Kimchi, Please

Kimchi, a staple in South Korea seen at every meal, including breakfast. It started as a way to preserve vegetables through pickling during Korea’s harsh winters and has quickly become the cornerstone of the Korean cuisine.

Kimchi can come in all types, but the most common (by far) is made from cabbage, but there are over 180 varieties, depending on the region in Korea and the season. Kimchi has a reddish hue that doesn’t look all too appealing, but packs a taste of sour and spicy all in the same bite.

To make Kimchi, vegetables are salted to lock in the original flavor, then seasoned with garlic, red pepper powder, green onions, ginger, fish sauce and some other spices. It is left in a big jar to ferment for hours, days and even years. Kimchi can now be made all year round using different seasonal vegetables, but traditionally it is made in November.

Today, Kimchi is usually bought in stores and families have refrigerators especially for the Kimchi (it also helps contain its smell). Kimchi is believed to lower cholesterol, fight cancer and some even believe prevent SARS and the H1N1 virus.



Above is a heaping dish of Kimchi, I have eaten it at every meal since I have gotten to Korea!