Kimchi types and 김장 (gimjang) — the Korean kimchi-making season

You sit down at a Korean restaurant. Before you order, two or three small plates arrive. One is red cabbage. One is white radish cubes. One is in a bowl of cold, clear liquid. All three are kimchi.

How many kinds of kimchi are there?

Korea's official tourism site says there are over 100 kinds. They change with the region, the season and the family. You do not need to know them all. These five will cover most tables.

A note on spelling: in the official Korean romanization system, 김치 is written gimchi. But in English, everyone writes kimchi. Both are the same word.

If the name ends in 김치, it is kimchi. The first part tells you the main vegetable. 배추 is napa cabbage. 물 is water. 오이 (oi) is cucumber, so 오이김치 is cucumber kimchi.

Here is a fun one. 총각 (chonggak) means "an unmarried young man." Nobody can say for sure why this radish has that name. So treat any story you hear about it as a story, not a fact.

What is 김장?

The standard Korean dictionary explains 김장 like this: making a lot of kimchi at once, to eat through the winter. The word also means the kimchi you made that day.

UNESCO describes the timing. Kimjang happens in late autumn, so that every home has enough food for the long, cold winter. But the work starts much earlier:

• In spring, families buy seafood for salting and fermenting.
• In summer, they get sea salt.
• In late summer, they dry red chili peppers and grind them into powder.

On kimjang day, many people work together. Some wash and salt the cabbage. Others mix the red seasoning. Then everyone rubs the seasoning into the leaves, one by one. At the end, families often share the finished kimchi with neighbors and relatives.

This is how you might hear it in late autumn:

• Friend: 이번 주말에 김장해요. ("We are making kimjang kimchi this weekend.")
• You: 와, 많이 해요? ("Wow, are you making a lot?")
• Friend: 네, 배추 오십 포기요! ("Yes, fifty heads of cabbage!")

포기 (pogi) means one whole plant, with its root. Koreans use it to count heads of cabbage.

How to talk about kimchi

Kimchi changes with time. It starts fresh and gets more sour each week. Koreans have words for every stage.

Real sentences you can use:

• 김치가 잘 익었어요. (gimchiga jal igeosseoyo) — "The kimchi is ready and tastes great."
• 깍두기가 아삭해요. (kkakdugiga asakaeyo) — "The radish kimchi is crunchy."
• 동치미 국물이 시원해요. (dongchimi gungmuri siwonhaeyo) — "The dongchimi liquid is refreshing."

Sour kimchi is not bad kimchi. Older, sour kimchi is often said to be the best kind for stew. Fresh kimchi is usually eaten as it is.

Easy mistakes

• Thinking all kimchi is spicy. 물김치 and 동치미 are usually not spicy. They are a good start if you do not like chili.
• Throwing away sour kimchi. Use it! It is perfect for 김치찌개 (kimchi stew) or kimchi pancakes.
• Using 시원하다 only for cold things. Here is a surprise. The dictionary says hot soup can also be 시원하다. It means the soup feels clean and good inside your body. A Korean may drink very hot soup and say 아, 시원하다!

Why did UNESCO list 김장?

UNESCO added "Kimjang, making and sharing kimchi in the Republic of Korea" to its Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity in 2013. UNESCO lists traditions, not only buildings.

Why kimjang? UNESCO points to the sharing. Families work together, and homes exchange kimchi. Recipes and skills move from one generation to the next. UNESCO says they are often passed from a mother-in-law to her new daughter-in-law. Each region and each family has its own way.

Korea also has an official Kimchi Day on November 22. The Korean government made it a legal day in 2020.

Quick check

1. You want kimchi that is not spicy. Which one do you choose? → 물김치 or 동치미
2. What is the kimchi made of small radish cubes? → 깍두기
3. When does 김장 usually happen? → Late autumn, to prepare for winter