How To Make Kimchi - Mom's Famous Spicy Kimchi Recipe (2024)

FAQs

How can I make my kimchi more spicy? ›

If all you want is More Heat, just use finely minced habanero or scotch bonnet peppers. (Use appropriate practices for handling extremely spicy peppers.) After adding the peppers, stir well and let sit for a day or two to let the flavors disperse.

Kimchi comprises a number of things that I have a great fondness for: garlic, ginger, chillies and salt. The combination of these powerful ingredients, along with the fermentation process, results in a potent flavour.

It can also be added to Western dishes like sandwiches, vegetable dishes, and pasta. Along with fiber, vitamins, and minerals, kimchi contains natural probiotic bacteria. If you eat them regularly, the probiotics in fermented foods can be beneficial to your gut microbiome.

Gochugaru. Gochugaru is a coarsely ground Korean chili powder, or red pepper flakes, that add lots of flavor and spice it up. It is best to use authentic gochugaru, not a substitute.

You can enhance kimchi with a bunch of seasonings and add-ins, traditional or otherwise. These give a distinct flavor to the final product. Love lots of deep, umami, flavor? Try adding salted shrimp, oysters, or mushrooms.

Rinsing kimchi before eating it is actually a pretty common practice for children and elderly people who find its flavor too strong. However, if you're adamant about preserving all of your kimchi's flavor, you'll have to store it in a way that prevents the white spots on the top from growing in the first place.

The kimchi fermentation process is very short in comparison to making sauerkraut. Kimchi ferments at room temperature in only 1-2 days or more slowly in the refrigerator. For safety, kimchi should be stored refrigerated and is best eaten within 1 week, as the quality of kimchi deteriorates with longer fermentation.

In summary, fermented vegetables such as kimchi, sauerkraut, fermented soy products, and beverages such as fermented teas are garnering attention as a source of natural anti-inflammatory bioactive compounds.

Cabbage and radish kimchi, a popular fermented vegetable dish, in particular were effective in reducing the risk of obesity and abdominal obesity in both men and women.

Why did my kimchi explode when I opened it? ›

Sometimes, you may open a kimchi jar and no reaction will occur. Other times, you may hear a pop from gas release with juice fizzing/kimchi overflowing out the jar, similarly to a bottle of sparkling wine. Either way, your kimchi is still deliciously safe to eat!

Airtight jars may seem like the holy grail, but the classic mason jar can be your trusty sidekick. Its transparency allows you to witness the marvelous fermentation process, sparking joy akin to a science experiment.

Kimchi can be an excellent alternative to taking laxatives. It has a high fibre content, which helps keep the digestive system in good condition. Many studies have shown that fibre can control constipation, diarrhoea, and other digestive problems.

Improves digestive health

The fiber and probiotics in kimchi can help you maintain a healthy digestive system. The probiotics in fermented food can help reduce the negative symptoms of many gastrointestinal disorders, such as irritable bowel syndrome and colon inflammation.

People who regularly eat the fermented vegetable dish kimchi — up to three times daily — may lower their risk of obesity. That's according to a study published today in the journal BMJ Open.

Add more hot pepper flakes if it's not spicy enough for you. Happy cooking! Sometimes even the spicy versions of hot pepper flakes isn't spicy enough for me. What I learned to do (from a friend of my mom who is quite well-known in local circles for making fantastic kimchi) is to add some hot peppers to the mix.

Over time, the flavors of the kimchi will intensify, becoming more pungent and complex while the vegetables may lose some of their crispness.

Kimchi should be stored in the fridge as chilling is the only thing that keeps its level of fermentation (i.e. the activity of those happy little probiotics) slowed down. If you leave kimchi outside of the fridge, over time it will become over-fermented and won't taste so great anymore.

The answer to “do you eat kimchi hot or cold” is really about health, not flavor. Kimchi tastes great cooked into almost anything. But heating kimchi kills the healthy, helpful bacteria that are a product of the fermentation process.