Posted on 07/22/2013 8:44:16 PM PDT by TexGrill
Korea is rapidly losing its “kimchi sovereignty” to China. The country's exports of kimchi to Japan have plunged this year, with China taking up the slack.
More alarming is the fact that Beijing has “banned” the import of kimchi from Seoul by radically toughening regulations on imported food.
No domestic kimchi maker has sold its product into the Chinese market so far this year, according to the Korea Agro-Fisheries and Food Trade Corporation (aT).
Japan is the biggest buyer of Korean kimchi, followed by the United States and China.
Last year alone, the neighboring country’s imports amounted to $84.58 million, accounting for nearly 80 percent of the entire kimchi exports.
Exports to Japan between January and May last year were estimated at $36.91 million, but it plunged by 19.2 percent during the same period this year, the biggest drop since 2007, according to the Korea Customs Service.
The sharp drop is largely attributable to a weak Japanese currency, experts said.
(Excerpt) Read more at koreatimes.co.kr ...
Mmmm... Kim Chee
The Korean kimchi probably doesn't contain all the toxic chemicals required for Chinese manufactured food products.
If the Japanese buy Chinese kimchi over Korean, they deserve what they get.
Since it’s 30 plus miles to get fresh, homemade kimchi for us, I make my own. I have been complimented on it by those who should know.
Besides, it’s easy and cheap to make. And my daughter will come for a visit to get free kimchi.
Give us your recipe!
How do you call something that ferments up to 4 years, fresh?
OMG!!!
4 years?
Spring Kimchi is not fermented.
The convenient thing about losing your rotten cabbage in the fridge is that when you find it 2 weeks later its still just rotten cabbage.
OK, here is what works for me. A great thing about kimche is that it is never exactly the same two times in a row.
Kimchi (Korean, fermented Napa cabbage)
Ingredients:
- 2 heads of napa cabbage (about 5 pounds)
- 1/4 to 1/2 cup (1/2 cup is better IMO) Korean red pepper powder/flakes (this is the only ingredient you will have to get from an Asian grocery store, if you tell them you are making kimchi, they will show you the correct pepper, it is inexpensive, I bought a pound for $4.50)
- 1/2 bulb of fresh garlic (medium size) or 6-8 cloves
- 1” to 2” piece of fresh ginger (grates out to approx 1 or 1-1/2 teaspoons) Be judicious with the ginger until you’ve made kimchi a few times. It’s easy to use too much which will make the kimchi bitter.
- 6-8 fresh red radishes
- 1 small bunch of spring onions (julianne and cut into 1 inch pieces)
- 1 or 2 tbsp sugar (you can use a can of unsweetened pears with the liquid drained)
- 1 tsp of sesame oil (usually fish sauce is called for, I happen to like this instead, no fishy taste)
- 1 gallon of water
- 1 cup of salt
- Several (3-5) pint glass jars (ball canning jars or something similar)
- food grade kitchen gloves (you can stir to mix, but it is much easier by hand, and the pepper WILL irritate your skin)
# Trim the discolored outer leaves of napa cabbage.
# Cut the cabbage lengthwise into quarters and remove the cores. No need to rinse it, you will do that later. Chop it into pieces 1 to 1-1/2 inches. Don’t be too concerned that the pieces are a little large for bite size. After you soak the cabbage, they will shrink. Better a little large than too small.
# Dissolve 1 cup of salt into a gallon of water in a large pot, at least 5 quarts. I use an 8 quart stock pot
# Add the cabbage to the salt water. Put a heavy plate or such on top of the cabbage to keep it wet. It will wilt and sink after a while. Let it soak minimum 8 hours or or overnight
# When the soak time is up you can make the paste. Doesn’t take long.
# In a good size mixing bowl add the red pepper flakes; peel and finely grate the ginger and the radishes; peel the all the garlic cloves and mince or crush with a garlic press (my preference), add suger or mush up pear slices and add them; add julianned spring onions; add sesame oil. Mix thoroughly with a large spoon until you get a moderately thick paste.
# Set aside
# Drain cabbage in a large colander. Rinse well several times. Take a kitchen towel and spread the drained cabbage on it, you don’t want it to be too wet.
# Put the cabbage back into the pot and add the red pepper paste. Wearing gloves, mix well until the paste is more or less evenly distributed. Put the cabbage into the jars, *gently* pressing it in to eliminate excessive air. Leave about 1/4 inch from the top of the jar. Put the lid on tightly.
# Leave the jars out at room temperature for 12 to 24 hours, then refrigerate. You can eat it right away, but if you wait 2 days before eating, this gives the fermentation process time to get underway. Kimchi will keep 4 weeks or more in the refrigerator. After that it gets a little too pungent and works best used in soup or kimchi fried rice.
Done that
Thank you very much!
You’re quite welcome. It’s easy to tweak this to suit your own taste. And truthfully, it doesn’t take much longer to make than it does to read the instructions.
My daughter is partial to radish kimche, which is done a little differently. I’m only so so on it, but I’ve learned that if I make a batch, shazam, she and the grand doggy will come for a visit. Cheap way to get your kid’s attention.
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