the little stone

Kickoff dish for Omma’s House series is cucumber kimchi! If you want to know why I started this series, check out this post.

My mom, like many Koreans, doesn’t measure her ingredients, so we played everything by eye and tried our best to estimate amounts.

Ingredients:

• Salt (2-3 tablespoons)
• Korean cucumbers (We used 8 and it should last for ~10-15 servings as side dish. I usually eat 1/2 to 3/4 of a cucumber with each meal)
  • Korean cucumbers have a thin skin and are usually light green
• Chives (about 1 cup when cut in half)
• 3 green scallions
• 2 spoonfuls of red pepper powder
• 1 spicy red pepper (choose whichever pepper you want depending on your spicy preference)
• About 1.5 tbsp. of finely chopped ginger
• 1 full head of garlic fully chopped
• 1 spoonful of anchovy sauce
• 1 spoonful of fish sauce

Materials:

• One large bowl
• Plastic glove or ziploc bag that’s big enough to place around your hand
• Glass jar with lid

Directions:

1. Wash the cucumbers.
2. Cut the cucumber into 4 equal pieces.
3. Then, cut each of the smaller pieces into four slices.
4. Place all the slices into a bowl and toss them in salt. We used about 2 tablespoons for 8 cucumbers.
5. Let sit for two hours.
6. Wait until the cucumbers look “aged.” They should be a little softer and wrinkly, but still crunchy for the most part.
7. Set the bowl aside. Don’t rinse!
8. Finely chop ginger and garlic and add to bowl. Once chopped, the ginger should amount to about 1.5 tbsp.
   • Koreans love garlic, so if one full head is too much for you, feel free to cut back a little bit! (You still need the garlicky-ness to come through, though!)
9. Finely chop one spicy red pepper. If you want it spicier, you can use more than one. Add to bowl.
10. Wash chives, cut them in half, then add them to the bowl.
11. Wash scallions, cut them in small pieces, but don’t chop them. Add to bowl.
12. Add spoonful of anchovy sauce to bowl.
13. Add spoonful of fish sauce to bowl.
14. Add two spoonfuls of crushed red pepper powder.
15. Wear a plastic glove or place a plastic bag around your hand to toss all the ingredients together. Make sure the cucumbers are thoroughly coated with all ingredients!
16. Add extra salt if it tastes a little bland (up to 1 tablespoon). Be careful not to add too much, though, since this side dish will naturally become saltier over time.
17. Store the cucumber kimchi in a glass jar. If you store it in a plastic container, there’s a high chance the plastic will stain and the smell will linger even after you wash!
18. Plate up however many pieces you want whenever you’re ready to eat it as a side dish!

Check to see they look “aged” after letting them sit in salt for 2 hours.

I usually eat about 3/4 of a cucumber as a side dish for each meal!

That’s all, folks! I hope you guys enjoyed the first recipe of this series. My mom really is a bomb cook, and I’m excited to share her recipes with you all! Tag me on Instagram @thelittlestoneblog or use the hashtag #ommashouse if you choose to try this recipe! And if you have any questions or requests, feel free to let me know in the comments below or on Instagram!