Banchan of stir-fried anchovies, cucumbers and kimchi

Banchan of stir-fried anchovies (left), seasoned cucumbers (right) and kimchi (back row).

When I was a little kid, I used to call anchovies "little fishies." I didn't know the real name back then, but I loved popping the tiny fish in my mouth and eating it with rice. Thinking of my mom's kitchen, I wanted to incorporate anchovies in my Level 5 Menu Project, a requirement at The French Culinary Institute. We have to create a menu for eight people and turn in a portfolio in January. We don't necessarily have to serve the dishes to eight guests, but we need to make sure the recipes work. 

I wanted to apply the classical French cooking techniques I've learned so far to Korean food, the cuisine I grew up with. Designing the menu made me even more passionate about cooking Korean cuisine. For the past few months, I've constantly flipped through Korean cookbooks, thinking about what I could make next.

I've always enjoyed banchan at Korean restaurants, but I never made my own at home. Banchan are side dishes that are traditionally served in small bowls at the beginning of a Korean meal. You could be served different types of seasoned vegetables, fish and kimchi. Sometimes a restaurant presents 12 banchan dishes. But for my menu, I just wanted three dishes: something fried, something cool on the tongue and something spicy.

Banchan of Fried Anchovies, Seasoned Cucumbers and Napa Cabbage Kimchi

Fried Anchovies
58 g or 2 ounces dried, small anchovies
15 ml or 1 tablespoon soy sauce
30 ml or 2 tablespoons water
30 g or 2 tablespoons honey
kochukaru or Korean red pepper powder to taste
vegetable oil
Mix soy sauce, water and honey and set aside. Saute anchovies in vegetable oil until they start to pop. Pour sauce over anchovies. Add kochukaru to taste. Serve in small bowls.

Seasoned cucumbers
2 kirby cucumbers, sliced thin
30 ml or 2 tablespoons rice vinegar
5 ml or 1 teaspoon sesame oil start, more to taste
salt to taste
freshly ground pepper to taste
Mix cucumbers, rice vinegar, sesame oil, salt and pepper. Serve in small bowls.

Napa cabbage kimchi
Makes about 4-5 quarts

3 medium Napa cabbage
6 tablespoons or 36 g kochukaru (fine Korean red pepper powder)
12 cloves garlic, peeled
3 teaspoons or 15 g fresh ginger, peeled; (just cut 3 round slices off a ginger root)
1/4 medium yellow onion
⅜ cup or 90 g salted shrimp
½ cup or 150 ml water, plus more if needed
kosher salt or sea salt
1 bunch scallions, cut into 2-inch lengths

Turn each Napa cabbage upside down. Make an incision through the core and then pry open the cabbage with your hands. Cut each cabbage half cross-wise in two-inch widths. Wash the cabbage in a sink filled with water. Spin dry. In a large bowl, drop handfuls of cabbage in one layer. Sprinkle salt over the layer. Add more cabbage and sprinkle more salt. Disgorge overnight. Keep in the refrigerator.

Meanwhile, make the kimchi sauce. Mix kochukaru, garlic, ginger, onion and salted shrimp in a blender. Add the water and mix. The sauce should look like bright red sludge. Cover and refrigerate.

In the morning, taste the cabbage. It should taste salty. Rinse the cabbage of excess salt. Rinse again if you think the cabbage is too salty. Drain for about 15 minutes. Cut the scallions and set aside.

Take out your kimchi sauce and taste it. Adjust seasoning. Then mix the sauce, scallions and cabbage in a large bowl with gloved hands. Pack the kimchi in glass jars or stainless steel containers. Pour in any excess sauce to cover the kimchi. (Add more water if needed to cover the kimchi.) If there's space in the jar, lay plastic wrap right over the kimchi. Then tightly seal the containers with more plastic wrap. Store kimchi containers in a dark place at room temperature for 24-48 hours before placing in the refrigerator. After four days, check on the kimchi and taste. (You can eat the kimchi right after you make it, but I prefer it to ferment longer.)

Variations:
Add julienned carrots, watercress, mustard greens and Korean chives.
Others use Korean anchovy sauce instead of salted shrimp.

A couple notes:
*Kochukaru is pronounced goh-chu kah-roo with a rolled "r." Korean red pepper powder varies in spiciness.
*Salted shrimp is pretty stinky. When you buy a jar, it may leak. That's why I transfer the salted shrimp into a glass jar and stick it in the freezer.

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