Eolgari Kimchi
Eolgari (Winter Cabbage) Kimchi
Eolgari (pronounced Ol' Gary) kimchi utilises a cold-clime cabbage, otherwise known as winter cabbage. I find it to have a stronger, mustard flavour compared to baechu (wombok or napa) cabbage. It is otherwise very similar to mustard greens, with which it can be easily substituted.
Figure 1. Eolgari cabbage.
Ingredients
5-6 eolgari (winter) cabbages*
Approx. 150-200g coarse kimchi sea salt**
Approx. 150-200g kimchi sauce***
* Can be substituted with mustard greens.
** Any coarse-grained sea salt is fine. You can also use the ratio of 3% w/w. E.g. 30g salt for 1000g cabbage.
*** See the introduction for the kimchi sauce recipe. Eolgari can use leftover sauce from kimchi-making.
Method
1. Prepare the eolgari cabbages by cutting off the taproot, sorting leaves, removing damaged parts, washing and draining well with a colander.
2. Slice any larger leaves in half lengthwise.
3. Salt the leaves in a clean bowl or sink as per baechu, except reduce the time to 45 minutes. You can also use salt water (as below), since eolgari is more tender than baechu, but this step is not necessary. Rinse and drain after salting time is complete.
4. Mix eolgari leaves with kimchi sauce.
5. Move to a suitable container (approx 1.8 L), refrigerate immediately and enjoy!
As with baechu kimchi, eolgari can be eaten from the moment it has been mixed with the kimchi sauce. Best served with a sprinkle of sesame seeds. It will ferment with age, and can be kept for up to 2-3 months. It goes well with grilled meats and rice, and as an all-purpose Asian meal side-dish. Try it today!
