Easy Kimchi or Mak Kimchi (막김치)

Step 1

Cut cabbage in half.

Step 2

In a bowl or pot large enough to hold the cabbages, mix 9 cups (240 ml x 9 = 2160 ml) lukewarm water and 1 1/2 cups of sea salt. Stir until salt is dissolved.

Step 3

Pour some brine on top of cabbage to get it wet. Grab a generous pinch of salt (about 1/4 tsp) and sprinkle salt in between maybe 2-3 layer of leaves, focusing on the thickest part of the cabbage. You only need to sprinkle about 3 times per cabbage. Put the cabbage back in brine. Turn over the cabbage once every hour.

Step 4

Try the ‘bend’ test on thickest part of cabbage to see if it’s fully pickled. It should bend easily without breaking when it’s fully pickled.

Step 5

Cut radish into bite size squares. About 0.5 cm/0.2 in thick and 1.25 in/4cm sizes.

Step 6

Pickle radish by sprinkling a handful (4 tsp) of salt and leaving them for 30 minutes.

Step 7

Simmer handful of dried soup anchovies and dried kelp (dashima) in 1 1/2 cups of water. Simmer for 15-20 minutes until you get a yellowish cloudy broth. Let it cool.

Step 8

Use a blender/chopper: throw onions, garlic, ginger together and chop or blend quickly for couple minutes until they are in small bits.

Step 9

Dump chopped onion, garlic, ginger into a bowl. Add red chili powder, anchovy sauce, saewoojeot, sugar and optionally chili pepper seeds. Substitute red chili pepper flakes for seeds. Mix.

Step 10

Add 1 cup anchovy stock and mix. Set aside.

Step 11

Rinse brine from cabbage by soaking cabbage in water. Drain. Repeat 2 more times with new bowl of water. Let it drain for 5 min or more to completely drain excess water from cabbage.

Step 12

Rinse radish in water. Drain.

Step 13

Cut out root end of brined cabbage halves by cutting in a V shape and carving it out.

Step 14

Cut rest of cabbage leaves altogether into 1.5~2 inch slices.

Step 15

In a large bowl enough to hold everything, add the cabbage, radish and green onion slices and mix with the kimchi seasoning paste. Use plastic gloves to protect your hands from the spicy chili paste! Coat all cabbage and radishes evenly with the seasoning.

Step 16

IMPORTANT!! Taste your kimchi and you can adjust seasoning. Remember it should taste a bit salty at this time and the saltiness will go down as it ripens.

Step 17

Get a glass jar or plastic container large enough to hold everything plus some head room for expansion during fermentation and transfer kimchi into the container.