Cucumber kimchi (oi-sobagi or oi kimchi) is made by turning a cucumber into a pocket and stuffing it with vegetables and kimchi paste. It’s delicious and refreshing and it’s a great quick cucumber kimchi recipe to make when cucumbers are in season and you don’t feel like waiting for your kimchi to ferment. You can eat this right away: they’re cool, spicy, have a crunchy texture and go well with beef and radish soup. Cucumber kimchi is a good example of a kimchi that doesn’t have to be fermented to be great.
If you’re interestied in making more cucumber side dishes, you can check out my oi muchim (quick, simple, cucumber salad) recipe and my cucumber pickles (oijangajji) recipe. And if you like this oi-sobagi you should definitely try my traditional cabbage kimchi recipe too!
It’s been a very popular recipe on my website ever since I first posted it. However my original video used copyright-protected music (‘A Message to You, Rudy’ by The Specials), and the sound was recently removed by the copyright holder. Many people have been asking me to remake the video, so with cucumbers in season it’s a good time to do it. Enjoy the updated video!
Ingredients
- 2 pounds (9 or 10 cucumbers) kirby cucumbers or four 4½ inch long small, thin cucumbers (you can use Korean cucumbers, english cucumbers, or persian cucumbers)
- 2 tablespoons kosher salt
- 1 cup buchu (Asian chives), chopped into ½ inch pieces
- 4 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 medium carrot, cut into thin matchsticks (about 1 cup)
- 1 cup onion, sliced thinly
- ½ cup Korean hot pepper flakes (gochugaru) aka Korean red pepper flakes or Korean chili flakes
- 3 tablespoons fish sauce
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- ¼ cup water
- 1 tablespoon toasted sesame seeds
Directions
- Wash the cucumbers. Make pockets out of them by slicing them twice lengthwise at right angles, ½ inch from one end so the cucumber quarters are still connected to each other at the end.
- Put them in a big bowl, and sprinkle and rub them with salt inside and out. Let them sit for 10 minutes on the kitchen counter, and then turn them over so they’re evenly salted. Then turn them over and let them sit another 10 minutes.
- Rinse the cucumbers in cold water a couple of times to remove excess salt. Drain and set aside.
- Combine buchu (Asian chives), carrot, hot pepper flakes, fish sauce, sugar, and sesame seeds in a large bowl. Mix well with a wooden spoon.
- Stuff the seasoning paste into the cucumber pockets. If you have sensitive skin, you can wear rubber gloves for this because the paste might irritate your hands.
- Serve immediately as a side dish for rice, and keep the leftovers in a sealed container or jar in the refrigerator. If you prefer it to be fermented a bit more, let the container sit at room temperature for a couple of days until it smells and tastes sour. Then put it into the fridge. Serve cold.
My original video shows how to make barley rice. Eventually I’ll make a videos for this, too, but in the meantime here’s the recipe:
Barley Rice
Ingredients
- 1 cup short grain rice, 1 cup barley
Directions
- Combine rice and barley rice in a heavy pot.
- Wash and drain a couple of times. Drain water as much as you can and add 2½ cups water.
- Cover and let it sit at least 30 minutes.
- Bring the pot to a boil over medium heat for 10 to 12 minutes.
- Open the lid and turn the rice over with a rice scoop or spoon.
- Simmer it over low heat for another 10 minutes.
- Fluff with a rice scoop to remove excess steam. Serve immediately with side dishes.
Maangchi's Amazon picks for this recipe
It's always best to buy Korean items at your local Korean grocery store, but I know that's not always possible so I chose these products on Amazon that are good quality. See more about how these items were chosen.
Maangchi, you should add Beef Dashida to the soup….world of difference in flavor! Looks great!
I usually fry the garlic, beef, radish in sesame oil then add water. After its boiling I add the green onion before I serve.
That’s the great thing about Korean cooking….there is no one way to make delicious Korean food!
I made this today–the whole meal–and it was great. My husband was craving kalbi tang and oisobaegi and I was very excited to see this simple beef/radish soup that has some flavors reminiscent of kalbi tang. My son loved it. He was putting big spoonfuls in his mouth and saying “MMMMM…MMMMMM”. I’m very happy to find another simple soup that I can make quickly and the cucumbers tasted great–better than any oisobaegi I remember eating in Korea.
Thank you for your update! ” He was putting big spoonfuls in his mouth and saying “MMMMM…MMMMMM”.” haha, so cute!!!
I just made this – it is delicious! Photos coming next :)
will it have a sour taste?
i am trying to make cucumber kimchi as i had tasted very nice one from Hong Kong’s Korean Street.
The one they sold are sour and a bit spicy, i am thinking is this the way they make it.
Please help :)
I love fresh oisobagi instead of fermented one. The sour taste comes from fermentation.
Thank you for this fantastic recipe! The taste of fresh oisobagi really makes me go on cloud nine!! :) :) :)
Just a note: Would u know of any recipes that is made of lotus root?
yes, lotus root side dish is on the list of my upcoming recipes.
I don’t usually like cabbage kimchi until it has ripened a bit, but i just made oisobagi and it was delicious fresh! Thanks so much for the recipe!
yum yum! I prefer fresh oisobagi to sour taste oisobagi.
Maangchi,
I want to make all of your Kimchi recipes for my family up here in Michigan, but seafood and seafood products make me sick. Can I substitute in soy sauce, or another fermented sauce, instead of fish sauce? If so, what sorts of adjustments to the amount should I make?
Use soy sauce and sugar. If you want to make your kimchi paste more delicious, you could add chicken or beef broth to the kimchi paste. Good luck with making delicious kimchi and let me know how it turns out.
i’m making your stuffed cucumber now…. I only use 1/4 cup of sea salt .. The question I have is should you drench the cucumber with the salt or how do you know if you put enough salt…since your recipe says to put 1/2 cup. That seems alot for my 10 kirby cucumber…
Don’t worry too much about salt because most of salt will be washed away when you rinse them after salting.
Oisobagi is so good. I love this with hot rice and pork bone soup with mustard greens, or pig feet soup with bitter melon. So good! I love it!
pig feet soup? : ) If you want to share the recipe with my readers, leave it here. https://www.maangchi.com/talk/forum/reader-recipes
Rice, soup, and oisobagi, yum!
Mangchi–thank you so much for this excellent recipe. I made it for my two sisters and brother and it was good as my mom used to make (and so EASY–my first time making kimchi). Do you think type of salt makes a difference to kimchi? I bought Beksul solar salt, but it was too large a grain so I used kosher salt instead. Do you know what is Beksul solar salt isused for?
“it was good as my mom used to make” great! I’ve been using kosher salt in my cooking for a while.
I have a question about your oisobagi kimchi recipe.
Is it okay to use the same porridge from the baechu kimchi recipe, but with more vegetables added?
I’m just wondering because I made baechu kimchi today and I ended up with leftover kimchi paste, and I’m not sure what to do with it.
Thanks for being so nice to share your recipes with us.
~Will
yes, why not!
Hi Maangchi, I’m eating your stuffed cucumber kimchi right now (is that my nose running a little bit? LOL–I’m eating ti straight, without rice!) It’s delicious! I sprinkled a little sugar and rice vinegar over it as it’s freshly made. Mmmm. Thank you!
yummy! Reading your post makes me feel like eating oisobagi and rice now. I have some oi (cucumber) in my refrigerator, so you know what I will do soon? : )
Just made the cucumber kimchi and it’s SO yummy!! Used the cucumbers from my garden of various sizes and it tastes so good.
I only had to use about 1/4cup of salt for the cucumbers, and even then I think it was too much. I’ll use less next time.
And it is a little bit salty, but just enough to go fantastic with some rice! YUM!
“Used the cucumbers from my garden of various sizes and it tastes so good.” oh my! I know how you feel! The cucumbers are so precious.
Hi Maangchi,
Is this cucumber kimchi method same like the side dish in korean restaurant? How long must ferment? I dont want to cook with the radish beef soup but just eat as side dish can?
Thks
I prefer fresh oisobagi kimchi, so I eat it right after making.
If you like to ferment it, keep it outside the refrigerator for a couple of days until it ferments.
Pls help…last night i made the oisobagi kimchi, but it was too salty, what can i do now? Throw it away or u have any rescue method? I couldnt find the fish sause u bought so i bought the thailand fishsauce, maybe it was to salty. This time i failed again….sigh….
There is no way fix salty oisobagi. Next time you make oisobagi, use less fish sauce then. Thai Fish sauce is good, too.
Hai Maangchi, is it taste different if I just put it in the fridge? I mean not fermented it outside the fridge, but inside the fridge. hope to hear from you soon…. TQ
is it possible to substitute jajang for the fish sauce?
I dont have enough money to buy the fish sauce, nor do I use it enough.
no, no jjajang sauce in this recipe!
Jjajang (black bean paste):
https://www.maangchi.com/ingredients/black-bean-paste
sorry… i mean soy sauce.. I must have forgotten the name of soy sauce…
yeah, to make jjajangmyeon, you will need jjajang instead of soy sauce.
…lol I don’t want to make jjajangmyeon. I want to make raddish soup. I can easily buy jjajangmyeon at the store… Sorry about the confusion. ^^;;;;;
Annyeonghihaseyo Maangchi-sshi,
I luv Korean food n Kpop! I made this n it turned out extremely well!(if I may say so myself!! :P)This is definitely a keeper for me. Thanks!! I wonder if you can teach how to make the sweet rice in pumpkin please??(I saw it in Family Outing)Thank you :)
Would you leave your question here? I don’t know what it is.
https://www.maangchi.com/talk/forum/general-discussion
yum i like this one too. it had a Very fresh super crunchy taste to it. deliciousss.
Hi Maangchi,
Luv ur site!! I hav tried a lot of the recipes that u’ve posted n have been very successful!! I made the oisobagi n it’s one of my fav! I’ve seen on Family Outing(I’m a Kdrama/Kvariety addict!:p)n they were making some sticky rice then steaming it in a hollowed out pumpkin. I was wondering if u can kindly let me know it’s Korean name or post the recipe here pls? Thks so much! Merry Christmas n Happy New Yr!
I love your website! Thank You Maangchi, your food tastes great!!!
Hey Maangchi,
I’m going to prepare cabbage kimchi. Can I use the porridge for the cabbage kimchi vor cucumber kimchi, too?
Or is it too different?
Have you ever tried?
Greetings from Germany,
Cornelia
Ok, sry, I have found the answer -.-
what i do have are leeks and green onions, can i put the leeks instead? will it make a difference in taste?
You can use green onions instead of Asian chives. It’s still delicious!
maangchi,
i can’t find any chives, do i need to put it in? if so, what are other alternatives…?
Wow this is great. I love all kinds of kimchi.
I was just wondering if I need to stuff the cucumber or if I can just slice the cucumber into bite sized pieces and mix it with the kimchi sauce. Would slicing the cucumbers first make a difference?
hi maangchi! love ur recipes so much and i tried making these just now and after stuffing it, i put it straight to the fridge( in airtight container), about 5 hours later, i noticed there’s some juices coming out and i got rid of that right away (tasted it and it was salty)..is that normal? just curious.. anyway, thanks so much for you super great recipes..!! keep ’em coming..=DD
Yes, it’s very normal. Don’t worry much about the liquid. When you salt your cucumber, the salt draws out water from the cucumber. When I make my oisobagi, I eat it in a few days. I don’t like to wait until it’s fermented.
Hi Maangchi ,
thank you for your great work and the time you spent to post those videos, regarding this recipe of the stuffed cucumber can I use soy sauce instead of fish sauce?
hmm, I never use soy sauce in oisobagi because it will darken my oisobagi, but as long as you don’t use fish sauce, why not?
I had cucumber kimchi at a restaurant and it was delicious. But their’s was sliced cucumber, not stuffed like what your recipe has. Do you know how to make it like that?
Give me more description about the cucumber side dish. There are a few different recipes for cucumber. Leave your question in the forum. Someone else may give you a good answer.
https://www.maangchi.com/talk/forum/general-discussion
Im was going to go out to dinner, change of plans!
Hi. how long can you keep the oisobagi in the refrigerator? I made a lot and want to eat it all before it goes bad.
I usually finish eating in a week. It doesn’t go bad but will be fermented. For some reason, oisobagi is more delicious when it’s fresh.
I didn’t add quite as much salt to my oi sobagi but I added the recommended amount of 3 crabs fish sauce. It turned out great and it’s pretty spicy. Now I feel accomplished.
cool! 3 crabs fish sauce is delicious.
Mine isn’t salty which is good. I just didn’t salt the cucumbers with 1/2 cup of salt. I don’t know the exact amount but it worked. I’ve been eating it and it’s definitely spicy. That hot pepper powder I found at the store is very hot indeed.
Hello Maangchi,
I made oisobagi! It was so delicious. Tonight I am going to make radish soup with beef tonight. Next week I am going to make kimchi. I just want to say thank you for this wonderful site!
Radish soup with beef is not only easy to make but also very delicious! Send me some photos to share your food photos with other readers!
Oi sobagi looks delicious. I’ll make it the next time I go to Zion Market.
i was wondring the cucumber soup that you make is like the one my mom makes but sometimes she put noodles in hers and i remember they were white, can you tell me what the noodles are called? i think they are japanese noodles.
oh, that must be “kongguksu”! (cold soy milk noodle soup)
The recipe will be posted very soon! It’s perfect dish for hot summer!
Hi,
I have follow your recipe, it is so easy, quick, and taste really good. I love it and will do again next time for my family.
Thanks for great recipe ;)
yayee! congratulation!
Hi Maangchi,
I made oisobagi with a different recipe and it is SO SALTY to the point of being bitter! Do you have any advice on how to lower the saltiness so that my batch will be edible? Thanks,
Julia
Julia,
For salty oisobagi,I don’t have much advice.
I have seen several comments from folks who think the recipes are too salty. If you don’t use kosher salt, this is likely to happen. Ordinary table salt is almost twice as salty as kosher salt because of the way it is made and the shape of the crystals.
Kosher salt is widely available but if you can’t get it, cut the amount of salt by 1/3 to 1/2.
I hope this helps.
Hello there:-D I made oisobagi and left it outside in the room temperature to ferment a little with Glad wrap over it because I thought it is Kimchi kind so that’s what I was meant to do, by the end of the day I realised that the cucumber water drained to the bottom of the dish and the salty taste has gotten milder in the evening! However I am planning to store them in the fridge because apparently cucumbers goes off too quick! My parents have had 5 of them with Barley rice and it was an awesome awesome recipe!!! Thank you sooo much Maangchi!>____<
How did you know oisobagi and barley rice go well together. : )