Kimchi

Salted vegetables, usually napa cabbage, fermented with chili, garlic and ginger. Lactic acid bacteria make it tangy and fizzy, and the flavor keeps changing as it ages.

Flavor

How to use it

Eat It Fresh or Cook It Old. Young kimchi is crisp and bright, best eaten as a side. Older, sourer kimchi is better cooked, because heat and fat mellow the sharpness.

Save the Brine. The red liquid in the jar is full of flavor. Splash it into fried rice, stews or a salad dressing.

Common mistakes

• Cooking young kimchi to mush when its crunch was the point.
• Throwing out a very sour jar. That sourness is what makes the best stews.

What goes with kimchi

• Gochujang. Both are fermented and chili-red, and together they make deep, sour-spicy stews and fried rice.
• Pork Belly. Rich pork belly mellows kimchi's sourness, a classic pairing in stews and stir-fries.
• Egg. Fried or scrambled egg softens kimchi's sour heat, as in kimchi fried rice.
• Rice. Plain rice balances kimchi's sour, spicy punch.
• Tofu. Mild tofu mellows kimchi's sourness, as in warm tofu with stir-fried kimchi.
• Sesame Oil. Sesame oil's nutty richness rounds out kimchi's acid in fried rice and dumpling fillings.
• Scallion. Scallion adds a fresh, mild bite that sits easily next to kimchi's funk.
• Bacon. Smoky, salty bacon fat softens kimchi's sourness in fried rice and pancakes.

Try tonight

• Kimchi fried rice topped with a fried egg
• Kimchi and tofu stew
• Kimchi grilled cheese with sharp cheddar

Storage

Keep it in the refrigerator in a sealed jar. It keeps getting sourer, and the jar may build up gas, so open it gently.