Cabbage & Daikon Kimchi

Making your own kimchi sounds intimidating until you try this version, which strips the process down to the essentials. No fish sauce, no specialty paste, just cabbage, daikon, garlic, scallions, sugar, and chili, which also makes it completely vegan.

The salting step is the foundation, so don’t rush it. Tossing the cabbage with salt and letting it wilt for a few hours draws out water, which both seasons the cabbage and softens it so it stays crisp-tender after fermenting. Rinse it well afterward, or the kimchi turns out punishingly salty.

Then it’s just a matter of mixing in the daikon, aromatics, and chili, packing it into a jar, and letting time do the work. Fermentation happens right on the counter, and the beauty is that you control it: taste often and refrigerate the moment it hits the tang and funk you like. Cool weather slows it down, a warm kitchen speeds it up. Once chilled, it keeps for a couple of weeks and only grows more complex. Pile it onto rice, fold it into fried rice or noodles, or eat it straight from the jar.

Kitchen Tips

• Rinse the salted cabbage thoroughly. Skip this and the kimchi comes out far too salty.
• Ferment to your taste. Check daily and refrigerate once it’s as tangy as you like, since it keeps fermenting slowly even when cold.
• Pack the jar loosely and leave headspace. Fermenting kimchi bubbles and expands, and an overfull jar overflows.
• Use a clean utensil each time, and keep the vegetables submerged in their brine to prevent mold.

Variations

• Adjust the chili (Korean gochugaru is traditional) up or down for your heat level.
• Add julienned carrot, Asian pear, or fresh ginger for sweetness and depth.
• For a non-vegan, more traditional version, stir in a little fish sauce or salted shrimp.