Crisp Oi Mul Kimchi (Cucumber Water Kimchi)
A refreshing summer cucumber water kimchi made crisp by brining in boiling salt water, with a clean broth brewed without starch paste.
Translated from Korean by AI and not yet checked by a native speaker. Amounts and numbers are taken directly from the original recipe. Read the Korean original →
This summer kimchi features crisp white cucumbers scalded in hot brine and stuffed with water dropwort and salted radish matchsticks. Without any cooked starch paste, the aromatics are steeped through a cheesecloth for a clean, refreshing broth that is wonderful for entertaining or serving with thin wheat noodles.
- Servings
- about 8–10 servings
- Difficulty
- Hard
- Spiciness
- Mildly spicy
Ingredients
Ingredients
- White cucumber (or korean cucumber (joseon-oi))10
Filling
- Korean radish (mu)1/3, 400 g (medium size)
- Water dropwort (minari)20 stalks
- Red chili pepper3
For brining cucumbers
- Coarse sea salt1 cup
- Water10 cups
For brining radish matchsticks
- Salt1/2 tbsp
Kimchi broth
- Bottled water10 cups
- Salt1.5 tbsp
- Sugar1 tbsp
- Garlic10 cloves
- Ginger1/2 clove (thumbnail-sized)
- Red chili pepper3
- Korean white cucumbers (Joseon cucumbers) are the crispiest and tastiest for stuffed cucumber kimchi, and choosing straight ones makes it easier to cut slits.
- You can use scallions instead of water dropwort (minari).
- It is even better if you grate 1/2 of a pear and add its juice to the kimchi broth.
Steps
Korean white cucumbers (Joseon cucumbers) are the crispiest and tastiest for stuffed cucumber kimchi. Rub 10 cucumbers with coarse sea salt, then rinse them in clean water. Washing them by rubbing with salt makes the cucumber color vivid.
Normally for stuffed cucumber kimchi, you cut them into 4 pieces and leave one end intact while making a crosswise slit, but today I did it a little differently. Cut the cucumbers in half, leave about 1 cm at both ends, and make a crosswise slit in the middle section. The cucumbers I bought were curved, so cutting slits was tricky, but buying straight ones makes cutting easier. Depending on your preference, cutting them into 4 pieces and making slits is totally fine too.
Add 1 cup of salt to 10 cups of water, bring it to a rolling boil, and pour it right over the cucumbers. Pouring hot water over them prevents them from getting soft and keeps them crisp for a long time. Brine them for about 1 hour, turning them top to bottom occasionally.
These are the water dropwort (minari) and red chili peppers for stuffing the cucumbers. Cut the water dropwort into 3 to 4 cm lengths. Halve the red chili peppers, remove the seeds, and slice them into thin matchsticks of the same length as the water dropwort. You can also use scallions instead of water dropwort.
The radish will also go into the stuffing. Do not julienne it too finely; slice it into slightly thick matchsticks. If you julienne it too thinly and salt it, it will lose its crunchy texture.
In a bowl, combine the radish matchsticks with 1/2 tbsp of salt, mix well, and let brine for about 20 minutes.
Liquid will release from the salted radish matchsticks like this.
Place them in a sieve to drain the moisture.
Add the water dropwort and red chili pepper from step 4 to the salted radish and mix well...
Leave it so the salt from the radish matchsticks lightly cures the water dropwort and chili pepper. Now the stuffing for the cucumbers is ready.
Add the salt and sugar to the bottled water and stir to dissolve.
In a blender, add the broth seasonings—garlic, ginger, red chili peppers—along with a little of the bottled water from above, and blend finely.
Put the finely blended seasonings into a cheesecloth bag, submerge it into the bottled water from step 11, squeeze it out, and repeat dunking and squeezing into the broth so the seasoning flavors infuse. I do this step to keep the broth clean, but you can simply mince the garlic and ginger and add them directly to the water. Grating 1/2 of a pear and adding its juice to this broth makes it even better. I skipped it because pears were expensive.
When the cucumbers bend pliantly, they are well-brined. Rinse once in clean water and drain thoroughly.
Fill the cucumbers with the stuffing.
Place the stuffed cucumbers into a kimchi container and gently pour the prepared kimchi broth over them.
Just enough kimchi broth to submerge the cucumbers is fine. If you want plenty of broth, make a generous amount and pour it in.
This is after fermenting at room temperature for 24 hours. The weather has been hot lately, so it ripened pleasantly tangy in just one day. It might seem tricky because I took many step-by-step photos to show it in detail, but it is actually much easier once you make it yourself.
Ppunwife's tips
- Pouring hot brine over the cucumbers keeps them from getting mushy and maintains their crisp texture for a long time.
- Do not julienne the radish too thinly; slicing it into slightly thicker matchsticks helps preserve its crunch once salted.
- Filtering the blended seasonings through a cheesecloth gives the broth a clean, clear finish.
FAQ
Why are the cucumbers brined in boiling water?
Pouring hot salt water directly over the cucumbers keeps them from softening easily and helps maintain a crisp texture for a long time.
Can I use another vegetable instead of water dropwort in the stuffing?
If you do not have water dropwort, you can use scallions as a substitute in the same way.
Why are the seasonings blended and strained through a cheesecloth?
It keeps the broth clear and clean, but if it feels troublesome, you can simply mince the garlic and ginger and stir them directly into the broth.
How long should it ferment at room temperature?
In hot weather, leaving it at room temperature for about 24 hours will ripen it to a nice, tangy taste.
