Korean Pear Water Kimchi
….My mother used to make pear water kimchi during Chuseok, when the Korean pears were in season. I remember picking only the sweet and crunchy pears! Although I particularly liked kimchi, I wasn’t very fond of water kimchi during my childhood. Recently, I saw some large and juicy Korean pears at the market and bought a few. I plan to make pear water kimchi for my husband’s birthday celebration, cutting the large pears into pieces, making the broth, and letting it ferment. This dish is welcomed by everyone, from children to the elderly, once it’s properly fermented. It’s best consumed within a short time after the broth is ready, as it’s not suitable for long-term storage. My mother learned this recipe from my grandmother and put great care into every detail when preparing food. The simple recipes she used to make, with just a few ingredients, are especially vivid in my memories. Although we live in the U.S., our family loves gathering together around a warm table! This year, we’ll celebrate my husband’s birthday with a delicious meal. Our family, now with more members, is even happier! The busy preparations for the menu and ingredients have already begun. Last Chuseok, we made songpyeon with our grandchild Si-woo and created some wonderful memories. As the interests and thoughts of our grandchild grow stronger each year, I want to share abundance with Si-woo and our granddaughter Ji-woo as well!
Servings: 4
Time: 40 minutes, plus an additional fermentation period of 1–2 days
Ingredients:
- 700 g x 3 Korean pears: Peel, remove seeds, and cut into 8 pieces, trimming the corners of 2 pears. Peel, remove seeds, and cut 1 pear into small pieces.
- 40 g green onions
- 400 g radish
- 100 g onion
- 15 g garlic
- 10 g ginger
- 500 ml water +1 cup water
- 30 g sea salt + 1 tbsp sea salt
- 15 g sugar
Cooking Instructions:
- Place 1 cup of water and 1 tablespoon of sea salt into a tray. Soak the green onions in the salting tray for 20 minutes.
2. Cut the Korean pear into 8 pieces and peel them. Trim the corners of 2 pears (save the trimmed pieces).
3. Cut one pear into small pieces and add them to the bowl with the reserved trimmed pieces.
4. Thoroughly brand the radish, pear, onion, garlic, and ginger with a hand brander.
5. Filter it with a cheesecloth. The filtered vegetable juice is 1000 ml.
6. Put 500 ml of water, filtered vegetable juice, sea salt, and sugar in a bowl, and mix well.
7. Place the salted green onions on top of the pear.
8. Pour the mixed sauce over the pear.
9. Cover the water kimchi with vinyl wrap.
10. Close the top of the container and leave it at room temperature for 1–2 days. After fermenting, keep it in the refrigerator.
11. Serve it as a side.
You can also view this recipe on Instagram.
