Welcome to my new 2021 obsession – Kimchi and making different kimchi vegetables.
Thanks to one of my brother-in-laws, one of my obsessions of 2021 has become kimchi. I can’t get enough of isy The spicy, salty crunch of kimchi cabbage is addicting. To expand my kimchi repertoire, I went searching for easy ways to prepare it at home. I’ve been buying a Wildbrine Kimchi which I use with ramen noodles and add to fried rice, but I wanted to experiment with other vegetables as well as find an easy method for making kimchi at home. Well, I found it at KimchiChick with her Quick Cucumber Kimchi recipe.
KimchiChick provides a recipe for a kimchi paste that she tosses with brined cucumbers. It takes less than 30 minutes and can be eaten immediately or left overnight. The flavor and crunchiness of the spicy cucumbers was so good that I’ve made it again and again and again. Since the paste worked so well with cucumber, I started experimenting with other vegetables. So far I have found that this paste is also scrumptious on Daikon radish and scallions. (Click on the links below to enlarge.)
Recipe Adjustments and Serving Ideas
As with all recipes, I made some minor adjustments to better suit my tastes. I added a little more vinegar and some grated ginger and ignored making garlic optional. Garlic should never be optional. This kimchi paste is wonderful on all three vegetables.
The scallions are fabulous tossed with Ramen noodles and grated cabbage. Cook the noodles in a miso broth, drain, reserving the broth. Saute’ shredded cabbage in the pan with some peanut oil. Add the noddles and scallions to the pan with about 1/2 cup of broth and heat through for a lovely light meal. If you want more kimchi, top with some of the cucumber or daikon.
The cucumbers and daikon are good on their own to eat as a snack. However, you could put them on top a bowl of noodles or rice, on crackers, as a side to a grilled meat, added to a salad, or incorporated into a grilled cheese. I’m sure there are a hundred other ways to use them, but my favorite is just eating them as a snack. I hope you enjoy!
Kimchi Vegetable Recipe
If you love kimchi any time of the day and any day of the week, then this is the recipe for you. A quick & easy recipe for making delicious kimchi to serve immediately or within the next couple of days.
*See Kitchen Notes for more information, substitutions or related links.
- 1 English cucumber
- 1 Daikon radish
- 1 bunch scallions
- Kosher salt
- The following amounts provide enough paste for 1 of the prepared vegetables. To make all three vegetables, triple the the recipe.
- 1 Tbsp. soy sauce
- 2 tsp. rice vinegar*
- 1/2 tsp. sugar
- 1 Tbsp. gochugaru* (Korean chile powder)
- 1 tsp. sesame seeds
- 1 tsp. minced garlic
- 1 tsp. finely grated ginger
Slice the cucumber thin (about 1/8"). Transfer to a bowl and sprinkle with 1 tsp. salt. Toss to coat and set aside for 20 minutes. After 20 minutes, rinse the cucumber slices well, gently squeezing them to remove the moisture.
Slice the daikon thin (about 1/8"). Transfer to a bowl and sprinkle with 1 tsp. salt. Toss to coat and set aside for 20 minutes. After 20 minutes, rinse the daikon slices well, gently squeezing them to remove the moisture.
Trim the scalliion roots and tops. Cut in half crosswise then lengthwise. Set aside while you make the kimchi paste.
Combine all of the ingredients for the kimchi paste into a small bowl. Set aside until ready to coat the vegetables.
As the seasoning sets, the chile pepper absorbs the moisture and becomes a paste. That's ok. The remaining moisture in the vegetables will thin it out a bit. You might need to add a teaspoon of water to easily coat the scallions.
Toss each of the vegetables with the paste. Eat immediately, a few hours later or the next day or two.
Vegetables could keep about 4 days in the refrigerator, but I'm sure they'll be gone sooner than 4 days.
This is such an easy recipe that there isn’t much else to say that hasn’t been said.
Vegetables – I love this kimchi paste with cucumber, daikon and scallions, but feel free to try it with other vegetables.
Gochugaru – Don’t be tempted to replace gochugaru with another red chile powder. Keep in mind that not all chile powders taste the same. Each has its own unique flavor. The flavor of gochugaru is what we all love about kimchi.
Rice vinegar – If you triple the recipe, start by adding only 4 – 5 teaspoons vinegar. Add another teaspoon if you want more of a vinegary punch, which is what I prefer.
One of my favorite kimchi recipes has been this Kimchi Fried Rice in The New York Times Magazine. Easy to make and very, very tasty.
Please provide some of your favorite kimchi dishes in a comment. I’m always looking for more ideas! Thanks!
We are huge pickle lovers! Love this quick and easy version. Planning on a trip to the farmers market this weekend and can’t wait to try your recipe with our market finds.
Hope you like it! We’re huge pickle lovers as well. Thanks Bobbi.
I didn’t know you could make a quick kimchi. I thought you had to bury it in the back yard and dig it up years later! haha! This sounds delicious!
I didn’t either! That’s why I was thrilled to find this recipe. I’m sure it’s not considered a “true” kimchi, but it certainly has the flavor of it.
My husband loves kimchi but I’ve never cared for it. Perhaps your homemade version would be different.
Yum! I would love to try these MJ. But I don’t think I will be able to procure gochugaru 🙁
Looks great hearty and healthy. Ingredients are so rich. This recipe is really so new for us. Bye the way we are from Turkey! Greetings.
Hello friends from Turkey! Thanks so much for stopping by and commenting. Hope to hear from you again. Cheers, MJ
I used to have a source for authentic kimchi but that was another job ago. 🙁 I’ve not tried making it but I love this quick recipe. I’ve got some Persian cucumbers that I will try with it. Thanks for all the other recipe links!
As a chile lover, how could you not fall in love with kimchi??? It’s soo delicious and addictive and full of delicious Korean chile flakes! All your vegetables look fantastic! I also love experimenting with kimchi making it with different vegetables/
And I totally agree: garlic should never be optional!!! (it’s certainly not optional in my Korean recipes! actually few Korean recipes don’t call for garlic, this is one of the reasons I love Korean cuisine…).
I don’t think I’ve ever added any vinegar to kimchi! A great trick to make it instantly sour without waiting for the fermentation results. Very clever 🙂 It reduces the salt content too, which is perfect for health. Great idea! It reminds me a bit Korean salads which contain most ingredients of kimchi, but call for vinegar and are immediately ready to eat! My favourite is with cucumber!
I love your daikon!!! I have never seen it with such a beautiful colour! (Here all the daikons are white).
PS You have reminded me I have a year-old cabbage kimchi in the fridge…. or maybe older??? I have forgotten about it and haven’t put the date on the box, haha!
Wow! These vegetables look fantastic! I’ve never tried making kimchi at home, but I’m definitely inspired by this post. I love this!
Thanks Amy! Hope you get try them. Easy and very tasty!
I always thought kimchi was fermented, so your recipe for a quick one is interesting and more approachable. Looks tasty!
be safe… mae at maefood.blogspot.com
Thanks Mae. All of the kimchi recipes I’ve found with napa cabbage are fermented, but this one is not. However, you still get the flavor and spiciness of a fermented kimchi.
Gosh, I never realized how easy it was to make kimchi! Adding to my list! Happy Easter, MJ!
Thanks Liz! I hadn’t realized it either, but now I’m hooked. 🙂
What a great idea! And I just love how fast and easy this is to make, too!
Thanks Heidi.
oh i agree garlic is never optional.. i’ve tried kimchi now and then but it didn’t really do anything for me. sauerkraut on the other hand…
Thanks Sherry. That’s interesting about sauerkraut – I’m not a sauerkraut fan, but I love kimchi. It might be the amount of vinegar, not sure
I love anything kimchi and its nice to see this in your blog, its also a good idea to make when you have lots of extra vegetables
Thanks Raymund. A kimchi post IS quite a surprised coming from me. 🙂 it was just too good to resist.
SUCH A AMAZING RECIPE!
THANK YOU FOR SHARING…..
Thank you!
Hi MJ. And thank you for this article. I’ve only had kimchi once, at an Asian market and simply did not like it. I’ve been wanting to try it again because I love anything pickled and love cabbage. And I’m sure I need another try before deciding it wasn’t for me. And I love this quick version. Will be trying this one soon.
You are most welcome Lea Ann! I hope you do give kimchi another try. I felt the same way when I first tested it many years ago. It was a life changing experience to give it another try. 🙂 Thanks!
Just fabulous, MJ! Brined vegetables bring such a nice punch to meals and somehow make everything else taste better. Love everything about this recipe!
Thanks Judy.
What an interesting suggestion ! I doubt that a week has passed for years that some Korean food has not been on the table here tho’ Vietnamese, Shanghainese or Sichuan usually fight for the top spot . . . but kimchi has usually classically meant cabbage. Try to find time to make my own but often simply buy as it is locally available everywhere. As I stem from N Europe pickled cucumber is eaten every day and sometimes thrice, so shall certainly try your recipe . . . thanks ! And tho’ I hate to use the ‘h’ word I wonder whether every reader does realize there are few things healthier than fermented food . . . 🙂 !
Thanks Eha! Well, there is nothing wrong with pickled cucumbers. I love them! And they really are my favorite kimchi vegetable. I’m to the point now that I keep a batch of the kimchi cucumbers in the fridge at all times to just snack on. And yes, fermented foods do have that nasty stigma of being healthy. 🙂
Now you are talking! Mouth is watering just reading your recipe ingredients. Love this quick and easy pickle recipe, so much less laborious compared to traditional kimchi pickling.
Thanks Bobbi. Oh yes, a lot less laborious. 🙂
I understand the obsession… those cucs look beyond – glistening in their kimchi ‘ness :)) I have a huge bag of gochugaru in my pantry thanks to my son who bought it over thanksgiving at an Asian market and I have all the ingredients to make the paste and host my own kimchi party here this weekend (making a similar recipe tonight) — I just need to score some radish (looks so good!) I’m looking forward to exploring MJ, thank you for this delicious inspo.
Thanks Kelly. What a nice son you have! Sissy (withaglass) sent me a huge bag about 3 years ago and because I keep it in the freezer, it’s still quite pungent and tasty. She’s my chile loving sister. Ha Ha. A Kimchi party! Sounds like fun. Kimchi certainly is a party in the mouth. 🙂
I haven’t made anything kimchi-related for years and years. Don’t know why I got out of the habit — it’s good stuff. OK, I remember why I got out of the habit — I had to go shopping for ingredients I don’t usually have on hand, so it became a project. For that reason, I LOVE this kimchi paste! Although I don’t always have gochugaru in my pantry, I can get it through Amazon tomorrow or the next day. Everything else I have. Really terrific post — I need to make some kimchi veggies soon. 🙂 Thanks!
Thanks John. Isn’t Amazon great? I feel guilty at times for having to buy from such a huge corporation and not locally, but with the covid thing, Amazon has just been too convenient. 🙂 Hope you enjoy!
Kimchi isn’t something I’ve tried before but you make it sound so good I may have to try it. I always thought it was mainly cabbage which Joe really really doesn’t like. I am enlightened by the cucumber, radish and scallions though, sounds really tasty to me!
Oh Jan – you MUST try kimchi. I would recommend starting with the Wildbrine kimchi that I link to in the post. It’s really good. It’s funny, because my husband doesn’t like cabbage either, but he loves kimchi. Go figure. Thanks for your comments!
Daikon is my favourite, but I love scallions too. This is a quick and fuss free kimchi recipe.
Thanks Angie. I didn’t discover daikon until a few years back. Now I use it more than regular radish.