Hello everybody!
Today I’m going to show you how to make classic, spicy, traditional napa cabbage kimchi called tongbaechu-kimchi, a.k.a. baechu-kimchi or pogi-kimchi. But this dish is so common and iconic among Koreans that we simply call it “kimchi.” When people talk about kimchi, this is the side dish they’re referring to, despite the fact that there are many kinds of kimchi in Korean cuisine, and many made with napa cabbage, too.
Over the years I’ve posted recipes for a few of them, but I’ve never made an in-depth video for making tongbaechu-kimchi! I’ve made a video for mak-kimchi (easy kimchi recipe), which is very similar but is easier because you to chop up the cabbage into bite size pieces first, and I’ve made an ultra simple yangbaechu-kimchi (emergency kimchi). Many years ago I even posted a recipe showing how to make baechu-kimchi with kkakdugi in one batch. But until now, I’ve never posted the most classic and traditional napa cabbage kimchi. (I also have a vegan kimchi version of this recipe, too!)
For me, this kimchi recipe has the traditional flavor I am looking for. It uses the whole cabbage leaf, which makes it more labor-intensive than the other ones on my website, because you’ll need to take time to spread the spicy paste leaf by leaf. It’s more work, but this is the traditional style and if you can make this kind of kimchi well, you can consider yourself good at Korean cooking.
To make this kimchi we need to first soak the cabbage in a salty brine to soften the leaves (some people swear by sea salt but I always use Kosher salt in all my Korean dishes). Then lactobacillus bacteria can do their work and convert sugar into lactic acid, which preserves the cabbage and changes the flavor over time. But you don’t have to wait for the kimchi to ferment before you enjoy it, you can eat it right away and keep eating it as it ferments and eventually goes sour. Then it’s perfect for dishes like kimchi-jjigae and kimchi stir fried rice.
As I mention in the video, my mom used to make kimchi from 200 heads of cabbage! This was kimjang kimchi, made with her friends at the beginning of winter, and meant to last until the spring. 3 to 4 of her friends would come over and help her chop vegetables and most importantly, spread the paste on the leaves. This always needs to be done by hand. They would bring their own rubber gloves, and spend the day talking and laughing, and always had pollock stew or beef radish soup for lunch. They had a lot of fun!
At the end of the day they would take some kimchi home with them, but my mom would get all the rest, which lasted my whole family through the winter. And when my mom’s friends needed to make their winter kimchi, my mom brought her gloves over to their houses and helped them, like they did for her.
In the video I also show you how to ferment it in a traditional onggi. Using an onggi is not mandatory, but for those of you who have one already, this is how you use it! If you don’t have one, just use a BPA-free plastic container, or a glass container.
I answer many other frequently asked questions about kimchi-making in this video.
I hope you enjoy the recipe, and if you love kimchi, I encourage you to make your own kimchi at home. It’s delicious, easy, and a fun thing to do!
Ingredients
Makes about 8 pounds (3.6 kg) of Kimchi
For salting cabbage:
- 6 pounds (about 2.7 kg) napa cabbage
- ½ cup Kosher salt (2.5 ounces: 72 grams)
For making porridge:
- 2 cups water
- 2 tablespoons sweet rice flour (aka glutinous rice flour)
- 2 tablespoons Turbinado sugar (or brown or white sugar)
Vegetables:
- 2 cups Korean radish matchsticks (or daikon radish)
- 1 cup carrot matchsticks
- 7 to 8 green onions (scallions), chopped
- 1 cup chopped Asian chives (buchu), optional (substitute with 3 green onions, chopped)
- 1 cup water dropwort (minari), optional
Seasonings and spices:
- ½ cup garlic cloves (24 garlic cloves), minced
- 2 teaspoon ginger, minced
- 1 medium onion, minced
- ½ cup fish sauce
- ¼ cup fermented salted shrimp (saeujeot) with the salty brine, chopped
- 2 cups red pepper flakes (gochugaru)
Directions
Prepare and salt the cabbage
- If the cabbage cores stick out too much, trim them off with your knife over your cutting board.
- To split a cabbage in half without shredding the densely packed leaves inside, first cut a short slit in the base of the cabbage, enough to get a grip on either half, and then gently pull the halves apart so the cabbage splits open.
- Cut a slit through the core of each half, 2 inches above the stem. You want the cabbage leaves to be loose but still attached to the core.
- Dunk the halves in a large basin of water to get them wet. Sprinkle salt between the leaves by lifting up every leaf and getting salt in there. Use more salt closer to the stems, where the leaves are thicker.
- Let the cabbages rest for 2 hours. Turn over every 30 minutes, so they get well salted. From time to time you can ladle some of the salty water from the bottom of the basin over top of the cabbages if you want to.
- After 2 hours, wash the cabbage halves a few times under cold running water. Giving them a good washing, to remove the salt and any dirt. As you wash, split the halves into quarters along the slits you cut into earlier. Cut off the cores, give them a final rinse, and put them in a strainer over a basin so they can drain well.
While the cabbage is salting for 2 hours, and in between the times you’re turning it over, you can make the porridge:
- Combine the water and the sweet rice flour in a small pot. Mix well with a wooden spoon and let it cook over medium heat for about 10 minutes until it starts to bubble. Add the sugar and cook 1 more minute, stirring. Remove from the heat and let it cool off completely.
- Pour cooled porridge into a large mixing bowl. Add garlic, ginger, onion, fish sauce, fermented salted shrimp, and hot pepper flakes. Mix well with the wooden spoon until the mixture turns into a thin paste.
- Add the radish, carrot, and green onion, plus the Asian chives (or more green onions) and the water dropwort if you’re using them. Mix well.
Make kimchi
- In a large bowl, spread some kimchi paste on each cabbage leaf. When every leaf in a quarter is covered with paste, wrap it around itself into a small packet, and put into your jar, plastic container, or onggi.
- Eat right away, or let it sit for a few days to ferment.
On fermentation
- The kimchi will start fermenting a day or two at room temperature, depending on the temperature and humidity of your room. The warmer and more humid it is, the faster the kimchi will ferment. Once it starts to ferment it will smell and taste sour, and pressing on the top of the kimchi with a spoon will release bubbles from beneath. If you’re using a sealed jar with a lid, be sure to open it once a while, let it breathe, and press down on the top of the kimchi.
- Once it starts to fermented, store in the refrigerator to use as needed. This slows down the fermentation process, which will make the kimchi more and more sour as time goes on.
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.
Hi Maangchi. First of all, I love your videos and recipes. I’ve learned so much about Korean cooking from you. I decided to make kimchi using this recipe, but instead of napa cabbage I used packaged broccoli slaw from Trader Joe’s. It turned out great. It’s not as juicy as I’d hoped, probably because broccoli shoots have less water than cabbage, but it’s still very good. I can’t stop eating it! Thanks again!
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It looks great!
It’s my first time making kimchi and I followed the recipe. Can I ask if the kimchi will become more sour as we ferment it in the fridge( not freezer compartment) for more than 2-3 weeks?
Also, is it ok to eat the sour ones? Thanks.
Hello maangchi…is it normal if the kimchi has too much sauce/watery..been making kimchi for like 3 yrs following your ingredients and procedure its all turn good..but this kne which i made last got too much sauce/watery when i check today..is this normal?
“but this one which i made last night got too much sauce/watery when i check it out today..is this normal?
I made this last week (exactly as written, minus the water dropwort, which wasn’t available at my local H-Mart). It is amazing! It is everything that I want kimchi to be, and the instructions were clear and easy-to-follow. I can’t believe I waited 10 years to make kimchi! Thanks, Maangchi. My boyfriend has been gobbling it up like there’s about to be a national shortage, and he isn’t even a big Korean food guy. I will be making another batch soon.
Hi Maangchi,
I wanted to make this kimchi for my friend that is vegetarian, i can substitute fish sauce with soya sauce and salt right?
thank you
Leely
That’s right. Use soy sauce and salt instead of fish sauce.
언니 안녕하세요?
I have some question ^^
1) can i add fresh shrimp or fresh fish in a kimchi?
2)which kind of fish is better for add in a kimchi ?
3) how can add fresh shrimp or fresh fish in a kimchi?
4) can i add soup soy souce stead fish souce?? or remove fish souse from the recipe??
5) how many times can keep kimchi in refrigerator is good until don’t comming fungi?? ^^
감사합니다 ^^
Today i made your tongbaechu-kimchi, i substituted the fermented salted shrimps for 6 tbls shrimppaste. I tasted a bit after i made it right away and tasted allready very good. I can’t wait to taste it when its done fermenting.
Ray
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Ray,
Shrimp paste is a great substitute! Thank you for sharing your delicious kimchi photo!
Hi Maangchi! Great recipes!
If the kimchi juice looks pale and runny, it doesnt look very rich and red like usual reataurant kimchi, does it mean that the kimchi fermented too much or just because the seasoning ingredients were not enough?
I think seasoning ingredients were not enough. Add more hot pepper flakes to the kimchi paste to make your kimchi more red.
hi,
i tried this recipe…. the first time i tried, i used too much table salt and the kimchi tasted too salty… but i manage to use the kimchi on soup and made the soup taste good….
now i try making it the seond time and this time i used kimchi salt and follow your recipe… and when i try right away it did not taste salty enough… what should i do? should i add more salt ? how? please help….
btw, i tried your buddae jjigae soup… it was great… love your recipes….
“when i try right away it did not taste salty enough” You can fix bland kimchi any time by adding more salt and fish sauce. Take some kimchi juice from your kimchi, and mix with more salt and fish sauce. Then pour it over the top of you kimchi. Then press down the kimchi to spread the saltiness evenly.
Hello,
I was wondering if I can substitute the pepper flakes with the red chili powder use in the Chili con Carne recipe?
Also If one is alergic to fish sauce and shrimp, can Soy Sauce be used instead?
I used to spend so much money butyng kimchee that doesn’t even come close to how maangchi’s kimchee tastes. Best kimchee hands down. Everything I’ve made from yippee website had been absolutely authentic and delicious. Thank you for sharing your recipes!!
I love your website! Can I make kimchi without using sugar?
Sorry if this question sounds stupid.. But can I substitute with English cabbage?
Urm I would recommend you not to and try and find Napa cabbage (its some times called chinese leaf) since english regular cabbage doesn’t get as soft and juicy as napa. However that being said, Im pretty sure Maangchi uses English cabbage in her Emergency Kimchi recipe.
Hope this helped
The family wants pizza tonight but I want Maangchi homemade kimchi! Thank you for the recipe, it’s so delicious! My first time making it!
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Try fusion pizza, using kimchi.
It’s out of this world!
Bye, Sanne.
Wow, your kimchi looks juicy and very tasty! Congratulations!
This is my first time make kimchi,i follow your directions.. And you know? This is awesome taste! I have been live in China for 6month,and regularly i go to korean restaurant,i think im fall in love with korean food,and now i just came back to Indonesia. i think i cant eat korean food with the same taste i love the most. and i try to searching recipe and i find your blog. and i try make kimchi and again i fall in love with this taste! I love you so much Maangchi. Thank you for sharing korean food recipe. i will try to make any food from your recipe. and i will leave comment every time i had a good cook :D
고맙습니다 :D
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Dear Maangchi,
I love your recipes and your website! I especially love your videos! They’re hilarious and informative. I discovered your website a few years back, but I only recently started watching your videos. I’m addicted. It is obvious how much love and positive energy you put into everything you make. Your videos are better than any cooking show out there. I watched your doenjang video twice in two days! It was fascinating. I hope to make my own home pungent soon with homemade doenjang!
In your doenjang stew recipe video, the kimchi you ate accompanying the stew had whole shrimp and a chunk of cod in it. I’d like to know how to incorporate that into my own kimchi, please. Do you think you’ll post the recipe in the near future?
Thank you for all of your hard work and your amazing energy, Maangchi!
Thank you for your interest in my winter kimchi recipe! I made some last year and I still have some leftover! It’s kind of salty, so I eat it in small quantities a little bit at a time. Yes, I will post the recipe some day.
Dear Maangchi,
I have been making your kimchi regularly for about a year now, and I wanted to say thank you! I gave some to my coworker and she was blown away. :)
-Marissa
I made my first ever kimchi with your recipe! And boy, did i loveeeeeeeeeeeeeee it!!!!!!!!!!!! Thank you Maangchi!!!!
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Your kimchi looks so tasty!
Im so excited to make my first batch of Kimchi today. I will post some pictures with the followup. Thanks for your amazing recipes. Richard
Hi, I would like to try making this at home. But can I replace fish sauce and fermented prawn with other things? Also, Singapore has warm weather, so should I put the kimchi into the fridge immediately after making or I can leave it outside for awhile before putting into the fridge (like what you usually did)? Usual room temp is around 28degC, humidity around 70-80%.
You can use soy sauce and salt instead of fish sauce and fermented shrimp. “I can leave it outside for a while before putting into the fridge (like what you usually did)?” It’s up to you. If you like your kimchi to ferment fast, leave the kimchi outside the fridge until it tastes good to you. You are living in a warm country, so it may take only several hours to ferment your kimchi. Keeping your kimchi in the fridge right after making is a good idea, too. You can eat kimchi right away after you make it.
Hello, Maangchi!
Thank you so much for the wonderful recipes you share. I made my first kimchi following your recipe some three weeks back, and it turned out amazing!! I even surprised myself at it. Being a Korean language and culture enthusiast, your recipes are bringing me one step closer to understanding the cuisine culture and I couldn’t be more grateful. Thank you so much. ^^
Hello Maangchi,
Thanks for your amazing recipe. The first time I tasted kimchi was Chongga brand kimchi and it tasted so good to me so I decided to learn to make it by myself. Actually, I do not like too spicy kimchi and I was wondering how much pepper flake I should add to have a kimchi not too spicy?
I am so excited to do my own kimchi batch and try more kinds of your blogs food.
Thank you,
How long can I keep the Kimchi for in the fridge?
Maangchi! I made some Tongbaechu-kimchi and some kkakdugi using your recipes! I took this time to treat my cabbage nicely and it turned out so delicious. Thanks for helping the world enjoy Korean food!
Hello Maangchi!! I’m happy to tell you that I used this recipe and made my first ever kimchi!! It turned out AMAZING, and I have enough to share with my parents. :) I also made kkakdugi, which was also SUPER DELICIOUS! Thank you so much for sharing your wonderful recipe. I am excited to try more of your recipes in the future!
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Wow, congratulations! I’m happy to hear that you will share your kimchi with your parents! Good luck with your Korean cooking! Now you can make kimchi, so you will be able to make any kinds of delicious recipes on my website!
Hi Maangchi, some recipes I’ve seen says to leave kimchi for two weeks in the fridge before eating. Can I do this with your recipe also?
Of course you can, if you like more fermented kimchi. I always leave my kimchi in room temperature for 24hrs before putting it in the fridge. Then I let it sit in my fridge at least a week before I start eating it. I prefer it a bit more sour and let all the veggies absorb the seasoning before eating my kimchi.
Hello Maangchi!
I just want to say beforehand that I LOVE your videos. I’ve been wanting to make kimchi for a while now and I have access to all the ingredients except for the saeujeot. Is there anyway I can skip this or substitute for something else? I’ve looked online to buy it but they do not deliver to my address and there are no Asian markets close by to me.
Thank you and I hope you have an excellent Valentine’s day! ♡
Thank you.
Happy Valentine’s Day to you, too! : ) You can skip shrimp sauce and add more fish sauce. I sometimes make my kimchi without shrimp sauce.
Thank you so much for the quick reply! I shall do what you say. Hopefully it will come out good for my first time. :)
Hi Maangchi,
I have made mine 2 days ago and I just found out that is too spicy, just wonder can I add some water in? Thanks.
i have 2-3 week old kimchi and used all the brine/juice to make kimchi jigae. how do i make more brine/juice for the kimchi i still have?
You can’t make more juice for your kimchi. You might want to let your kimchi ferment more to let the veggies produce more juices to protect the kimchi. If you allow your kimchi got exposed to air, it might go bad
I used two medium onions. Can I fix this? :(
It’s already fermenting
Maangchi!
Is it okay if I use frozen leftover kimchi broth for my new batch of kimchi?
Hello Maangchi, thanks for your amazing recipe. The steps are really easy to follow. I have just finish my first batch and now is day 2. The only problem is that my kimchi is a little bit bland. I thought maybe i should let it be fermented longer but it is crunchy enough and if I keep it outside, it may be too soft.
So do you think that’s because i rinsed the cabbage too much after soaking it in the salt water, or should i put more salt and fish sauce in the porridge? I am so excited to do the next batch and try more kinds of kimchion your blog.
Thank you
You can fix bland kimchi any time by adding more salt and fish sauce. Take some kimchi juice (brine) from your kimchi, and mix with more salt and fish sauce. Then pour it over the top of you kimchi. Then press down the kimchi to spread the saltiness evenly.
Maangchi!! Thank you thank you for this recipe! This is my third time making Kimchi!I gave them to a doctor I work with and he Loved it so much he said I make way better kimchi from the ones he was given before. He just gave me money to make a new batch! Thanks again!
wow, congratulations!
Just skip them – or use soy-sauce instead.
Bye, Sanne.
Hi again Maangchi…
just want to ask you what can i use to substitute the fermented shrimps for a vegetarian kimchii version. thanksss