How to Make Kimchi
On Monday afternoon I had to make a new batch of kimchi, as my last batch (which I made in January) is now dwindling (albeit still delicious)… Here is my procedure:
I take approximately ten kilograms (apologies: I do everything in kilograms and grams, because my antique scales are from Norway!) of mixed organic/biodynamic root vegetables (carrots, parsnips, red beets, golden beets, celery root, turnips, onions, garlic, turmeric root), three small heads of green cabbage, two large heads of red cabbage, a few large chunks of ginger, and about eight medium-sized chili peppers, and I peel and/or cut off all the skins and/or anything unsightly.
After removing the skins and seeds and peels and such, I re-weigh the vegetables and make a note of the revised weight: 9.9 kilos
Next, I slice the cabbage very fine with my German “mandolin”, trying to remember not to slice off my fingertips in the process!!!
The rest of the vegetables are grated in my stepmother’s 1970s food processor.
I then make layers of the various vegetables in a huge old pickle crock, together with a sprinkling of 180 grams of coarse, pink Himalayan salt (which I weigh on my postal scale: my rule of thumb is about 20 grams of salt per kilogram of peeled vegetables) upon each layer.
Next comes the stomping with a long-handled wooden “stomper” (is there another word for this tool that I’m forgetting?!) until the juices begin to flow (circa ten minutes or so).
After the stomping is complete, I pack the kimchi into my German sauerkraut crock, about three inches from the top; whatever doesn’t fit is packed into Mason jars, leaving an inch or two of space for excess gasses and juices to develop.
Then I pour a wee bit of kimchi juice from my previous batch to “inoculate” (pardon the terminology: ) the new batch, in addition to a couple of cups of raw Amish goat whey.
After pressing the kimchi down with ceramic weights in the crock, I put the lid on and pour water in the “water lock”, which allows gasses to escape but prevents air from getting in; the lids of the Mason jars I screw on tightly, but then turned them each back half a twist, so that the gasses might get out.
I place these various vessels in shallow baking dishes in case of any juices bubbling over, on the dining room floor, at room temperature, where they shall gurgle away for around two weeks; thereafter they’ll be moved to a cooler location: as the weather gets warmer the refrigerator might be the only place for the kimchi!
After three weeks or so it’s probably starting to be sour enough to eat, and will only improve with age!!! We eat kimchi together with chili, omelettes, grilled cheese sandwiches, lentil soup, or just plain, straight out of the jar: DÉLICIEUX!!!!!!!
–Jenny Hampe Endresen