It’s been one of those days…chaotic and exhausting; on the other side however, is travel. So it’s all good! We’re visiting a few incredible cities over the next week and we can not put in words how grateful we are to see this world ❤️
Amidst our never ending to-do list, lunch needed to be simple. So was born this easy recipe for a spicy, tangy, slightly sweet, Korean salad: my take in Ou Muchim with the addition of kimchi, inspired from what I continue to learn about Korean food.
Mu Radish kimchi, gochugaru, garlic, sesame, crispy cucumbers = infinite satisfaction.
I added more volume with some salad greens and this was lunch!
Ingredients:
Serves 2
7-8 mini (Persian) cucumbers, chopped into bite size pieces (I like to use these mini cucumbers as they have fewer seeds. They’re firmer and hence makes the salad crispier. You could use regular cucumbers as well, you may want to scoop out the overly juicy seedy center)
1 cup Mu Radish Kimchi (I use vegan brands only)
1 tbsp kimchi pickling juice from the package/bottle
1/2 tbsp rice vinegar
1/2 tbsp distilled white vinegar
1 tsp sesame oil
1 tbsp gochugaru, or Korean red pepper flakes (use less to tone down spice/tang)
2 sprigs scallions, washed and chopped
3 cloves garlic, peeled and finely chopped (optional, if you’re not a fan of raw garlic)
1 tsp raw coconut palm sugar (use any kind of sugar you’d like)
1 tsp coarse sea salt
Method:
Cut cucumbers to bite size pieces. Sprinkle the measured sea salt over and mix well. Let it rest for 10 minutes, just until cucumber slices start to sweat and soften. Note: You’d rather under marinate the cucumber than over, so don’t let it sit too long, or the cucumbers will get too salty.
In a mixing bowl, mix together the measured kimchi juice, rice vinegar, regular vinegar, sesame oil, gochugaru, scallions, garlic, and coconut palm sugar.
From the resting cucumbers, drain any excess water and mix the diced marinated cucumber into the seasoning. Also toss in the cup of mu radish kimchi, and mix everything together thoroughly.
Serve with more chopped scallions on top.
