Mama Kim's Kimchi

Ingredients

• • 1 large nappa cabbage 배추 / 娃娃菜 (about 1.4 kg or 2.3 catty)

  • 2-3 scallions 파 / 蔥, chopped into 2 inch pieces

  • 7T red pepper flakes 고추가루 / 韓式辣椒粉 (make sure to get the flakes and not the powder)

  • ⅔ cup + 1 tsp sun-dried salt 천일염 / 曬鹽

  • 2T sugar 설탕 / 白糖

  • 3T garlic 마늘 / 蒜頭, minced

  • 4 tsp ginger juice 생강 / 薑汁 (Gray's tip: use a garlic press to juice pieces of raw ginger)

  • 2 tsp pickled shrimp 새우젓 / 醃蝦, minced

  • 2T sand lance sauce 까나리액젓 / 沙鰻露

  • 2T green plum extract 매실청 / 李子局汁

To Prepare

• 1. Cut the cabbage into quarters, lengthwise, and remove the stem remnants at the bottom. Chop the cabbage into pieces, starting with the thick bottom part. Make the bottom slices thinner (about a half inch wide each) until you get to the leafy part, which can be about 1 inch wide. (This is done because the leaves will shrink more during the brining process.)

  2. Place the cabbage in a bowl, add ⅔ cup salt, and mix thoroughly. Cover with water and mix again. Allow it to brine for 3 hours. (At the end of the process, the thick pieces should bend when you pinch their ends together.)

  3. After brining, drain the cabbage pieces with a colander, pat dry, and squeeze as much water out of them as you can.

  4. Combine the red pepper flakes, sugar, garlic, ginger juice, pickled shrimp, sand lance sauce, green plum extract, and remaining 1 tsp sun-dried salt to make the marinade.

  5. Mix the cabbage, scallions, and marinade thoroughly. Cover and leave at room temperature for 24 hours to ferment.

  6. Refrigerate in air-tight containers.