She served the kimchi perched on a pile of Kalua pork nachos, a cross-cultural dish borrowing from Hawaii, Mexico and Korea that tastes as if it was always meant to be together. The mild, tangy heat from the kimchi is slightly more mellow than the traditional pickled jalapenos.
The kimchi also made a more traditional appearance with the bulgogi she was making when I first arrived. She served it with rice and other small bowls of vegetables, collectively called banchan, that everyone at the table shares.
Ji also uses kimchi juice in micheladas, sometimes referred to as a Mexican Bloody Mary, which are made with beer, lime juice, Clamato, and hot sauce. A healthy splash of the juice replaces the more typical Tabasco or Tapatio.
The longer kimchi sits, the more sour it gets, according to Ji.
“It’s not that you can’t eat it, it’s just a preference on how you like kimchi,” she said, noting she likes hers tangy.
That super-fermented kimchi is often used to make a hearty, spicy stew called jjigae, but sometimes Ji will simply just fry it in some butter and drizzle it with sesame oil.
“It changes the flavor. That’s another whole meal on its own. I like eating that with rice and scrambled eggs,” she said. “I hardly make it because I don’t let my kimchi sit that long. We eat it all the time.”
When she goes to Costco and H-Mart, Ji sometimes does some good-natured guerilla marketing, leaving “Ji’s Kimchi” stickers near the stores’ displays of kimchi. A dream destination, perhaps, for her jars of fermented veggies? Maybe.
Ji says it would be great to have her kimchi in local restaurants, but says she’s not laid out a timeline for what comes next, other than that she wants making kimchi to be her job when her hitch in the Coast Guard is over.
“I’m so new in all of this, but I’m having a blast.”
Debbie Ji’s Bulgogi
Makes 6 servings
Tangy and slightly salty, kimchi is the perfect foil to the sweet, umami flavors of this classic Korean beef dish. Like kimchi, every family’s recipe for bulgogi will be a little different, and this recipe is one perfected by Gina Ji’s late mother.
1 1/2 pounds tri-tip, sliced thin (1/8 inch)
2/3 cup soy sauce
2/3 cup honey or sugar
1 cup cold water
1/2 onion, sliced
2 green onions, chopped
2 teaspoons garlic, minced
2 teaspoons, sesame oil
2 teapsoons toasted sesame seeds
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
In a large bowl, combine all ingredients except for tri-tip and mix thoroughly. Add meat and gently toss to make sure each slice is thoroughly coated with the marinade. Cover and refrigerate overnight.
When ready to cook, heat a skillet, cast iron is best, over high heat. Remove meat from the marinade, shaking off any excess. Add meat to the hot skillet in batches, cooking about 2-4 minutes per side. Remove to a platter and keep warm in a low oven. Repeat with remaining beef slices.
Serve warm with steamed rice and kimchi.
Fried Kimchi
Makes 2-4 servings
If you’ve had your kimchi for a while and it’s getting a little more sour than you’d like, frying it will help tame it. Ji eats this with rice and scrambled egg, but the fried kimchi also works great in a kimchi grilled cheese, inside a quesadilla or as a topping for burgers and hotdogs.
2 cups kimchi, drained, and large pieces chopped
2 tablespoons butter
2 teaspoons sesame oil
Heat a skillet over medium-high heat. When it’s hot, add the butter and let it melt and sizzle. Add kimchi and fry, stirring occassionally, for about 6-7 minutes until any liquid it gives off evaporates. Drizzle with sesame oil and enjoy as is or any way your heart desires.
Ji’s Kimchi Michelada
Makes 1 serving
This is a good recipe to use up the juice that remains in a jar of kimchi, but if you want to make more than one or two, you may find yourself needing a whole jar of kimchi juice.
1 tablespoon Tajin, divided
1 lime, cut in half, one half cut into wedges
1/4 cup Clamato, chilled
1/4 cup Ji’s Kimchi juice, chilled
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1-12 ounce Mexican lager, such as Modelo Especial, chilled
Start by rimming a pint glass with Tajin (alternatively, you can use salt, or a mixture of both). Sprinkle Tajin seasoning on a small plate. Run a wedge of lime around the rim of a 16 ounce pint glass to moisten it, then turn glass upside down onto the plate of Tajin, so that it sticks to the wet rim.
To the pint glass add Clamato, kimchi juice, Worcestershire sauce, lime juice and 1/2 teaspoon of Tajin and stir. Top with chilled beer, serving remaining beer on the side.
You can reach Staff Writer Jennifer Graue at 707-521-5262 or [email protected]. On X (Twitter) @JenInOz.