No.28 The 100 Most Popular Recipes Ever · October 2026

Napa cabbage kimchi

Made famous by Maangchi

Photo: Jeremy Keith, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons

From Maangchi's Real Korean Cooking, 2015. Maangchi is No. 9 on the Hot 100.

Korea eats it at every meal, and Maangchi's video taught millions outside Korea to make it. Her kimchi recipe is one of the most watched cooking videos online.

Written in our own words and tested in a home kitchen. Get the original in Maangchi's Real Korean Cooking.

Ingredients

• 1 large napa cabbage (about 4 lb, 2 kg)
• 1/2 cup (140 g) coarse sea salt (not iodized)
• For the porridge: 1 cup (240 ml) water and 2 tbsp sweet rice flour (glutinous rice flour)
• 1 tbsp sugar
• 1/2 cup (55 g) Korean chile flakes (gochugaru), more for spicier
• 1/4 cup (60 ml) fish sauce
• 1 tbsp salted fermented shrimp (saeujeot), chopped (optional)
• 12 garlic cloves and 1-inch piece ginger, minced together
• 1/2 medium onion, minced
• 1 cup (110 g) Korean radish or daikon, julienned
• 1 carrot, julienned (optional)
• 6 scallions, cut into 1-inch lengths

Steps

1. Cut the cabbage lengthwise into quarters through the core, then crosswise into 2-inch pieces. Rinse in cold water and drain.
2. Toss the cabbage in a big bowl with the salt, getting some between every leaf. Leave 1 1/2 hours, turning it every 30 minutes, until the thick white parts bend without snapping.
3. Rinse the cabbage three times in cold water to remove the salt, and drain well in a colander, 20 minutes. Taste a piece; it should be pleasantly salty, not harsh.
4. Make the porridge: whisk the water and rice flour in a small pot and cook over medium heat, stirring, until it bubbles and thickens like glue, 5 minutes. Stir in the sugar and cool.
5. Stir the chile flakes, fish sauce, shrimp, garlic, ginger and onion into the cooled porridge to make a paste.
6. Add the radish, carrot and scallions to the paste and mix. Add the cabbage and rub the paste into every piece with gloved hands.
7. Pack tightly into clean jars or a container, pressing down to remove air, leaving 1 inch of room at the top. Cover.
8. Leave at room temperature 1 to 2 days, until it smells sour and you see bubbles when you press it, then refrigerate. It's good fresh and keeps getting tangier for weeks.

Chef's tips

• Wear gloves: chile paste stings.
• Very sour old kimchi is perfect for kimchi fried rice or kimchi jjigae.

This is Chef Amazing's write-up of the dish, tested for a home kitchen. The original is in Maangchi's Real Korean Cooking by Maangchi: get the book, No. 44 on The 100 Greatest Cookbooks.

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