Kimchi Variations: An Exploration of the North and South Korean Recipes #EattheWorld

Today the Eat the World writers are looking at Korea. Read more about the Eat the World project here.

I invited the writers to pick a recipe from either North or South Korea. Or pick one that differs between the countries! Here's what they are sharing...

The Line-Up

• Dwaeji Bulgogi (Korean-Style Pork BBQ) by Amy's Cooking Adventures

• Hotteok by A Day in the Life on the Farm

• Kimchi Variations: An Exploration of the North and South Korean Recipes by Culinary Cam (you're here)

• Korean Saeujeon/Shrimp Pancakes by Sneha's Recipe

• Korean Short Ribs (Galbi) by Palatable Pastime

Kimchi

We eat - and make - kimchi often, but in case you aren't familiar I'll start with the answer to: What is kimchi? And how do you make it?

Gimjang is the traditional process of preparing kimchi. This is not that. I'm pretty sure actual Koreans wouldn't consider this kimchi either. But, it's similar to what I buy in the refrigerated section at Whole Foods...and they call that kimchi. So, I'll do the same!

There's a Korean saying: "There are as many types of gimchi as there are holes in the ground." Reason being that that's how gimchi/kimchi is traditionally made.

A friend who lived in Korea for many years informed me that traditional kimchi is made in fall, left in kimchi pots in the ground for several months during winter, to ferment naturally. Although most Koreans now, she wrote, have special "kimchi refrigerators" - sort of like wine fridges - that keep the kimchi at the right temperature until it's ready in spring. Wow. I want one of those!

So, my version of fermented cabbage may be the furthest possible process from authentic gimjang, but it tastes great and I love having fermented veggies in my fridge at all times. It's so good for your gut health.

I started making my own kimchi probably a decade ago, as evidenced by this kid. He is now twenty-three year old and towers over me by about a foot. But he loves kimchi on his burgers, so it was easy to get him to help me make it.

A Country Divided

I won't get too far into the geopolitical landscape since this is a food blog, but I will briefly say that the Korean peninsula was a casualty of the Cold War after World War II. The North, bolstered by the Soviet Union, invaded the South in 1950. The overt conflict lasted for three years but, in reality, it continues and has been simmering for the last seven decades with the North declaring itself a nuclear state and being led by a megalomaniacal dictator. Okay. I said I wasn't going to get political. So, I will leave it at that.

Due to the political division, however, food security in the North remains an issue. And during the global pandemic in 2020, the North Korean government sealed its borders exacerbating the issues of hunger and starvation.

As the process for making kimchi is the same, from both regions, I will talk about the differences, give the ingredients separately, but share the procedure once. I hope that make sense. And, if it doesn't, drop me a comment with your contact information and I will be happy to clarify.

From the North

When I started looking at how the countries might make kimchi differently, I found that it was definitely influenced by climate, geography, and cultural traditions. With ingredients harder to come by in the North, their versions use fewer spices which result in a milder flavor. However, I will say that they seemed to add more ingredients, such as fish sauce and shrimp paste, that resulted in a more nuanced fermented vegetable. We ended up liking this version quite a bit so I will be making it again. You can easily double or triple this recipe, depending on how many cabbage heads you have and how large your fermenting vessel.

Ingredients

Veggies

• 2 medium Napa cabbages

• 2 white onions, peeled and sliced

• 1/4 cup salt (I use pink salt, but use whatever you have)

• 4 cups water

• 1 small apple or pear, grated (optional, but adds sweetness)

Seasoning

• 5 to 6 cloves garlic, peeled and minced

• 2-inch knob fresh ginger, grated

• 1 Tablespoon sugar

• 1 to 2 Tablespoons fish sauce

• 1 Tablespoon shrimp paste

• 1 Tablespoon soy sauce (I used a gluten-free tamari)

• 1 to 2 Tablespoons hot sauce

From the South

After researching the different versions, I realized that I have been making a variation of South Korean kimchi for years. It's more spicy and includes lots of different veggies.

Veggies

• 2 medium Napa cabbages

• 1 daikon radish, peeled and sliced

• 2 to 3 carrots, peeled and julienned

• 2 white onions, peeled and sliced

• 3 to 4 cloves garlic, peeled and pressed

• 5 to 6 green onions, trimmed and sliced

• 1/4 cup salt (I use pink salt, but use whatever you have)

• 4 cups water

Seasoning

• 1 Tablespoon sugar

• 1/3 cup hot sauce

• 1/2 cup vinegar (I used an apple cider vinegar)

• 1 Tablespoon sugar

My Procedure

Okay, now you have the list of the ingredients. Here's what to do with them. One quick note: if you are a contact lens wearer, always wear gloves before massaging the spices into the veggies. I learned that the hard way.

In a large mixing bowl place salt and cabbage pieces. Add in enough warm water to dissolve the salt. Submerge the cabbage in the salt water and weigh it down with a plate, so it stays submerged. Let veggies soak and soften in the brine for 2 hours.

Once the veggies have finished soaking, drain, rinse it and squeeze it gently to remove excess liquid. Place everything else in with it in a large mixing bowl.

Use your hands (or tongs instead if you have any open cuts as the vinegar can sting) to thoroughly incorporate the seasoning with the veggies.

Pack the kimchi into a clean jar - or a few jars. I have a ceramic fermenting crock that I use when I have a large batch to ferment. Screw the lid on tightly and keep in a cool, dry place, out of direct sunlight (my pantry worked well for this) for 3-4 days. After 3 days, open the jar and look for tiny bubbles. If it’s begun to bubble, it’s ready to serve or to be refrigerated. If it hasn’t yet begun to bubble, leave it for another day. The kimchi will continue to ferment in your refrigerator and should be consumed within a month.

We did a side-by-side tasting of the North Korea vs. South Korea kimchi along with rice, roasted carrots and watermelon radishes, and even more fermented veggies. What a delicious meal!

Other Korean Dishes

I have shared my version of many Korean dishes such as: Bo Ssäm, a long-roasted pork butt; Seolleontang (Korean Bone Soup); Kimbap, a Korean sushi with different seasoned rice; Siguemchi Namul (Korean Spinach Salad); Hoetteok (Korean Sweet Pastry); but somehow I have never shared my process for Jap Chae which we make a lot. A. Lot. Look for that soon. My jap chae used to be okay, but I finally asked one of the ladies at the Korean market how she made jap chae. She told me and it filled in all of the blanks in my process. Delish.

That's a wrap for my December Eat the World offering. We will be kicking off our 2026 series with a tabletop adventure to Northern Italy with Wendy of A Day in the Life on the Farm hosting. I can't wait! You know anything Italian is my comfort food though I am most familiar with the cuisines of the Mezzogiorno and south.