Kimchi Fermenting Container

This topic has 11 replies, 6 voices, and was last updated 8 years, 9 months ago by Oxide.

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- June 23, 2015 at 11:01 am #62650
  EvilGrin
  Participant
  Has anyone used these E-Jen fermenting containers?
  http://www.shoplivart.com/kitchenware-1/food-storage/e-jen-square.html
  I looked at one the other day and im considering the 1.6 gallon container. It has a inner lid that holds the kimchi or pickles down.
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- June 23, 2015 at 11:35 am #62652
  EvilGrin
  Participant
  Inner seal and vent
- June 29, 2015 at 3:24 pm #62747
  sawesaydoe
  Participant
  I have seen these but have real issues with plastic.
- June 30, 2015 at 10:49 am #62759
  EvilGrin
  Participant
  While i do prefer glass, many larger glass containers dont fit well in my fridge. These fermenters are made in Korea from food grade polypropylene combined with a small amount of clay. They are offered in round or square in various sizes.
  I ferment wines all the time in a food grade plastic pail and a plastic carboy. I have a batch of rice wine in one right now.
- July 1, 2015 at 10:28 pm #62800
  Lynnjamin
  Participant
  I made the sudden switch to plastic after a gallon-sized glass jar full to the brim with kimchi slipped from my hands, slick with condensation on a humid summer night. That was a very bad night. I’m still a little emotionally scarred. So now I use glass only for my little half-gallon batches of radish kimchi. And I grip those glass jars for dear life when I take them out of the fridge. The napa cabbage kimchi goes in this plastic tub I got from the Korean housewares store. It works great.
  I’m sure we all have a kimchi kitchen catastrophe burned in our mind, right?
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- July 2, 2015 at 12:32 pm #62812
  EvilGrin
  Participant
  Exactly, a spilled mess is one thing but a mess mixed with broken glass is a nightmare. I use 1 and 2 quart Mason jars for smaller batches. They fit in the fridge just fine. The 1 gallon jars are just a little cumbersome and limit WHERE in the fridge i can store them.
  The E-Jen containers look like a reasonable compromise mainly because the ones im considering are shorter than a 1 gallon jar. The inner lid acts like the stones used in a pickling crock to minimize the contact with air.
  https://youtu.be/yyYza70q9ic`
- July 25, 2015 at 2:42 am #63216
  Sweegek
  Participant
  Hi.
  I want to try making the kimchi and store them in mason jar but how long can i store then in the fridge. How will I know it is has gone bad or just the fermentation? Thanks for yr advice
- July 25, 2015 at 11:54 am #63219
  EvilGrin
  Participant
  Ive stored kimchi for months in the fridge. It will continue to slowly ferment and gets more sour. Old kimchi is often better in Jjigae anyway. The more sour it gets, the more it resists mold and bad bacteria.
  I did lose one batch to mold. Possibly because i did not let it ferment long enough before putting it in the fridge. Keeping the unused kimchi pressed down helps a lot.
- July 26, 2015 at 4:41 pm #63277
  Suzanne
  Participant
  I just bought an e-jen container and have my first batch of kimchi fermenting right now. I made it last night, and I’ll check it tomorrow. I bought the .9 gallon size and made a 5lb batch of kimchi and it fit perfectly. Did you get one? Any tips to share?
- July 27, 2015 at 5:37 pm #63282
  EvilGrin
  Participant
  I bought a cheaper 4 liter made by Nice Lock for $13. Its still made in Korea but not quite as nice at the E-jen.
  The best tip i can share is experiment. Try different things to replace the radish such as kohlrabi. Try other types of cabbage. Sometimes i add garlic chives instead of green onion since they are so easy to grow at home.
  Unpasteurized kraut juice is great for topping off your kimchi if it gets low on liquid. Kinda hard to find though.
- July 29, 2015 at 7:27 pm #63332
  Oxide
  Participant
  Thanks for the tip about using kraut juice. I lost some kimchi to mold that grew on it because I took out too much juice and some of the kimchi was above the juice. I just scooped out the moldy stuff until I got to the kimchi still below the juice. It was fine.
  Nic thing about fermented foods — whatever is fermented below any mold is still good to eat.
- July 29, 2015 at 8:00 pm #63334
  Oxide
  Participant
  My fermenting container of choice for cabbage kimchi is a 6-qt/lt, Rubbermade, food storage bucket from Costco. They come in a 3-pk for $5 or $6. After the initial fermentation on the counter, I divide the kimchi into 1/2-gal Mason jars, then into the fridge. Yeah, I’m cheap.
  (*^_^*)
  The Rubbermade food-grade plastic buckets are in the restaurant supply section at the Business Costco’s, not the regular warehouse Costco we all know and love. I am still amazed how many Costco members do not know there are two different kinds of Costco stores.
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