serving, you just need to take out the kimchi, cut it into small bite-sized pieces, and sprinkle a little toasted sesame on top, and then you can enjoy it.
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Final Product
The finished napa cabbage kimchi has a vibrant green and red color with a very appealing characteristic aroma. A bite of the kimchi is crunchy, combined with fresh, sweet vegetables, offering a sour and sweet taste mingled with a bit of spicy heat that tickles the tip of the tongue, making it extremely tempting.
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Hopefully, this writing shares how to make cabbage kimchi that is crispy and spicy, appealing with simple steps from TasteVN, which will help your family’s menu become more flavorful. Wishing you success in your preparations!
