Comments on: Kimchi health benefits, risks, recipe http://www.healthspanblog.com/?p=21 Long healthspans mean happy lives Fri, 20 Aug 2010 19:58:28 -0700 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.9.2 hourly 1 By: R. Mason http://www.healthspanblog.com/?p=21&cpage=1#comment-1236 R. Mason Wed, 19 Nov 2008 20:19:20 +0000 http://www.healthspanblog.com/2006/04/kimchi-health-benefits-risks-recipe/#comment-1236 I've had an incredible craving for Kimchi as of late. I prefer it straight, cold, over a bowl of steamed white rice - preferably a Japanese / Korean brand of of short grain rice or other "sticky" rice. I'm not a fan of fried rice in general. I’ve had an incredible craving for Kimchi as of late. I prefer it straight, cold, over a bowl of steamed white rice – preferably a Japanese / Korean brand of of short grain rice or other “sticky” rice.

I’m not a fan of fried rice in general.

]]> By: Charles http://www.healthspanblog.com/?p=21&cpage=1#comment-1220 Charles Mon, 03 Nov 2008 08:34:14 +0000 http://www.healthspanblog.com/2006/04/kimchi-health-benefits-risks-recipe/#comment-1220 1) You probably didn't use enough red pepper (have you seen the fluid that comes in the jar? it's like soup), or 2) You didn't remove enough of the water during the process (the fluid in the jar, the water, actually shouldn't be there from the jarring/canning process - it should come out of the cabbage itself during fermentation/storage; the water from the cleaning/washing will only dilute the color). However, the color of the kimchi itself is not important; the fermentation process (which, I think, takes place faster with less water) is the most important part. I don't actually think the kimchi manufacturers use food coloring (then again, these are Korean firms, so there's no good way to tell :P) If you have Korean friends (which I assume you do), you can ask them (or better yet, their mothers and grandmothers if you can) for their methodology or just watch. My mom (I'm Korean) makes kimchi because we have a hard time trusting the manufactured kind (believe me, in my years of eating kimchi, I've pulled some weird things out of the jar, like dessicated caterpillars - which probably came with the cabbage and were missed by quality control - and the like), and hers is somewhat red (it's gotten darker as she's gotten better at making it) but still not quite as red as some of the manufactured brands. So don't be too concerned - there are plenty of types of kimchi that aren't actually red, and they're all just as good for you (and probably as tasty, though that depends on your own palate). 1) You probably didn’t use enough red pepper (have you seen the fluid that comes in the jar? it’s like soup), or
2) You didn’t remove enough of the water during the process (the fluid in the jar, the water, actually shouldn’t be there from the jarring/canning process – it should come out of the cabbage itself during fermentation/storage; the water from the cleaning/washing will only dilute the color).

However, the color of the kimchi itself is not important; the fermentation process (which, I think, takes place faster with less water) is the most important part. I don’t actually think the kimchi manufacturers use food coloring (then again, these are Korean firms, so there’s no good way to tell :P )

If you have Korean friends (which I assume you do), you can ask them (or better yet, their mothers and grandmothers if you can) for their methodology or just watch. My mom (I’m Korean) makes kimchi because we have a hard time trusting the manufactured kind (believe me, in my years of eating kimchi, I’ve pulled some weird things out of the jar, like dessicated caterpillars – which probably came with the cabbage and were missed by quality control – and the like), and hers is somewhat red (it’s gotten darker as she’s gotten better at making it) but still not quite as red as some of the manufactured brands. So don’t be too concerned – there are plenty of types of kimchi that aren’t actually red, and they’re all just as good for you (and probably as tasty, though that depends on your own palate).

]]> By: Evelyn http://www.healthspanblog.com/?p=21&cpage=1#comment-1215 Evelyn Mon, 20 Oct 2008 08:46:48 +0000 http://www.healthspanblog.com/2006/04/kimchi-health-benefits-risks-recipe/#comment-1215 i tried making kimchi with red pepper but then my kimchi didn't turn out red just like what I bought from the grocery ! Please tell me if food coloring is really added to make it look palatable ? Thanks. i tried making kimchi with red pepper but then my kimchi didn’t turn out red just like what I bought from the grocery ! Please tell me if food coloring is really added to make it look palatable ? Thanks.

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