A quick Korean cucumber kimchi recipe that’s fragrant with spice, sweet and sharp-flavored. It’s perfect either as a side dish, or a main salad.
Whether you're chowing down on burgers, a Szechuan feast or American or Korean barbeque, most heavy meals benefit from some bright and fresh vegetables to offset all of that richness. And when it comes to palate-cleansing vegetables, it's hard to beat the refreshing crunch of cucumbers.
Pickled cucumber is an indispensable and irresistible condiment that can be found in most of our favorite grocery stores. Chopped or sliced gherkins make a tasty and refreshing flavor enhancer to sandwiches, salads or grilled meats. Imagine a burger without sliced pickles? Harsh, we know. However, as good as pickled cucumbers are, any good/creative cook will admit that there’s always room for a little variety.
While pickling and fermenting was historically done out of necessity to preserve, and aid digestion. Now chefs and cooks have realized its potential as a serious flavor enhancer and are getting increasingly creative. From cool kombuchas and punchy pickles to crunchy krauts, there’s a whole world of gut-friendly foods and drinks to try.
Kimchi, a staple in Korean kitchens, is essentially spicy fermented cabbage at its most traditional – with chopped, salted chinese cabbage, pepped up with garlic, ginger and gochugaru (Korean ground red pepper). Packed with probiotic bacteria and great for gut health (which essentially means good for your digestion) it also tastes delicious as a side dish or condiment, but also as a central part of a meal – think stews through to stir-fries.
Now, you can treat these just like any other kimchi and take a little nibble whenever you need to refresh your palate. But you could also use these like pickles, adding them to burgers, pulled pork sandwiches, or any other deliciously fatty dish. Anyway you eat them, they’re a super simple way to add an extra kick to your summer meal!
Ingredients:
6 4 inch long small cucumbers
2 tbs. Himilayan salt
1 cup buchu (Asian chives), chopped into 1/2 inch pieces
4 garlic cloves, sliced
1/3 cup green onions
1 cup onion, sliced thinly
1/2 cup kimchi hot pepper flakes
3 tbs. fish sauce
1/4 cup water
Directions:
Wash the cucumbers thoroughly, remove ends and slice into at least 1/4-inch circles.
In a medium-size bowl, combine salt and sliced cucumbers. Give them a good toss to evenly coat.
Set cucumbers aside for at least 30 minutes or when cucumbers release most or all of its water. Rinse them off lightly to get rid of the excess salt.
Drain and dry cucumbers. Give the bowl a quick rinse and transfer cucumbers back to bowl.
In a separate small bowl, mix together sliced garlic, Korean red pepper flakes, buchu (Asian chives), Himilayan salt, green onions, onions, fish sauce, and water.
Combine ingredients well together and toss to evenly coat.
Serve immediately or place in wide mouth fermenting jars in the refrigerator to chill.
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