Pickles. I love pickles- dill, bread & butter, relish- LOVE pickles. But, I don't know how to make Western pickles because I didn't grow up canning or pickling them. I do know Korean style pickling! So, what to do with 1 small green cabbage and a couple of cucumbers from the garden?
KIM CHEEEEEEE!
This is such a simple, simple recipe and doesn't require a lot of other ingredients besides garlic, Korean pepper powder, salt and sugar. You can make it with just green cabbages or combine with carrots or daikon radishes. I just didn't have enough cucumbers to make just cucumber kimchi or enough cabbage to make just cabbage kimchee so I combined. :-)
1. Slice the cucumbers and place in colander and sprinkle the top with Kosher salt, mix and allow the cucumbers to drain.
2. Chop up the cabbage and place in a separate bowl/colander and do the same as the cucumbers and sprinkle with Kosher salt. Both the cucumbers and cabbage should taste pleasantly salty. Allow to drain for about 20 minutes.
3. After about 20 minutes you should notice the cucumbers wilting. The green cabbage won't wilt as much but you'll see water draining out. Squeeze the excess water out of the cucumbers. Don't worry about the cabbage. Taste both at this point. If either the cucumbers or cabbages taste too salty, rinse with fresh water and squeeze the liquid out of the cucumbers again.
4. Dump the cucumbers and cabbages into a big bowl. Finely chop about 3 to 4 cloves of garlic or more if you like it really garlicky and dump in the bowl with the cukes and cabbages. Mix thoroughly.
5. Sprinkle about a tablespoon of sugar, 2 tablespoons of Korean pepper powder (or more if you like it spicy) and mix. Taste the mixture, if it doesn't taste salty enough, add about 1 teaspoon of sea salt not Kosher. Mix again and taste. It should taste slightly salty and sweet with a good amount of spiciness and garlic. THAT'S IT!
6. Dump the whole mess in a sterilized glass jar or two. Make sure to push out all of the air as you fill. Clean off the rim and cover with a piece of plastic wrap and screw on the lid.
7. Leave the kimchi out on the counter overnight. Place in the fridge the next day. The mixture should release a little more water while it ferments on the counter.
This weekend, especially today has been busy. Not only was it a kimchi day, but I also got to pick my first tomato of the season!!!
It's a white or yellow paste tomato similar to an Amish paste tomato called Cream Sausage. It's so delicious and I am not a big tomato eater! It's tangy and sweet and doesn't have too much of a tomato-y flavor.
I also created a little swimming pool for the tree frog living in my zucchini and collards. Yes, I made him a little pool.
And the frog stayed. I think he may be a permanent resident now. Just like Viva Pinata!!! You grow it and they will come. So the mini pool really is just a plastic tub that I buried in the soil. We've had such a hot summer and this little frog is just sitting up in my plants every day now without a pond close by, I had to give him a water source.
And speaking of a hot summer. I finally mulched. Why I didn't do this earlier in the summer, I have no idea. I don't know why I was so resistant to mulching because the plants are so much happier!!
I mulched my corn/bean/squash bed, zucchinis, cucumbers and eggplant with straw. It's so nice not having to water every day now and the plants don't seem to wilt so much in the hot, hot sunny day. Also, for the last week or so, the bottom half of my cucumber plants had started to yellow and some of the leaves just dried and shriveled. I cut off the bottom yellowing leaves for more circulation but as soon as I mulched, the cukes started to green up again. Next year, as soon as the hot weather hits, I am mulching like crazy!
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