Korean Garlic Scape Kimchi
Quick answer
- Total time
- 35 min
- Level
- Easy
- Servings
- 4 servings
- Ingredients
- 8
About this dish
Maneul jong kimchi is a garlic scape kimchi made by lightly brining freshly harvested scapes, then dressing them in a seasoning paste of gochugaru, fish sauce, and plum syrup blended with pureed onion and pear.
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The scapes' sharp, piercing garlic aroma does not diminish through fermentation - it persists alongside the stems' crisp bite, delivering alternating pulses of heat and umami that build with each chew. Pear works into the base to introduce a fruit sweetness that blunts the chili intensity, while fish sauce provides the fermented backbone that grounds the entire kimchi. Trimming the fibrous bottoms before seasoning produces a more uniform snap throughout. Leaving the jar at room temperature for roughly two days allows the flavors to integrate and mellow into balance before refrigerating. This is a seasonal kimchi made only in spring when garlic scapes appear in the market, and its combination of raw green pungency and assertive garlic heat sets it apart from any other variety in the Korean kimchi repertoire.
Ingredients
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Instructions
Read the steps as a cooking flow: prep, heat, seasoning, doneness control, and finish.
- 1Season
Rinse 800 g garlic scapes well under running water, then trim off the tough lower ends and any fibrous tips.
Cut the scapes into even 5 cm pieces so they brine and season at the same rate.
- 2Season
Sprinkle the cut scapes with 40 g coarse salt and toss lightly so the salt reaches the surfaces.
Let them stand for 30 minutes, turning once halfway, until they bend slightly but still feel crisp.
- 3Season
Rinse the brined scapes once under running water to remove harsh excess salt, not all seasoning.
Drain in a colander, then press by hand to remove surface moisture so the paste does not turn watery.
- 4Season
Puree 120 g pear and 100 g onion until smooth.
Stir in 50 g gochugaru, 30 g minced garlic, 45 ml fish sauce, and 30 ml plum syrup, then let the paste thicken briefly as the chili flakes hydrate.
- 5Season
Add the seasoning paste to the drained scapes and toss from the bottom upward.
Coat every piece red, but avoid crushing the stems, because too much pressure softens the crisp bite that makes this kimchi distinct.
- 6Control
Pack the kimchi into an airtight container, pressing lightly to reduce air pockets.
Leave it at room temperature for 2 hours to start fermentation, then refrigerate and check again after about two days for a deeper, balanced flavor.
Practical Cooking Checks
The cues that matter most while cooking.
- Key technique
- Spring garlic scapes retain their sharp allium character through the Maneul-jong-kimchi ferment.
- Finish cue
- Pack the kimchi into an airtight container, pressing lightly to reduce air pockets.
- Avoid this
- Trim tough ends for better texture.
- Storage and reheating
- Leaving the jar at room temperature for roughly two days allows the flavors to integrate and mellow into balance before refrigerating.
Cooking decision evidence
Calculated Charim data and applicable official cooking and food safety guidance.
This recipe
35min, 8 ingredients
Category median
32min, 7 ingredients
Based on 163 recipes
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