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The Korean Stuff [Kimchi!!!] (Read 143 times)


Black-Toe-Nailed

    I went this year to Deagu in South Korea to participate in a 10K run. Well, sportively it wasn't too good, 44:17 on a 10K is a rather bad-ish result fo me... but beside of that is that came back with a terrible addiction:

    My name is Enric Martinez and I am addicted to: KIMCHI!!!!!!!!!!

    Never heard of this stuff? I heard that Michelle Obama has the addiction too and uses to prepare huge batches of it. I bet most of you know what it is but for those who don't:

    It's a delicious side-dish made basically of napa cabbage fermented in a mix of green onions, Korean chili flakes (sweet and not so extreme hot as Mexican chilis), garlic (Chinese please, if you use the Spanish or French stuff the cabbage will jump out of the jar and search refuge in the Ecuatorian embassy) and some other things (Seaweed, ginger and that's it. some add shrimp powder and dried mackerel).

    Besides with cabbage, kimchi can be made with a lot of things, from daikon radish to zucchini. You can even make up your own with local vegetables: I use a local large turnip, shii-take mushrooms, mung-bean sprouts and paksoi.

     

    Kimchi counts among the 5 most healthy foods in the world. It contains bacteria related to the milk microorganisms responsible for yoghurt, the name of the critter is Lactobacillus kimchii. For those who know about these things, yes, it is related to L. acidofilus.

    It does also yield very few calories.

    In fact the whole Korean cooking and eating style was for me a very interesting experience: The ingredients and form of preparation are very easy, without the complications of the Chinese or Japanese cuisine and served in a very enjoyable way. I just love banshana like gaji namu, slices of garlic or similar. I have been able to learn enough in a week in Korea and a month searching on the internet to prepare a full Korean meal in no time. I bet you USians know what I'm talking about as I believe that Korean cuisine is somewhat better known there as here in Europe... and if not I encourage you to try it, even for those who aren't too much into Chinese or Thai stuff: This is simply good food, so good as you can imagine.

    Just a final note: If you eat Korean food at home or outside of Korea you can use forks. Even in Korea they will give forks to the foreigners. You can of course also use chopsticks... but Korean do not use these: The chopsticks are made of steel (clever, huh?) and used to pick up banshan and the rice (and soup) is eaten with a SPOON... well, the darn chopsticks are tricky as hell even for people used to them.

    Deuseyo! Smile


    --

    "If one can stick to the training throughout the many long years,
    then will power is no longer a problem. It's raining? That doesn't matter.
    I am tired? That's besides the point. It's simply that I just have to."

    Emil Zatopek

    zonykel


      I like Kimchi in small amounts. The stuff can be strong. My wife is Japanese, and she likes it more than I do.

        Kimchi....yum!   (Spent a year in Korea)

        LedLincoln


        not bad for mile 25

          I actually made a batch last fall.  It's not terribly difficult.


          Not dead. Yet.

            Korean BBQ with all the fixin's is one of my all time favorite meals.  And I too love the kimchi!

             

            Have never thought about making a batch.  Might just have to try.  I bet it has to sit for a long time to absorb everything though, and I always have a hard time waiting for things to pickle.  I got into a pickled egg thing for a while a few years ago, and usually by the time they were about done pickling, half of the eggs were already gone.

            How can we know our limits if we don't test them?

            J-L-C


              I've been in Korea for five years and didn't go near Kimchi for the first four as it was so disgusting.

               

              Finally got around to eating some Kimchi Jigae (soup with kimchi and meat) and from there I guess it grew a bit on me. I have it at lunch every day (school cafeteria) and when I go out to eat. It was certainly a learned taste for me, though, as fermented cabbage just doesn't sound appetizing in any degree.

               

              There are definitely "levels" of kimchi, and the really good stuff will have been fermented for months/years whilst the not so good stuff will be imported from China. Even I can tell a difference and I'm certainly not an aficionado of any sort.. There are also regional differences though those are lost on me.

               

              That "top 5 healthiest foods in the world" label is interesting and not something I'd actually think would be the case, though maybe it'd be alright if not eaten at every single meal like it can be in Korea. A S. Korean study suggested a potential link with gastric cancers. But I guess if you're eating 40 lbs a year of something that's been fermented out the whazoo then it might have some other effects.

              Gator eye


                MMM I love kimchi. And I never have to share.Approve

                 

                I do have a hard time finding it, one local store carries a almost passable version that comes from China.

                LedLincoln


                not bad for mile 25

                  Korean BBQ with all the fixin's is one of my all time favorite meals.  And I too love the kimchi!

                   

                  Have never thought about making a batch.  Might just have to try.  I bet it has to sit for a long time to absorb everything though, and I always have a hard time waiting for things to pickle.  I got into a pickled egg thing for a while a few years ago, and usually by the time they were about done pickling, half of the eggs were already gone.

                   

                  It doesn't have to ferment all that long - my recollection is about two weeks.  And, J-L-C, I don't think it's desirable for it to ferment for months or anything - they don't do vintage 1979 kimchi or anything.  Some Koreans have dedicated kimchi refrigerators in their homes.


                  Feeling the growl again

                    My in-laws are Korean.  I've eaten just about every type of South Korean food (I would not touch many of the dishes originating in the North).  Most of it is very good.

                     

                    But I can't stand kimchi.  However at family gatherings it is consumed in large amounts...just not by me.  I do, however, repurpose the left-behind glass jars for making pickled eggs.  Smile

                     

                    I would also question the "five healthiest foods" label.  Pickled foods of this class are strongly linked with higher rates of gastric cancer in Asian countries.  This does not mean I would see a problem with consuming more moderated amounts.

                    "If you want to be a bad a$s, then do what a bad a$s does.  There's your pep talk for today.  Go Run." -- Slo_Hand

                     

                    I am spaniel - Crusher of Treadmills

                     

                    kcam


                      Not a big fan of the kimchi but I will say that at the food truck gatherings there's one that serves some kind of kimchi tacos - heaven on earth I tell ya.

                        You described so well. I shall try looking for one to taste.

                         

                        Regarding pickled food, I agree with Spaniel. I also think too much pickled food is not good. In a town, Changle, close to where I grew up, they had the highest gastric (stomach) cancer (every 145 per 100,000). Research found out people in that town love pickled food and consume many times more than others. Stomach cancer is the second highest rate in China, accounting for 42% of all gastric cancer cases worldwide. Pickle could be one of the major reasons. Most Chinese very often eat pickle at their breakfast.

                         

                        The above figures are from :Comparative epidemiology of gastric cancer between Japan and China

                        5k - 20:56 (09/12), 7k - 28:40 (11/12), 10k trial - 43:08  (03/13), 42:05 (05/13), FM - 3:09:28 (05/13), HM - 1:28:20 (05/14), Failed 10K trial - 6:10/mi for 4mi (08/14), FM - 3:03 (09/14)

                        J-L-C


                           

                          It doesn't have to ferment all that long - my recollection is about two weeks.  And, J-L-C, I don't think it's desirable for it to ferment for months or anything - they don't do vintage 1979 kimchi or anything.  Some Koreans have dedicated kimchi refrigerators in their homes.

                           

                          The longer it's fermented, the better. I had some at a nice restaurant that was fermented for over a year and the place was famous for that.

                           

                          It doesn't have to be, but like alcohol, it can get better with time.

                          Better I Leave


                            I make a pretty damn good Kimchi if I may say so. It's not my recipe, but I befriended the gal that ran the company kitchen decades ago at a former employer. She was Korean and I pleaded with her for the recipe. She finally gave it to me and I've been making it since. Love the stuff. My wife, oddly enough, can't stand it...yet she'll eat baby octopus, live scallop, squid ink soup...stuff like that....go figure. *giggle*

                            Buelligan


                              I've eaten Korean food all my life, my mom is Korean.


                              tomatolover

                                Also addicted to the stuff....I've always enjoyed Korean food, but never really got into kimchi and would eat all the banchan except for the kimchi... last year, some mysterious kimchi switch in my brain went off l now it's the one thing I crave all the time.  I've tried, and failed, making in myself and now just go to the restaurants I know have the best whereupon I become the annoying white girl who keeps asking for refills on kimchi.

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