What’s particularly great about this recipe is the harmony of sweet and spicy flavors. The mushrooms, sauteed in soy sauce and ponzu are rich and salty, contrasted by the spicy crunch of the kimchi and sweet tang of the honey marinated spinach. I feel like I’m writing a poem describing this meal, but I really did love how this tasted. Even without the meat, I’d hope any carnivore would be satisfied. The beef here, though, adds what no veggies can. Feel free to substitute with pork too, whatever suits your taste.
If you are obsessed with process and have a touch of crazy, like myself, making the kimchi from scratch is very rewarding. You have fine control over the spice and tang, and also the packaging (obsessed with those little jars). However, if you don’t love the idea of your hands and kitchen smelling a little…rank (those of you familiar with the smell of kimchi know exactly what I’m talking about), this can easily be purchased at any asian grocery store. Same goes for the pickles, but I say making those is half the fun.
Recipe: Mushroom & Beef Kimchi Wraps
For the kimchi
1 Napa cabbage
4 tablespoons sea salt
4 tablespoons rice vinegar
4 tablespoons chili flakes (most recipes call for Korean chili flakes, but I didn’t have any on hand, and this worked just fine)
2 tablespoons honey
2 tablespoons fresh ginger, grated
4 garlic cloves, minced
3 spring onions, sliced
Slice the cabbage lengthwise into quarters, then again into 2 inch pieces, removing the core. Place in a bowl and sprinkle with salt. Cover tight, adn let sit for 24 hours.
Rinse the cabbage and in a large bowl, mix with remaining ingredients. Place in a jar, making sure to press down, and let sit at room temperature for 3-4 days. Give it a taste once in awhile, and once it’s funky to your liking, refrigerate.
For the pickled cucumbers
1 cucumber, halved lengthwise and sliced
2 tablespoons sea salt
2 teaspoons rice vinegar
2 tablespoons chili flakes
1 teaspoon honey
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 spring onion, sliced.
Place cucumber in a bowl and generously salt. Cover and set aside for an hour.
Rinse the cucumber and in a large bowl, mix with remaining ingredients. Place in a jar and refrigerate. Make at least a day in advance.
To assemble
Kimchi
Pickled cucumbers
1 cup spinach
1 tablespoon rice vinegar
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 teaspoon honey
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 spring onion, sliced
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 1/2 cups mushrooms (I used white)
1 tablespoon ponzu
1/2 pound ground beef
Somen or other fine noodles, cooked according to the package
1/4 cup black sesame seeds
Leafy lettuce leaves
Combine the spinach, rice vinegar, 1 tablespoon soy sauce, honey, garlic and spring onion in a bowl. Allow to sit for at least 15 min. before serving.
In a saute pan over medium heat, cook the mushrooms and olive oil. After about a minute, at the remaining soy sauce and ponzu. Cook for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove the mushrooms; add the ground beef and about 1/4 cup kimchi, chopped. Cook until well done, about 5 minutes.
Mix the somen and sesame seeds together in a small bowl.
To serve, take a lettuce leaf and fill her up with any combination of spinach, kimchi, cucumbers, mushrooms, noodles or beef.