Making Kimchi in Seoul, South Korea

We have been living in South Korea for a year, this is long enough for us to start learning HOW TO MAKE KIMCHI!!!

(ภาษาไทย)
We were not into Korean food until we moved to Busan, South Korea in 2018.
I remembered when we were looking for an apartment to live in Busan most of the rooms they showed us have at least 2 refrigerators! They said one is for food and one is for KIMCHI!!!

But that’s very normal for Korean people because they are eating kimchi every day and every meal!

I’ve seen a lot of food in Busan made with kimchi like Kimchi sandwich, Kimchi Dumpling, Kimchi Pizza, Kimchi soup, kimchi noodle, etc!!!

But unlike Tim who doesn’t like veggies and any kind of food that comes with the smell, which Kimchi has!
So I wasn’t sure that Tim wanted to do this with me… (whatever I made him do it!)

Kimchi is not only the favorite side dish for Korean’s but when they take photos, they also saying “KIMCHI” and smile!




The biggest reason that kimchi consumption has been on the rise is its famous title of one of the “World’s Healthiest Foods,” according to Health Magazine. Kimchi is a source of fiber and nutrients such as vitamin A, B, and C, it also contains healthy bacteria that will help fight off infections and has proven effects in boosting your immunity.

That’s why I see Korean people are in shape even after eating a lot of BBQ!

When I walked in the Haeundae market, I saw many vendors making the mass of kimchi to sell.  It didn’t look that clean for me.

This is why I started to think about learning how to make Kimchi by myself.
And it’s a good chance to learn it as we are here in South Korea already!

I found a cooking class at the Kimchi Academy (http://www.kimchischool.net/xe/), we booked this class directly from their site at 45,000won per person (~$40), you can book the class with tour agency websites like Trazy.com or Klook.com – sometimes they offer some discounts!

But when I booked directly with Kimchi Academy, they told me the English session is available only at 2pm. Other sessions will be in Japanese or Chinese.

At 45,000won (~$40) included Kimchi making and Tteokbooki making and the Hanbok Experience (Korean Traditional Costume).

We got there by Blueline subway to Myeongdong Station, Exit 10.

Our class is at 2pm, we arrive here about 10 minutes before 2pm to pay for the class.

But after we paid money for the class, there was a lady taking us to try the Hanbok. She picked the colors for us, I guess she worked on our sizes as well.

Then she led us to the wall with painting and pose like her! The poses that she showed us, it’s all about the trendy poses by KPOP during 2019.

I would say, that she works like a robot…as she just pointed out Here, This, Here, That….she didn’t talk much, but she knew what to do.

So the Hanbok Experience is just the photoshoot.
But well, it’s good enough for us because we are too shy to wear this costume out like other tourists.

That took about 10 mins…Then she left us in the waiting room.
Until I was wondering what we’re waiting for? Other tourists? or what? So I walked to ask her, she said “Kimchi 2.30pm”. So I think she tried to tell me to wait until 2.30pm for making Kimchi.

But about 5-10 mins later, the Kimchi English instructor told that lady something. Then she ran to put the aprons on us and get ready!

So the class had only 2 of us!

The Kimchi instructor got ready and then she started talking about kimchi so fast. I can’t remember that she introduced herself to us or asked us for what our names are OR NOT???

But just let’s start making Kimchi!

First, she showed us the big cabbage which she would cut it in four.  After washing the cabbage, then soak with sea salt.

If you are making kimchi in summer time, then leave the cabbage with salt about 6-8 hrs. But if in winter time, you have to leave it longer, like 12hrs or more (maybe one day).

then…rinse and clean cabbage with water from salt about 2-3 times and drain the cabbage.

Then we cut the radish & Spring onions.

The seasonings we need to make for the kimchi are, 1) Korean Red Powder,  2) Salted shrimps (very strong smell), 3) fish sauce, 4) sugar, 5) sesame.   And 6) one special ingredient that she proudly told us was her own recipe for Sticky rice paste (water 10: Sticky rice power 1), take one tablespoon each.

We mixed all the ingredients together with radish & spring onions. Then spread the mixture on each cabbage leaf from top to the bottom.

Lastly we folded the cabbage together to make it tight and push it hard until no air was inside.

That’s OUR FIRST HOMEMADE (HANDS-ON) KIMCHI in Seoul!!!

She gave us a vacuum-sealed bag (each) to bring the kimchi we made home to eat.

If you like fresh Kimchi, you can eat it after day3. The Kimchi will be more sour if you keep it longer. She told us, the kimchi we made is good for eating for 3 weeks from the day we made it!

Next, we’re making Tteokbokki. Tteokbokki is one of the most popular Korean street foods in Korea.

Tteok is rice cake which kind of tastes like a big fat chewy bit size noodle!

So it’s a spicy stir-fried rice cake dish. This is not my favorite dish at all (unless I like it if they put more fish cakes).  It was quick to make and after that, we sat to eat it.

It’s actually a good lesson on kimchi-making. Straightforward and easy to understand. But it did feel like we were rushing, maybe that’s because it was just the two of us in the class..

The class took about 40 mins since we stepped in.  I think I spent longer time when I took shower, … LOL!

Well, we had 2 bags full of kimchi home (~1lbl each). It’s no way that we could eat them all in 3 weeks!

On day 3, the day that we think our kimchi is ready to eat!  We invited our friends over, they are from Scotland (I’m sure that they are not a big fan of kimchi, but they had to try it with me!)

For me, it’s pretty good, surely fresher than what we bought (canned-kimchi) in the st

We had our kimchi with Spicy Duck (Korean Style), then they said, it’s the best Kimchi ever!
I think they didn’t have much kimchi before LOL…

This Kimchi might be adjusted for foreigners, it’s quite mild – not spicy.
Some Kimchi recipe adds Ginger Paste and Garlic paste in the mixture too.

We might try to make it without the salted shrimps which we think makes it a little too fishy!
But not sure, if it’s no smell, is it still Kimchi???