No Garlic Kimchi

Kimchi has been a staple in my house for almost 15 years after first experiencing it in an unlikely place: a popular breakfast joint in Eugene, Oregon called Brails. There on the menu next to extra bacon and hollandaise sauce was the side of kimchi. Though now ubiquitous in the culinary world, it took a few visits to build up the courage to try this exotic (to me) food. The typical use of kimchi would be to go with noodle or rice bowls, but on a friend’s suggestion of pairing it with eggs and hashbrowns, that’s what I ordered on a late Sunday morning.

One crunchy bite of blended sour, savory, and spicy won me over. Now my eggs are not complete without the hot and tangy flavor of kimchi. It has since found its way into many different uses in my kitchen across all meals, including breakfast, lunch, and dinner (still working on dessert!).

Recently however, I have had to limit my kimchi making since my wife has developed a garlic allergy. We both love garlic, and it is no fun when one of your favorite foods begins to make you ill. It is especially hard when garlic is such a common ingredient that my wife has resigned to avoiding many of her favorite foods. Because of this, I experimented with some kimchi workarounds, and in place of the garlic I use blended or grated whites of scallion onions. They may not create quite as a rich and pungent flavor in the kimchi, but it approximates it well enough that this recipe has become a favorite for my family and friends.

Please note: this is a modified simple kimchi recipe, and skips or replaces many ingredients and steps of a more traditional recipe (notably the omission of shrimp, dashima, and rice flower). Someday I plan to try make a more traditional version, but for now this recipe keeps one of my favorite foods on the table!

Ingredients:
1 head Suzuko Chinese cabbage (3-4 lbs.)
¼ to 1/3 cup salt kosher or iodine free salt
2-4 Sweet Baby daikon radishes*
6-8 Guardsman scallion onions
1-1 ½ inch piece of ginger, peeled
2-5 tablespoons Gochugaru chili flakes
2 tablespoons fish sauce
1 teaspoon sugar
*You may notice a pinkish tint to your kimchi when using Sweet Baby daikon radishes. For more traditional coloration use white daikon.

 Directions:

· Chop Suzuko Chinese cabbage in half. Remove core, then chop into roughly 1-inch cubes, including ribs, and place in a large bowl. Keep one core half and one outside leaf unchopped.

· Add ¼ to 1/3 cup salt to cabbage and mix well. I usually sprinkle 1 tablespoon at a time over the cabbage then hand mix once or twice, and sprinkle again and repeat until all the salt is used. Continue mixing until cabbage starts to soften, usually just a few minutes.

· Add water to the bowl until it almost covers the cabbage. Place a clean bowl or plate with the bottom side down on top of the cabbage to keep it from floating. As the cabbage reacts with the salt it will express more of its moisture, and the water level will rise, completely covering the cabbage.

· Note: many recipes say to use distilled or filtered water. I have used both and I do find that the fermentation process starts earlier with filtered water, but the final product has been the same either way.

· Let cabbage sit for 4-6 hours, stirring occasionally.

· Drain cabbage but retain 1 cup of brine.

· Rinse cabbage 2-3 times and allow to drain.

· Peel and slice Sweet Baby Daikon. I prefer 1/8-inch thick ½ slices, but many people like matchstick or julienne.

· Trim off root ends of Guardsman scallions. Keep 1-1 ½ inches of white part of scallion for later use in paste. Cut green parts of scallion in 1-inch pieces.

· In mixer or pestle add scallion white tips, ginger, Gochugaru chili flakes, fish sauce, and sugar. For milder spice, use less Gochugaru. I usually find 4 tablespoons has a good heat but does not deter those sensitive to spiciness from enjoying.

· Add 2-3 tablespoons of cabbage brine and blend to a paste. Not too fine, small white chunks of onion and ginger should be visible.

· Combine cabbage, radish, onion and paste and mix thoroughly.

Note: A chef friend told me to always mix kimchi by hand. Part of the fermentation process is activated by the beneficial bacteria that lives on our skin, and if not mixed by hand full fermentation may not take place. Wash your hands before and after mixing.

· Once thoroughly mixed pack into 1-gallon canning jar. I use a canning funnel to make the job a little less messy. Press the mixture down until all the air is out and liquid starts to come to the top. Add brine until liquid covers the mixture.

· Cut or tear single unchopped cabbage leaf until roughly the size of the jar. Place on top of mixture. Place core half on top of leaf. This will help keep all the vegetables from floating to the surface.

· Clean mouth of jar and place lid on top but do not fully seal; just give it a ¼ turn or so. During the fermentation process the kimchi will create carbon dioxide, which will need to vent.

· Keep the jar at room temperature but out of direct sunlight for 3-5 days. Because of the gas produced the liquid can rise considerably and potentially overflow the jar, so I usually place the jar in a baking dish or plate with a high rim.

· Occasionally tap on the jar. When you tap on the jar and bubbles rise to the top the kimchi is fermenting. I usually allow fermentation at room temperature for around a day or two, and then move it to the refrigerator and let it ferment there for another couple of days. You can tighten the lid to the jar once you move it to the fridge but remember to open it at least every week or so to release some of the pressure that may build up.

· The kimchi is ready to eat any time after you see bubbles but will develop a tangier and richer flavor over time, as it will continue to ferment slowly.

Enjoy your kimchi on… well, anything and everything, but I highly recommend giving it a try on eggs and hashbrowns!

Author: Tim R