Same-week kimchi: salted napa and Korean radish in a gochugaru-garlic paste — eatable tonight as geotjeori (fresh kimchi), transcendent by Friday.
What you need
Ingredients
Servings
12
Before you start
Mise en place
Yield: One big jar
Equipment
Sheet pan
Chef's knife
Prep checklist
Napa Cabbage — in 4 cm squares
Korean Radish — matchsticks — or daikon
Garlic — grated
Scallions — in lengths
3 steps
Method
1
Salt the cabbage in a bowl, tossing, 30 minutes until wilted and bendy; rinse twice and drain hard.
30 min — timer available in cooking mode
2
Paste: gochugaru, fish sauce, garlic, ginger, sugar, and 3 tbsp water. Glove up and massage it through cabbage, radish, and scallions.
Why this works
The glove is not optional. Gochugaru under fingernails is a two-day souvenir.
3
Pack into a jar, pressing out air pockets; lid loose on the counter 1–2 days until it fizzes gently, then refrigerate. It improves for weeks and flavors everything it touches.
30 min — timer available in cooking mode
From the pass
Chef's notes
Taste before serving and adjust salt and acid — the last 30 seconds of seasoning matter more than any single ingredient.
Afterwards
Keep, reheat & pair
Storage
Refrigerate up to 3 days.
Freezing
Depends on the vegetable — roasted things reheat better than they freeze.
Reheating
Roasted vegetables re-crisp in a 200°C oven for 6–8 minutes; mashes loosen with a splash of warm milk over low heat.
Make ahead
Blanch or par-roast ahead, then finish with high heat just before serving.