Salad Archive

If you are not familiar with Korean cuisine, then you may not have heard of Kimchi. Wikipedia will tell you:

Kimchi, also spelled gimchi or kimchee, is a traditional Korean fermented dish made of vegetables with varied seasonings, most commonly referring to the spicy baechu variety. Kimchi is the most common banchan, or side dish. Kimchi is also a common ingredient and combined with other ingredients to make dishes such as kimchi stew (kimchi jjigae) and kimchi fried rice (kimchi bokkeumbap). Kimchi is so ubiquitous that the Korea Aerospace Research Institute (KARI) developed space kimchi to accompany the first Korean astronaut to the Russian-manned space ship Soyuz.^[1]

This salad makes a quick version of traditional kimchee - serve along side any grilled or roasted meat or fish for totally different taste sensation.  It will taste even more complex and delicious if you make it one day ahead.

KIMCHI SALAD

1 head green cabbage, cut into 1 or 2 inch pieces
3 tablespoons coarse sea salt
1 carrot, peeled and cut into thin julienne strips
5 scallions, root end trimmed off; scallions sliced thin lengthwise
4 large cloves garlic, finely minced
½ cup cider vinegar
1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes (1/2 teaspoon more if you like the heat)
1 Tablespoon dark sesame oil
1 Tablespoon toasted sesame seeds
¼ cup vegetable (or canola) oil
1 Tablespoon sugar

In a large mixing bowl, add cabbage pieces and toss with salt.  Let sit for 30 minutes.  Rinse cabbage under cold water and spin dry in a salad spinner. 

Return cabbage to mixing bowl and add the remaining ingredients.  Toss and combine well.  Cover bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate.  As the cabbage chills, toss the ingredients a few times more in the hours before serving.

Yield:  8 servings