Kimchi
- 1 head of green, Savoy, or Napa cabbage, about 2 pounds, separated into leaves
- 1/2 cup coarse salt, more or less
- 20 scallions, including most of the greens, trimmed and roughly chopped
- 1 tablespoon hot red pepper flakes (or use Korean co chu cara, chile powder), or to taste
- 1/4 cup nam pla
- 1/4 cup minced garlic
- 2 tablespoons peeled and minced or grated fresh ginger
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 3 tablespoons dried salted shrimp, optional
- Layer the cabbage leaves in a colander, sprinkling a little salt between layers.
- Let sit over a bowl for at least 2 hours.
- When the cabbage is wilted, rinse it.
- Spin it dry in a salad spinner.
- Use a wooden spoon to mix together the scallions, red pepper, nam pla, garlic, ginger, sugar, and salted shrimp.
- Roughly chop the cabbage and toss with the spice mixture.
- Serve immediately or refrigerate for up to a week; it will become stronger every day.
- Substitute 3 pounds Korean white radish (or daikon) for the cabbage.
- Trim and peel the radish, then cut into 1-inch cubes.
- Proceed as directed.
- Omit the cabbage.
- Use about 30 scallions.
- Trim the scallions if you like (Ive seen them made with and without their roots), but do not chop them.
- Treat them as you would the cabbage in step 1.
- In step 2, use kitchen string to tie the scallions together in bunches of 5.
- Put the bundles in a container that will hold them snugly and pour the spice mixture over them.
- Proceed as directed.
cabbage, coarse salt, scallions, hot red pepper, garlic, ginger, sugar, shrimp
Taken from www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/kimchi-386220 (may not work)