The thought of making kimchi makes most people slightly terrified. What we have come to learn is that when you find the right recipe, making kimchi becomes a pleasure and the rewards of eating it, well they’re just great!
So with that being said, we give you our Quick and Easy Kimchi Recipe, it’s rainbow because we loaded it with beautiful brightly coloured veggies like – carrots, radish, purple and green cabbage.
Besides those exquisite bright colours (which are so good for you, by the way) this kimchi is bang on with flavour! We packed it with the healing flavours of ginger, garlic, spring onion and a touch of chili for an extra kick.
P.S if you’re sensitive to chili, use less than the recipe calls for, as the kimchi ferments the heat from the spices increase.
In a previous recipe AIP Beef and Cabbage Soup, we touched on some of the incredible health benefits of cabbage, considering they are from the same category as our powerful little friend – Broccoli.
We highly recommend you give it a read, you will want to eat all the time afterward!
“Right, so we get that cabbage is good for us…”
But, Why Is There So Much Hype Around Kimchi?
First of all, we need to understand exactly what kimchi is.
There are over 180 varieties of kimchi and probably the most popular of all and the one we’re most familiar with is the baechu-kimchi (배추김치) this is the kimchi that is made with salted, seasoned, and fermented napa cabbage.
What makes kimchi so good for us though, is its fermentation process. This process is thousands of years old and is now being recognized for its potentially important source of friendly, gut-healthy bacteria, making it a probiotic-rich food.
When we hear the word bacteria, naturally we may cringe! That’s because the first thing that comes to mind for many, are those pesky little guys (the bad bacteria) that spread germs and make us sick.
But good bacteria also exist, in fact, there is an abundance of it. A lot of good bacteria is found in fermented foods, and we can view this bacteria as the little heroes that aid digestion and keep our guts strong and happy.
The Process
The recipes call for soaking the cabbage in salt water, this process kills off any bad bacteria and leaves behind the good bacteria known as lactobacillus, these bacteria need to thrive in our gut – it turns sugars and carbohydrates into lactic acid, it is also the bacteria that preserve vegetables and give kimchi that yummy tang, it is so well known for.
It is important to choose a natural, unprocessed salt, such as Himalayan salt this strengthens the ferment’s ability to eliminate that bad bacteria (pathogenic bacteria) present, as well as adds to the flavour.
“When it comes to bacteria, it is good to know the difference between good and bad, embrace the good – it ultimately thrives in your gut, creating a strong foundation (immune system) for optimum health, this will also result in a happy mind and a happy you.”
What Other Goodness Does it Contain?
Kimchi is also known to be rich in vitamins A and C, in fact, it is said: “that the average Korean adult consumes at least one serving (100g) of kimchi a day, which immediately puts them over 50% of the daily recommended intake of vitamin C and carotene.” And as mentioned above due to its fermentation process is also rich in gut-boosting lactobacilli bacteria. It contains potent antioxidative and immune-stimulating activities, and studies have shown it contains an anti-obesity effect in animals.
A study in The Journal of Medicinal Food concluded that kimchi has an impressive list of health functionality worth bragging about, some of these amazing benefits includes:
Impressive, isn’t it?
So, now that you know how great kimchi is, you must be excited to get your hands on this delicious and easy kimchi recipe.
We won’t keep you in suspense in longer 😉 here it is: Quick & Easy Kimchi Recipe…
Enjoy.
Oh! One more thing, when making kimchi please be sure to use a clean and sterilized glass jar. You don’t want to use plastic, which may leach chemicals into your food, or metal, as salts can corrode the metal. Stick to a large, glass Mason jar as they make perfect fermentation containers.
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Quick and Easy Kimchi Recipe (Fermented Food, Gut Healing)
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Total Time: 15 - 20 minutes + at least 48 hours to ferment
- Yield: 1 jar 1x
- Category: Side
Ingredients
1 Chinese cabbage (or a mix of purple & green cabbage)
3 garlic cloves, crushed
2½ cm piece ginger, grated
1 tablespoon fish sauce(optional)
2 tablespoon sriracha chili sauce or crushed fresh chili
1 tablespoon coconut blossom sugar
3 tablespoon rice vinegar
8 radishes, coarsely grated
2 carrots, cut into matchsticks or coarsely grated
4 spring onions, finely shredded
Instructions
- Shred the cabbage.
- Tip into a bowl, mix with 1 tablespoon Himalayan salt, then set it aside for 1 hour.
- Meanwhile, make the kimchi paste by blending the garlic, ginger, fish sauce (if using), chili sauce, coconut sugar, and rice vinegar together in a small bowl.
- Rinse the cabbage under cold running water, drain and dry thoroughly. Transfer to a large bowl and toss through the paste, along with the radishes, carrot and spring onions.
- Pack into a large sterilized jar, seal tightly and leave to ferment at room temperature for one week, then once ready and opened, store in the fridge.
- The flavour will improve the longer it’s left.
