Mustard Green Kimchi

Most people don’t realize that Koreans eat hundreds of different kinds of kimchi. So when I found these beautiful mustard greens and baby bok choy at the farmers market, naturally I brought them home, quickly brined them, and smothered them in a red pepper paste…I kimchi’ed it.

The best part about this recipe is that the kimchi tastes great right then and there which is called geotjeori (겉절이) kimchi that’s intended to be eaten fresh! But it also tastes great after a few days when the signature sour flavor kicks in from the fermentation.

I recommend kimchi-ing any hearty greens like chard, kale, bok choy, etc. for a delicious riff on this classic banchan. Let this be your wake-up call: if you are still living in napa cabbage kimchi world, you are seriously missing out!

Mustard Green & Bok Choy Kimchi

• 2 bunches of mustard greens and/or bok choy
• Salt
• 1/2 yellow onion
• 1/2 apple
• 1 tsp ginger
• 4 garlic cloves
• 1/3 cup of gochugaru (Korean red pepper flakes)
• Few pinches of sugar
• 2 TBSP fish sauce
• 1 TBSP seujeot (fermented salted shrimp)
• 2 scallions, sliced
• 1 small carrot, sliced
• Sesame seeds

Prepare the greens. After washing well, sprinkle lightly with salt in a big bowl. Let sit for 20 minutes until wilted. Turn greens once or twice to ensure everything gets brined. Rinse with cold water, drain, and set aside.

Make kimchi paste. Grate yellow onion, apple, ginger, and garlic manually or in food processor. Once pureéd, add red pepper flakes, fish sauce, sugar, and salted shrimp. Fold in sliced scallions and carrots. Taste and adjust. Paste should be pungent, salty, and a little sweet.

Combine. Mix paste into greens. Sprinkle with sesame seeds and enjoy fresh. Will keep in the fridge for a few days.