Perilla Leaf Kimchi (깻잎김치)
quick and easy kimchi깻잎 (kkaennip) is a Korean herb that is quite popularly eaten as a wrap for KBBQ. It’s part of the mint family yet tastes completely different! I would say that it’s more earthy. I love this herb! And though it’s delicious eaten as a wrap, I also love it when made as a kimchi. The best thing about making it as kimchi is that it’s so much easier than other kimchi recipes! You just make the seasoning and slather it on each leaf. That’s it! You should always eat perilla leaf kimchi with rice though since it is very salty on its own.
Did you know that perilla leaves are quite easy to grow as well? They’re in fact, considered as weeds in many places!! Such delicious weeds!! haha
Ingredients
50 perilla leaves, washed
1 green onion, chopped
1 red chili pepper, sliced thinly
3 garlic cloves, minced
3 tablespoons gochugaru, Korean red chili powder
1 tablespoon sesame seeds, roasted
4 tablespoons soy sauce
3 tablespoons fish sauce
2 tablespoons maesil, Korean plum extract, can also use sugar
1/3 cup water
Directions
Combine all of the ingredients (besides the leaves) in a bowl. I use a regular spoon to roughly measure the ingredients rather than an actual tablespoon.
Mix everything together.
Place a spoonful of your sauce in the bottom of a small container. Place one leaf and coat it with half a spoonful of the sauce. There’s no need to make sure that the sauce completely coats the leaf. Just spread the sauce out and continue. Top with another leaf and repeat the process until you run out of leaves.
Cover your container and place in the refrigerator. It should be ready within a day but will taste best after a few days. Enjoy with a bowl of rice, using the leaf to scoop out the rice.
Have you tried perilla leaves before?
