Kimchi's Amazing Transformation: One Hour to One Year | Bon Appétit

Lauryn Chun, founder of Mother-in-Law’s Kimchi, joins Bon Appétit to break down the different qualities kimchi acquires, undergoing an amazing transformation from just an hour of aging to an entire year. Does kimchi really get better with age?

Director - Jen Osaki, Dan Siegel
Director of Photography - Kevin Dynia
Editor - Eric Bigman
Talent - Lauryn Chun
Sr. Culinary Director - Kelly Janke
Coordinating Producer - Kevyn Fairchild
Culinary Producer - Lisa Masuda
Line Producer - Jennifer McGinity
Associate Producer - Yoshivel Chirinos
Production Manager - Janine Dispensa
Production Coordinator - Elizabeth Hymes
Senior Casting Producer - Nicole Ford
Supervising Casting Producer - Thomas Giglio
Camera Operator - Lucas Young
Assistant Camera - Allison Cavanaugh
Audio - Brett van Deusen
Production Assistant - Elizabeth Hymes
Post Production Supervisor - Andrea Farr
Post Production Coordinator - Scout Alter
Supervising Editor - Eduardo Araújo
Assistant Editor - Billy Ward
Graphics Supervisor - Léa Donenberg

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0:00 Does Kimchi Get Better With Age?
0:20 Appearance
3:56 Smell
6:31 Taste
9:36 Final Thoughts




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[jingiyo]

Crazy seeing Kimchi on main stream media. I remember kids making fun of me for eating Kimbob with chopsticks in elementary school. Anthony Bourdain single handedly lifted American food culture. Thank you Tony!

[justme]

I’m a picky eater and always disliked vegetables ever since I was child but kimchi is a TOTAL exception. My mom is a great cook and we like spicy foods, kimchi is the food we bond over the most. She especially loves doing a lot of it for me as it makes me eat vegetables, the first time we ate together in a samgyeopsal she was shocked at how much I practically inhaled kimchi. I’m def showing her this video as she’s also experimenting on her own.

[workofivory]

This makes me so proud as a Korean when back in the day I was afraid to even bring kimbab to school. Now Korean food has just exploded across cultures ☺️

[worshipthecomedygodseoeunk]

perfect kimchi is about 30 days old to me. one time, i made homemade kimchi and i did an experiment to see how old it can get before i didnt want to eat it plain anymore. after about 30 days, it was too soft and sour for me to handle. but right at 30 days is its peak. and at its peak, it is UNREAL how good it is. i remember tearing up some in the kitchen on that day and just eating it in mouthfuls by itself. after that, its nice i dont have to waste it because you can just make fried rice or jjigae or guksu with it.

[adamdubin]

I will always remember the episode of M.A.S.H. where Major Burns saw a farmer burying something near the camp and thought that they were laying mines... When Hawkeye opened the jar and said it was Kimchi the look of confusion on Burns' face was priceless especially when Hawkeye told him that it was just fermented cabbage. Personally I like chopping it up real fine and putting it on sandwiches, eggs and fried rice.

[hanna]

When i was little back in korea, before winter came my neighbor moms got together and made kimchi for each family.
When my mom done ours, she put kimchi in huge clay pots under the ground at the backyard.
Best kimchi is the one fresh out of the pot.
When spring comes, old kimchi needs to be gone so we cook with it for soup, pancake, fired rice etc. I love old kimchi related dish!

[ingetout]

I think one aspect is that each stage has its optimum time for each application. For the new kimchi it is supposed to be eaten more on its own like a salad because it is the most crisp. For the older kimchi, it is better to do kimchi stew (김치찌개) as the stewing already breaks down any texture of the kimchi. Honestly, for me the biggest factor in the ages is the texture which is why 30 days IMO is the sweet spot for most applications. You are able to eat it as is or use it for cooked applications like kimchi fried rice or pancakes (빈대떡).

[omg-kboc]

I’m not a fan of mother in laws just personal taste, but I love the way she talks about kimchi

[rasalghul]

As a child of the 80s, it is impressive to see how far American palettes have come in a single generation. I remember back then meals used to mean meatloaf and mashed potatoes. Often times with a serving of Stove Top stuffing. People could not fathom the concept of sushi let alone stinky, fermented cabbage!.

[jasmera]

kimchi is my favorite fermented veggie! fermentation is God's gift. it is good the gut and taste better with age. can't get enough of it

[dongkyukim]

Wow! Most of Koreans could tell you, it is the best Youtube about Kimchi in English. It is really hard to eat that over one year old Kimchi for foreigners, but it is really tasty for kimchi stew with port tenderloin. I couldn’t take patient for that. My grandmother, may be her grandmother also, made over 3 years old Kimchi. It looks almost brown-grey and not easy to eat without any seasoning. But grandmothers made a magic for that. That was really tasty for Koreans.

[Meaghan]

its really soothing to me that she called it kimchi broth instead of kimchi juice, i cant explain it but i feel it deeply

[Ali_b]

My sweet spot is between 1 and 7 days when eaten on its own, the crunchier the better. But when it’s for fried rice or jjigae, I like old kimchi

[crushedmilk]

all i want to say is ive been craving good kimchi and i cant get it where I am so this is helping to please my visual tastebuds and i finally can taste kimchi in 2 weeks

[exudeku]

Very aged kimchi aren't normally eaten with just the kimchi itself, its absolute umami shows up when you use it in a pork/beef/mutton soup for that kick

[tinytarakeet]

such an interesting video but also her VOICE! soo cool~!

[zot]

i love super fermented kimchi & I make my own kimchi. But my friends said it was not good because it was too fermented, mellow& soft. Now I know, they are just kimchi noobs...true kimchi aficionados love the fermented stuff! lol !

[TheLoneWanderersBunker]

I love your Kimchi so much! I tried it a few years back and never changed my brand after that.

[rosie._..]

watching this at 2 am is a horrible decision i’ll be craving kimchi for a week now

[ittybittybias]

This is such a fascinating video. Now I’m tempted to let my kimchi ripen for a year just to see the flavors develop.