Kimchi is a staple of Korean life and many Koreans include it in their meals three times a day. You can eat it by itself, or use it in so many different Korean recipes. When Koreans make kimchi, they make an effort to make the best kimchi possible and include many regional ingredients.
Today I will show you how to make a traditional-style kimchi with oysters, and we’ll also make radish kimchi (“kkakdugi”) with the same kimchi paste, which saves us from having to make these two kinds of kimchi separately. This is how I make kimchi and kkaktugi, because I need both in my house, but you might be interested in my “easy kimchi” (mak kimchi) recipe if you don’t have a lot of time, or in my kakdugi recipe if you want to make only kakdugi, or make my traditional napa cabbage kimchi recipe by itself if that’s all you need. Also, if you don’t like oysters, you can leave them out.
Many people think you have to wait for kimchi to be fermented before eating, but personally I prefer to eat fresh kimchi, as soon as I make it. And I like to make stew (kimchi-jjigae) out of older kimchi.
Ingredients
- 2 large size napa cabbages (about 8 pounds: 3.6 kg) and 2 Korean radishes (about 4-5 pounds: 2 kg)
- 1½ cup of kosher salt
- ½ cup sweet rice flour, ¼ cup sugar, water
- 4 cups of Korean hot pepper flakes (gochugaru)
- 1 cup fish sauce,
- 1 medium sized onion, minced (about 1 cup)
- 1 cup of fresh garlic, minced
- 1 tbs minced ginger
- 7 stalks of green onions, chopped diagonally
- 2 cups worth Buchu (Asian chives), chopped,
- 2 cups of matchstick-cut radish
- fresh oysters (optional)
Directions
- Cut the cabbages in half, and then slit each half through the core, but not through the rest of the leaves.
- Soak each piece in cold water and sprinkle salt over the each leaf , and then set it aside for 2 hours.
*tip: the stems should get more salt than the leaves - Peel 2 kg of Korean radishes and cut them into 1 inch cubes. Do this by cutting them into several disks, and then cutting horizontally, and then vertically. Put them in a big bowl and sprinkle them with ¼ cup of kosher salt. Then set these aside, too.
- 2 hours later, turn the pieces of cabbage over so they get salted evenly. Turn the radishes as well.
- Another 2 hours later, you will see the cabbage look softer than before, and it should have shrunk.
*the total salting process will take 4 hours - Rinse the salted cabbage and radish with cold water 3 times.
Making Kimchi paste:
Make porridge
- Put ½ cup of sweet rice flour and 3 cups of water into a skillet and mix them up. Then cook over medium-high heat, stirring constantly.
- When you see some bubbles, pour ¼ cup of sugar into the porridge and stir one more minute. Then cool it down.
- Place the cold porridge into a big bowl. Now you will add all your ingredients one by one.
- Add fish sauce, hot pepper flakes, crushed garlic, ginger, and onion
*tip: it’s much easier to use a food processor. - Add green onions, Asian chives, and radish.
- Add 2 cups of frozen oysters, but this is optional. (I found out lots of people can’t eat them.)
- Mix all ingredients well.
Are you ready to spread our paste on the leaves and make your kaktugi?
* I recommend you wear rubber gloves so that you don’t irritate your skin.
- Spread the kimchi paste onto each leaf of the cabbage, and make a good shape out of the leaves by slightly pressing with both hands.
- Put it into an air- tight sealed plastic container or glass jar.
- Mix your leftover paste with your radish cubes to make kkakdugi.
You can eat it fresh right after making or wait until it’s fermented. Put the Kimchi container at room temperature for 1 or 2 days and keep it in the refrigerator.
How do you know it’s fermented or not?
One or 2 days after, open the lid of the Kimchi container. You may see some bubbles with lots of liquids, or maybe sour smells. That means it’s already being fermented.
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,
This is the first time I made Kimchi, and I want to make sure I did it right. :)
It might confuse you ‘oil in the container’ in my previous post. hehe.. I am sorry. about that. :) I have few questions to a
1) After few days, it showed the fish saurce in the container.
2) The paste I made is pretty salty before I put it on the cabbage.
3) When I taste the Kimchi, I can taste/feel a lot of chilli flakes.
Are all this problems normal for Kimchi?
hello,Anti,
I understand you have many questions especially when you make your first batch of kimchi! It sounds like you made good kimchi!
My answers:
1. It’s not fish sauce but kimchi juice. Mix the juice with a spoon well
2. The cabbage won’t be very salty, so when you add your salty kimchi paste, it will work well. If your kimchi turns out too salty for you, use less fish sauce when you make your next batch of kimchi later.
3. yes, it’s normal. No problem!
Hi Maangchi,
the kimchi I made with your recipe is delicious and smells beautiful.
After a few days, though, there was a lot of juice in the container. Is that OK and I can let the cabbage sit in the juice or shall I drain it?
I would like to bring it to perfection. My husband loves it (me too) and it will become a staple, always in our fridge.
thanks so much
have a great day
I have the same problem too. I am not sure was that just water or oil in the container. :(
Btw, I am not sure why is the paste I made is so salty. Is that normal?
THank you,
“Is that OK and I can let the cabbage sit in the juice or shall I drain it?”
No, don’t drain it. Kimchi juice makes your kimchi very delicious! When you make kimchi stew, kimchi soup or kimchi stir-fried rice, use the juice. It sounds like your kimchi was well made!
Thank you.. Thank you!! I just made this and it is so delicious! I live in Japan so I used daikon instead of Korean radish. I’m not sure if there is much of a difference, I’ve never tasted Korean radish. The texture of daikon is great and the flavor is very mild. Thanks again!
I’m glad you made good kimchi! Thank you for letting me know about it.
Ms. Maangchi,
Can I used pepper paste in kimchi (gochujang)?
JLS
no, hot pepper flakes that’s what you need if you like to make kimchi.
In addition, can I salt locally shrimps from my country in replaced of salted squid? Will this be okay in kimchi too?
JLS
When I use shrimp in my kimchi, I grind it and add it to my kimchi paste.
Hey maangchi I’m interested in this as well since I’d like to try putting some seafood in kimchi but I haven’t got squid (perhaps it’s available at the fish market but shrimp is easier to find anyway). Could you explain it more thoroughly? Do you just grind raw shrimp in your kimchi, or do you salt it first…? Is the shrimp cooked?
Do we need real SawaeWooJeot or can we use fresh/frozen shrimp, and how do we handle it? Thank you!
Yes, I used to add shrimp paste to my kimchi when I made winter kimchi(large amount) in Korea. Pick very fresh and tiny shrimp if you can, and grind it to make paste. You could use a food processor. Put the shrimp paste in your kimchi paste! The raw shrimp paste will make your kimchi very tasty and sweeter.
I have never used large shrimp in my kimchi, but I think you could use it. Why not? Put the shrimp shelled and de-vained directly into your kimchi paste and wait until your kimchi ferments to eat it.
Hi Maangchi!
What if I don’t have korean pepper flakes and chili powder instead I replaced them with just chili powder made locally in our country Philippines, will kimchi still taste as good as it is? Also, in replaced of the sweet rice flour I’ll use just plain rice flour or any pear (will I put this pear in a food processor to make a paste of it?). Please help!!! I really wanted to learn how to make kimchi badly.
JLS
If you can’t get hot pepper flakes, use less amount of chili powder when you make your kimchi. Check this out.
https://www.maangchi.com/talk/forum/where-to-buy-korean-cooking-ingredients
yes, you can make porridge with rice flour or plain flour and pear juice sounds good!
Just a reminder for American readers that “chili” powder should be pure ground peppers. In the US “chili” powder is usually a mix of seasonings for tex/mex chili, it contains garlic and cumin, this is not ok for Korean cooking.
When I can’t get proper Korean pepper I have purchased ground cayenne pepper in large containers at BJ’s wholesale club. It is a little hotter than Korean pepper but the flavor is ok for Korean cooking.
Thank you for the useful info!
Hi Maangchi. Thank you for having a very helpful site and sharing your amazing food with everyone. I just started making kimchi since i couldnt get enough from my local restaurant in Kuwait. THere are only two : (. I managed to purchase locally the Kimchee Base No Moto brand. I am not sure if iam suppose do add water or any other ingredients. May you please share with your readers a recipe using this base ingredient. Thanks again and sooo looking forward to your response. ahmed
Hi, sorry about the late reply. I don’t know much about kimchi base No Moto brand. Please leave your question on the forum, then some of my readers may give you the answer. https://www.maangchi.com/talk/forum/general-discussion
Thank you very much for your interest in my recipes!
Cheers!
First, let me just tell you how much I LOVE this site. Thanks to you I have made kimchi chigae and gamjatang so many times. I am going to work in Prague soon and I want to make my own kimchi because I couldn’t find pre-made kimchi when I was there 3 months ago.
I will follow your whole cabbage kimchi recipe but I am wondering how I should store it. If I keep it in the balcony do I have to buy a special container (line an earthenware pot) and if so how long will it last?
hi Jfaye07
what a coincidence!I live in Prague, two days ago I made my first kimchi and left a question about it just before you.
In Prague there is a Korean retail – wholesale store:
Korejské a japonské potraviny
Korunní 47/1186, Praha 2 – Vinohrady
Tel/fax: 224 256 284, mobil: 603 484 802
Email: shin@mbox.vol.cz
Mo-Fri: 9.00 – 18.00
Sat: 9.00 – 16.00
They do have kimchi there, but it’s rather expensive.
You can also find it at a Japanese grocery:
한국 식품 Hanguk sikpchum
Uralská 3, Praha 6 – Dejvice
Mo-Sat: 9:00 – 20:00
Sun: 14:00 – 18:00
Have fun in Prague
Jfaye07,
Store your kimchi in a container and keep it in the refrigerator. oh, it’s freezing cold there now right? Then, I suggest putting your kimchi container into a cardboard box and keeping it in your balcony so that your kimchi won’t be frozen
Spanky,
Thank you very much for the information! Would you please copy and paste the address of korean grocery stores to the forum?
https://www.maangchi.com/talk/topic/where-do-you-buy-your-korean-ingredients
When Jfaye07 moves to Prague, both of you could make good friends and talk about Korean cooking and exchange useful information! It will be awesome!
Hi Maangchi,
thanks so much for the kimchi video!
We made it yesterday with my husband (I dragged him away from NYC and he’s missing all the food) and it all worked great, except we made it way too spicy. We didn’t have chilli flakes, so we ground a whole bag of thai chillis instead.
Is there any way to salvage it? Could I add more salted cabbage?
Thanks a lot for your answer.
sorry about the late reply. Yes, if your kimchi is still fresh but it’s too spicy (too much kimchi paste), you could add more salted cabbage now.
hi… its okay if i wanna put kimchi in the container until 6days??? i ever heard if we do fermented more than 1 week or 1 month.. this taste its more good… its true??
Hello Maangchi!
I made kimchi with your great recipe yesterday, and it turned out to be soooo delicious! And I had such fun making it, it doesn’t seemed like work :) My korean friends told me it is very hard to make kimchi when I asked them about it, so I will make them little jars as a present… I am sure they will be very surprised! :)
The only problem is now, that I am kind of obsessed with the kimchi I made, and since yesterday I already ate three times from it. I don’t think it will have time to ferment before I eat it all! :) My boyfriend is already laughing at me for being so in love with the kimchi :) I think he is just jealous, because he can’t take spicy food like me :)
Thanks for all the great recipes, and showing healthy cooking with many vegetables, good meat and kimchi!
I love fresh kimchi, too! “The only problem is now, that I am kind of obsessed with the kimchi I made, and since yesterday I already ate three times from it” lol
i just tried making one… i think the pate is alright… but the problem is the cabbages are to salty… is there anything i can do.. to lessen it?
You already made kimchi with the salty cabbage? If so, add more radish to the kimchi. Just cut a few radishes into disks and insert them into the salty kimchi. The radish will absorb some salt from the salty cabbage.
hi… im from philippines and i really love eating kimchi.. i want to try and make it by myself the problem is i cant find some of the ingredients here… i can only buy the ready made kimchi base… is it okay if i use it?.. or can i substitute some of the ingredients?… will be okay?.. i mean in terms of the taste and quality…
You may be able to find a Korean grocery store there. Check this out. https://www.maangchi.com/talk/forum/where-to-buy-korean-cooking-ingredients
Hello Maangchi
My name is Dario and I have a question, me and my wife made your Kimchi today but we accidently used Hot Pepper Paste instead of the flakes I just wanted to know if it will work with the fermentation or if we have to throw it away :( ? otherwise we will eat it with Rice tomorrow it will probably still taste good :)
Thx for all the great recipes
Dario Espiritu
No problem! Don’t throw it away! : ) It will still ferment nicely.
Thank you for the quick answer :)
I am happy that it will still work so our first Kimchi isn´t a desaster after all ;)
Have a nice day
Hello Maangchi!!!! I just wanted to THANK YOU SO MUCH! I recently moved to Italy with my husband (military) and have missed korean food so much…with my mom (korean) nor any korean stores around I have missed korean food for 5 months now…until I found you. I can honestly say…I am 36 and only knew how to make kalbi and mandu. So with the help of my mom sending me ingredients from the states…and your videos…I have made chapchae…an just made my first batch of kimchi…and I almost cried. You made it so easy..I never thought in a million years that I could make it…and taste so good the first time. My daughter is also very happy now too..LOL. Once again THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU!…..Tomorrow I’m making kaktugi…and cucumber kimchi.
“…I have made chapchae…an just made my first batch of kimchi…and I almost cried. ” Reading your message makes me cry now! Awesome!
I managed to do a 2nd batch of kimchi. But encountered some problems.
1) The cabbage kimchi I made has a very strong fermented taste which I don’t like. I just can’t eat it raw without cooking. The taste is too empowering. However, the kimchi pancakes I made from using this batch of kimchi taste fantastic. So I can be sure the kimchi is not spoilt. What can I do to the kimchi so that i can eat it as a side dish?
2) I also tried the fermented radish. This is my first trial but also an unsuccessful one. The fermented radish is too salty. Do you know what can I do to make it edible? Can it be make into soup like cabbage kimchi soup?
Hi, sorry about the late reply!
“..has a very strong fermented taste which I don’t like.”
Yes, that’s usual. Not many people will like kimchi smell!
Your fermented radish kimchi is too salty? Then there is nothing you can do to fix it because it’s already fermented. Yes, you can add it to kimchi stew or kimchi soup.
Thank you!
OMG!! Thanks a lot! You cannot imagine how long I have been looking for a Kimchi recipe that really tastes like the Kimchi I used to eat with my Korean friends in Germany. I tried yours and WOW! That’s it!! Thanks!!
In Germany, I used to buy Kimchi at a Korean shop near my home, but I cannot find anything similar here in Switzerland…
P.S.- I love your videos in Youtube… next recipes I will try.. Mul Mandu und Kimbap! :)
Hi Maangchi,
I have some questions:
1. I believe that kimchi has a powerful cancer-fighting compound. Is it true that kimchi, if you eat too much, will cause urinary tract infection ( due to the use of fish sauce and salting during kimchi preparation)?
2. Is it OK to separate the leaves and chop them up into bite-size pieces before salting and sitting in four hours?
3. Can I skip the fish sauce? Will it affect the overall fermentation process?
4. I noticed that your recipe for kimchi was a bit unique. Most recipes available on the internet does not include Sweet Rice powder ( or any baking powder). Does the use of flour prolonged kimchi for months?
5. Some use a concoction apple, pear, and onion (all blended up) instead of sugar. Is this OK?
allo!
These are my answers!
1. I don’t know the answer. If you want to discuss the topic more with my other readers, leave your post here:
https://www.maangchi.com/talk/forum/general-discussion
2. yes, it’s ok. I will post the “easy kimchi” (bite size cut before salting) recipe soon
3. yes, skip fish sauce, it won’t affect fermentation process.
You can make vegan kimchi
4. yeah, Kimchi recipes vary from region to region, so some ingredients will be different. You can follow a few different recipes and choose the best recipe that fits for your taste.
5. of course it’s ok. I use pear and onion. You don’t have to use sugar if you use sweet pear. My favorite Western pear for kimchi is sweet bosc pear.
As usual, your’e the best! Thanks very much Maangchi for the very helpful tips!
Dear Maangchi,
Thanks for all the wonderful korean recipes!! I just tried my hand at kimchi and it turned out nice. I still need to work on the salt sprinkling tho. (^^ I think the salt was to heavy on the stems but I was afraid that it would not turn out well. What’s your advice?
I would like to get the salting right so that I can make good kimchi as my mother loves it very much but I’m afraid she can’t take too much as she has high blood pressure.
If I use less salt on the cabbage will it have any effect on the kimchi or fermenting process?
“I still need to work on the salt sprinkling tho. (^^ I think the salt was to heavy on the stems but I was afraid that it would not turn out well. What’s your advice?”
Don’t worry much about it. That’s how to make kimchi. : )
Yes, the kimchi with less salt will be fermenting faster than salty kimchi.
Most salt will be washed away when you rinse it after salting, so you don’t have to worry too much about your salt intake.
Good luck with making delicious kimchi! Let me know how it turns out.
Hi,
Yes the Kimchi is delicious. I especially like the smell and taste of the fresh one right after the mix. Yummmmy (^^) Thanx for the advise, now I don’t worry about it..heheheh
Now for some kimchi soup and fried rice!
Love your recipes and thanks for sharing (^_^)
I see myself making Kimchi in front of a computer while your video is running.
Thank you very much for the useful info. It looks a lot easier and quicker when you make it. You are very talented! Good luck with your works!
haha, I can imagine how you are making your kimchi and busy watching my video clip at the same time! btw, how did it turn out? : )
Happy New Year !!!
새해 복많이 받으세요. 그리고 한국의 술종류(막걸리,동동주,등등)과 음료종류(식해,수정과,등) 해물다루는 회와 매운탕종류, 비빔밥 중 산채비빔밥 등등. 2010년 건강 하시고 행복하세요.
Thank you very much, Happy New Year!
멋지네요. 한국음식을 잘소개하시네요.
I came here to read the newspaper.
I’m so proud of you.
Introduce many of the foods are a lot of Korea
Dongchimi, yakbap, patjuk, bukeoguk
pajeun, meatball (yukwonjeon), kongbijijjigae (kkotgae jang),, Spicy Chicken (yangnnumchicken), jjimdak, squid sundae,, yaksik,, yakkua, hankua
아내하고 비디오보는데 너무 요리들이 예쁘고 먹음직스럽네요. 복많이 받으세요.
Happy New Year!
Hello,Maangchi,
First of all, Thank you very much for sharing all recipies in English and your cooking stories. My husband and myself have been passionated of your site. I am working for senior home in Langley,.CA. and one of my co-worker is making a cook book for her friends and residents at care home. If you don’t mind I like to introduce your recipies to her which it will be published by your name. Especially about making Kimchi. Please please~~allowe me…and pleae give me an answer..Thank you for your time. Sincerely Iris,
of course you can spread the kimchi recipe! By the way, I’m going to post another kimchi video recipe with more exact measurements. Wait until I post it soon. Thank you very much!
I really appreciate your generosity and kindness. You are awesome~~…I couldn’t wait to see my friend smile until tommorrow.^^*~~ Thank you again. sincerely, Iris
For those who are vegetarian or vegan you can use soy sauce instead of the fish sauce. It gives it the same saltiness of the fish sauce.
Julie’s kimchi photo is here: (vegan kimchi)
http://www.flickr.com/photos/25668526@N07/4253137073/in/pool-maangchi
안녕하세료?
저두 한국인이 거의 없는 캐나다에서 살고 있습니다.
주변의 캐나다인에게 자신있게 한국음식을 알릴 수 있게 되어 반갑고 고맙습니다.
자주 들어 오겠습니다.
Welcome to my website!
한국에서도 김치 사먹는 사람많은데, 너무 쉽게 뚝딱 잘만드시네요. 저도 김치 담글수 있을거 같습니다. 그리고, 덤으로 영어공부도 되네요. ^^
Thank you very much!
한국 음식을 세계에 널리 알려주세요!
자랑스럽습니다!^^
awww you are making me happy!
놀랍습니다.
영어 공부를 할려구 하다가.. 회사에서 ..
재미있네요.. 음식만들기를 듣는것도 공부가 되네요..
담부터 영어로 써야 겠어요..ㅋㅋㅋ
올한해도 대박 나세요.
haha, thank you for your good wish! Happy new year!
hallo there
i have try your recipe and the kimchi taste good!
anyway i want to ask if we dont want to use fish sauce any other thing can make replcement??
just skip fish sauce. The kimchi will still be delicious.
hello again, my KIMCHI turned out GREAT!!
i will make my next batch asap because i only made two cabbage and i realized that, that wasnt enough for me lol
anyways after the cabbage have been fermented i realized that i put in way way too much paste on them so when i took them out to eat i felt like i was eating paste. today i removed a lot of the paste from the cabbage leaves and i have A LOT of sauce, more like spaghetti sauce its not very liquidy or too gooey. so here are my questions:
1) I was wondering if i could mix this sauce with the left over paste that i have not yet use n then make the rest of my kimchi?
2) to not make the same mistake how much paste should be spread on the cabbage?
I hope you had a wonderful christmas and and even better new year.
Successful kimchi making! Great news!
My answers:
1.Yes, I think it will be ok. Mix it together for later use. If you don’t make kimchi sooner, keep it in the freezer.
2.It depends on your taste. Now you know what you like.
Happy New Year!
How much salt should I add instead of fish sauce? I want to make this but without fish sauce as my brother is a vegetarian. I could make it with fish sauce but I want to make it vegan. This will also be the first time I’ll be making it so it’s going to be interesting.
first time! omg, I hope it turns out good!
Start with 1/2 cup salt and add more later if it’s too bland.
Let me know the result! Happy New Year!
I used a recipe that wasn’t on your site, and it came out way too spicy because of using red pepper powder. Is there any way to cut down the spice so the batch isn’t ruined? I will try your recipes next time! Thanks.
Hi, you can control spiciness by adding more or less hot pepper flakes. If the kimchi that you made by following someone else’ recipe turned out too spicy for you, reduce the amount of hot pepper flakes.
Is there any way to save this batch??
You can take away kimchi paste by hand or in water. And you can use it in various ways. One is just stir fry it with oil in the pan with a little sugar.
If you use sesami oil or perilla oil, it taste much better.
i just finished making my kimchi and it looks just like yours but i have some paste left over and i stored it in the refridgerator so i was wondering how long can i keep this paste?
You can keep the leftover kimchi paste in the freezer up to 1 month. Use it for your next batch of kimchi. Thaw it out and use it.
hello again, my KIMCHI turned out GREAT!!
i will make my next batch asap because i only made two cabbage and i realized that, that wasnt enough for me lol
anyways after the cabbage have been fermented i realized that i put in way way too much paste on them so when i took them out to eat i felt like i was eating paste. today i removed a lot of the paste from the cabbage leaves and i have A LOT of sauce, more like spaghetti sauce its not very liquidy or too gooey. so here are my questions:
1) I was wondering if i could mix this sauce with the left over paste that i have not yet use?
2) to not make the same mistake how much paste should be spread on the cabbage?
I hope you had a wonderful christmas and and even better new year.