Korean Young Napa Kimchi (Spring Cabbage Quick Ferment)
Quick answer
- Total time
- 50 min
- Level
- Medium
- Servings
- 4 servings
- Ingredients
- 10
About this dish
Young spring napa cabbage (eolgari) soaks up seasoning quickly through its thin leaves and tender stems and turns pleasantly sour by the next day.
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That speed cuts both ways: 20 to 30 minutes of salting is plenty, and longer turns the stems tough. The stems are a better signal than the clock: the cabbage is turned once midway, and salting stops as soon as they bend slightly. Salted shrimp and fish sauce fill in savory depth that a short ferment would otherwise lack, while glutinous rice paste helps the chili seasoning cling to every leaf. Koreans make this lighter kimchi in spring, when aged winter kimchi starts to feel heavy.
Ingredients
Instructions
- 1
Trim the base of 1500 g young napa cabbage and cut it into 5 cm pieces.
Rinse in cold water while gently swishing the leaves, then shake off excess water so the salt can cling evenly.
- 2
Sprinkle 120 g coarse salt over the cabbage, adding a little more around the stems than the leaves.
Salt for 20 to 30 minutes, turn once halfway through, and stop when the stems bend slightly but still feel crisp.
- 3
Rinse the salted cabbage twice in cold water to control the salinity.
Taste a small stem piece, then drain in a colander for about 20 minutes so pooled water does not thin the seasoning.
- 4
Combine 20 g sweet rice flour with 200 ml water and cook over low heat, stirring constantly.
When it turns glossy and flows slowly from the spoon, remove it from heat and cool completely before mixing.
- 5
Mix 80 g gochugaru, 40 g minced garlic, 10 g minced ginger, 60 ml fish sauce, 30 g salted shrimp, 15 g sugar, and the cooled rice paste until evenly combined.
- 6
Add the seasoning to the drained cabbage and toss gently so it coats between the leaves without crushing them.
Pack into an airtight container, press lightly to remove gaps, ferment at room temperature half a day, then refrigerate for 1 to 2 days.
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