Kimchi

[Hawnjigs]

For those unfamiliar, this can best be described as Korean spicy sauerkraut made with napa cabbage, tho I prefer head cabbage.
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IMO a perfect accompaniment for fish dishes for those like myself that like red pepper spicy. Widely available in HI markets, I had to teach myself to make my own here in the white bread Midwest, and glad I did.  Luckily , Amazon.com had essential ingredients available at reasonable prices.

Noh Kim Chee base mix
https://www.amazon.com/NOH-Korean-C...77845&sr=8-2-fkmr0&keywords=noahs+kimchee+mix

Genuine Korean red pepper flakes (not China!) 
https://www.amazon.com/Korean-Peppe...=1490978195&sr=8-1&keywords=sun+mi+red+pepper

Every household likely has a different set of ingredients and procedures, here's mine:
Chop smaller head of cabbage bite size, and brine (ocean water salty) at least a day in a covered container.  Drain.  Salty cabbage will have shrunk in volume - some like to rinse, I don't.  In a blender pulverize 2 or 3 cloves of garlic, a piece of ginger about a single clove size chopped up, a teaspoon of miso (I like Japanese mild white), and a tablespoon of cooked rice in maybe two cups of water. Pour into a large mixing bowl and mix in red pepper to taste & a packet of Noh seasoning.  Add brined cabbage and mix well.  Store in a cool dark place for fermentation - I like 1-2 weeks for a moderate level of sour.  I use a gallon size mayo jar for this quantity of kimchi, altho authentic crocks are available.

The amount of water in the base mix should be adjusted to cover the fermenting kimchi.  You can compact the cabbage by packing down in the container to require less liquid.  When done to taste, store in smaller containers in the frig.

This is actually a sissy western version as traditional Korean styles use all manner of sea critter additives for flavor and enhancing fermentation.  I've tasted several of these from Korean families and prefer the milder flavor of a bit of miso (fermented bean paste).  Any of the ingredients can be adjusted for individual tastes.

OK, time for a bowl of black beans & rice topped with, you guessed it.
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[bucktail]

Sounds good hawn

 

[Kdog]

Ive always called mine spicy kraught, garlic, mixed peppers, salt and cabbbage. Ive done pepper, paprika, cumin. Be careful with habeneros though, they get a bit extreme and forget the ghost peppers, they will overpower everything you put it on. Fermentation of cabbage is an age old method of preservation. Different spices from all over and some varieties are more popular ie KimChi, saur Kraut, Tsukemono, Curtido,Suan cai,

All are a bit different, depends on spices and veggies used. Basically it boils down to salted vegetables. I have made combinations with almost everything from the garden, some worked some did not, but a few have become family favorites.

 

[duffy]

I found this gal's recipes to work out pretty good and theres a wide selection of them. The korean red pepper flakes also work good in other dishes as they aren't real hot like some. 
https://www.maangchi.com/recipes/kimchi

 

[hookup]

Great stuff except I can clear the house after eating it

I have a recipe from an old Korean and have made it in the past. Usually let it ferment in the garage a few months before I eat it. I like it hot! No sea critters, but allot of fermentable sugars from fruit

Any cabbage on sale works.

 

[Hawnjigs]

Never heard of fruit in a kimchi recipe, what kind?

My brother once had a Korean girlfriend whose Mama was old country, couldn't speak English. Her kimchi was delicious, until I hit a piece of fermented squid.

I think my mayo jar might explode after "a few months" in a garage.

 

[Hawnjigs]

Opened a jar batch from the frig dated Feb 2018 and altho the head cabbage had softened the flavor was more intensely delicious than more recent. The salty, sour, spicy flavors had melded into an integrated whole with less individual distinction.

Altho most Amazon reviewers posted positive reviews on the linked product i posted, one guy recently claimed the product was grown in China. Based on that, I ordered another brand this year, but who knows since labeling is apparently lax.

 

[Hawnjigs]

Still making & enjoying kimchi - got 5 different batches in the frig right now including a used sparingly potent batch made with home grown mustard greens back in 2018 and still delicious. I prefer head cabbage but do have a jar made with traditional Korean style napa cabbage aka won bok. After trying many different brands of red pepper flakes aka gochugaru in Korean, this is the standout best.

Amazon.com

The peppers are grown in China under Korean supervision. Better (hotter) than way more expensive Korean grown. 5,000 Amazon customers a month appear to agree.

Even in the frig fermentation continues and I've learned to NOT fill to the top & NOT secure the glass jar lids too tightly to avoid messy leakage under pressure.

Now prefer a simple recipe - plain brine soak for a day or so, drain, mix in paste made with gochugaru, garlic, & ginger, no carbs or sea critters. Thinking about adding some newly acquired top of the line Red Boat fish sauce, any suggestions?

 

[hookup]

Never heard of fruit in a kimchi recipe, what kind?



I think my mayo jar might explode after "a few months" in a garage.

Citrus. Oranges mostly

I just left a loosely piece of saran warp around the jug. Any gases would escape.

Dad would tell me in Korea they'd bury a clay pot until it was nice and fermented. The longer the better.

Lately I've been working on Indian food. Did a vindaloo that's a bit at my limit of heat. Still working on the receipe.

 

[Hawnjigs]

Probably every family has a different kimchi recipe-process, but adding orange is mysterious. Apparently Korean fermented fish sauce is considered essential for authentic Korean flavor.

My homemade curry never tastes as good as the packaged variety, tried a few and settled with Tasty Bite Chana Masala as a favorite.

Never had vindaloo, thought Hindus consider cows sacred so don't eat beef?

If you use a premixed curry powder what kind?

 

[Hawnjigs]

BTW, kimchi is a favored side dish enhancement to a fish meal which is why I posted this topic.

Just bought some Kashmiri red pepper powder & garam masala on Amazon which with tomato paste should be a good basis for creating vindaloo. Also some turmeric all Tarkeeb brand which is reasonably priced, highly rated by customers, and sourced from India.

 

[hookup]

Just bought some Kashmiri red pepper powder & garam masala on Amazon which with tomato paste should be a good basis for creating vindaloo. Also some turmeric all Tarkeeb brand which is reasonably priced, highly rated by customers, and sourced from India.

In the vindaloo, I used Hot Kashmiri chili powder, coriander seeds, cumin seeds, clove, cardamom pods, fresh ginger, cinnamon powder, fenugreek seeds, turmeric powder, black mustard seed and curry leaves.

Learned that in the future any seed a receipe calls for will visit a mortar and pestle first before being simmered.

When the Indians said Hot chili powder, they meant HOT!!

If you use a premixed curry powder what kind?

I found a source for fresh curry leaves. They are strong in flavor. We have allot of Indians that live locally and their grocery store has the best prices on anything.

I eat any meat . Went with pork because it was 1/2 the price of beef and 1/4 of the price of goat and lamb.

Made about 4 quarts. Ate two of them and gave the other two to friends who know my luv of heat. One said the heat was violent but addicting. He couldn't stop eating it. Next batch I'll tone down the heat a tad.

 

[Jamesddean]

Many moons ago I was stationed in Soul Korea as a cook in Yongsan in the Army. We had a civilian cook named Mr Pan. He would make fresh Kimchi every morning to be served at lunch and dinner. As you said, every family had a different twist on their recipe, to suit their taste. Most added a fish of some kind, and you could tell from a distance if it had the fish or not. Wasn't my cup of tea, so to speak. I do enjoy Kimchi, just not with the fish. Thank you for posting.

 

[Hawnjigs]

JamesD aged sour kimchi might be an acquired taste as I preferred freshly made at one time. Making enuf to feed a mess hall 2x daily would be a big job. Did the GIs like it?

Mr. HU, kudos for your authentic taste ingredients effort - no garlic? Do you marinate the meat in vinegar? I'm hoping the 15 ingredients garam masala will be close enuf for my uneducated palate. The Kashmiri chili powder sold on Amazon is "mild" but reviewers mention its pretty hot. I suspect the authentic variety Kashmiri pepper is what it is and the only way to tone down the heat would be to mix in milder varieties which may affect the flavor.

I was told by an Indian woman once that some of the seeds, particularly cumin needed to be pan roasted to release the flavor? Mortar & pestle of course is essential. Can you get paneer?

 

[hookup]

Paneer - Indian cottage cheese. Yeech. I'm not fan of cottage cheese. But yeah, I'm sure the local Indian stores carry it.

The garlic goes into the meat marinade. That's another 13 ingredients, not counting the meat. No vinegar. I spent over $50 in spices to make the dish and then found the Indian store where I could have gotten the spices for 1/2 that price.

I will make vindaloo again - but will only use 1/2 of the Indian Hot Chili pepper and 1/2 regular American store bought chili pepper. I'm sure it'll be warm.

That's the fun of playing with a new receipe. Follow the original receipe, eat, then start adjusting things a little at a time until it works for your tastes.

I'm pretty much known for my hot food cooking in my circle of friends, and all to them said my vindaloo was either at their limit for heat or way over their limit. I ate it but the heat was violent

I was also kicking around making some of my own scrapple - but we have to many small farms in the area that make it to go through the effort. Knowing my luck, I'll end up with 10 pounds of scrapple and never be able to eat it all.

 

[Hawnjigs]

Never had scrapple, since liver & kidneys are toxin filtration organs concerned about chemical-hormone-antibiotic-disease contamination.

I haven't eaten cottage cheese in 50 yrs., but good paneer has a smoother than tofu firm consistency without the chalky cc flavor and absorbs curry flavors nicely. I've only had the envelope packed in sauce variety(different brand from pic) and really liked it.

 

[Jamesddean]

Many moons ago I was stationed in Soul Korea as a cook in Yongsan in the Army. We had a civilian cook named Mr Pan. He would make fresh Kimchi every morning to be served at lunch and dinner. As you said, every family had a different twist on their recipe, to suit their taste. Most added a fish of some kind, and you could tell from a distance if it had the fish or not. Wasn't my cup of tea, so to speak. I do enjoy Kimchi, just not with the fish. Thank you for posting.

In Answer to whether the troops liked it, It was a mixed bag as far as the US Troops went. The Dining Facility I worked at Fed the KATUSA CORPS, Korean Augmentation To The US Army. A whole Battalion of about 1600 soldiers, plus the US Medical Supply Company. Now the KATUSA's loved it for sure. Thank you for the trip down memory Lane.

 

[Hawnjigs]

From my experience with 2 Korean families and several restaurants kimchi is an every meal staple for ethnic Koreans. I've had napa, head, & mustard cabbage, Japanese & Korean turnip, seaweed, and doraji (kind of a weed root) varieties and all were good except my homemade seaweed version developed white mold spots after months in the frig. As mentioned 5 yr old mustard cabbage kimchi is still delicious.

My ex-son in law's Korean mother made dandelion kimchi every Spring tho I've never tried it.

Kimchi for a battalion sounds like a HUGE amount & as a daily chore to make, WOW !

 

[hookup]

Never had scrapple, since liver & kidneys are toxin filtration organs concerned about chemical-hormone-antibiotic-disease contamination.

Everyone makes it different. Most use just pork shoulders or butt. I've found the smaller meat producers use the offal. I luv the smooth iron taste offal adds to scrapple

We grew up poor in Germany in the early 60s. And Dad was away at war most of the time so we had limited budgets and mouths to feed.

Some cultures strongly consider offal consumption to be taboo while others use it as part of their everyday food. I've eaten foie gras, pâté, sweetbread, Rocky Mountain oysters, haggis, chitlins, menudo, trotters, tongue, snout, tripe, head cheese, souse, brains - well, you name it, I probably ate it.

Only time I ever got sick was eating raw oysters. And a McDonalds chicken sandwich.

Nothing went to waste in our house.

 

[Hawnjigs]

Hey Mr. HU you missed chicken feet, pigs tails, and cattle hooves? I do a pot of pigs feet soup bout once a month & today my special order of daikon just arrived at Safeway for traditional Okinawan style with konbu.

And yup best place to get food borne sick is eating out.