Gather all of your ingredients. Before starting, completely sanitize your workspace and run three 12 oz canning jars through your dishwasher on high heat to sanitize them.\u00a0Or, you can alternatively sanitize your jars by submerging them in boiling water and then allowing them to air dry. I\u2019ve also shared more on this below the step-by-step photos for reference.<\/p>\nPrep the veggies: <\/strong>While you wait for your jars to sanitize, you can get started on the vegetables. Add 1\u00a0Tbsp agave syrup, 1 jalapeno (seeded), \u00bd red bell pepper (seeded), \u00bc red onion, 2\u00a0inch peeled fresh ginger, and 2\u00a0large garlic cloves to a food processor.<\/p>\nPulse them in the food processor until all the veggies break down into a paste-like consistency. Any visible veggies should roughly be all the same size, minced. Set this mixture to one side for now.<\/p>\nNow roughly chop or slice \u00bd\u00a0green cabbage and \u00bc\u00a0red cabbage, roughly chop 4 green onions (discarding only the very tip of the root), dice 2\u00a0ribs celery, julienne (thinly slice) 2 carrots, remaining \u00bd red bell pepper, and remaining \u00bc red onion. You can also chop up everything coarsely if desired (this recipe is very forgiving!)<\/p>\nMassage the vegetables: <\/strong>Add the prepped vegetables to a large mixing bowl and sprinkle with 1\u00a0Tbsp salt. With clean hands, massage the salt into the vegetables until they are all very soft (about 10 minutes).<\/p>\nAfter at least 10 minutes of massaging, add the processed vegetables and agave mixture from your food processor to the bowl. <\/p>\nMassage the vegetables with the spicy-sweet processed mixture for a further 5-10 minutes or until a significant amount of water has been released from the veggies.<\/p>\nYou should see it pooling at the bottom of your bowl, as shown in the photo above.<\/p>\nAdd to jars:<\/strong> Again, with clean hands, use a spoon to add your veggie mix to the sterilized jars.<\/p>\nPush the mixture down firmly with your spoon once full (a significant amount of liquid brine should rise to the top, covering the prepped veggies as you push down).<\/p>\nDon\u2019t waste any of the brine from the bottom of the mixing bowl! Try to top off each jar with as much as you can. You ideally want all the veggies to be submerged in the brine for fermentation.<\/p>\nFerment: <\/strong>Place the lids on the jars loosely <\/strong>and wipe down the sides of the jars. Now, place the jars in a dark place in your kitchen for 24 hours. (I like to place my jars in a spare Tupperware container and keep them under the sink so they are contained and in a warm(ish) place to help with the early fermentation process.)<\/p>\n\n
Once it\u2019s been 24 hours, carefully \u201dburp\u201d each jar by removing the lid. This allows some of the naturally occurring gases from the fermentation process to escape the jars. If your kitchen is quite warm, you may want to \u201dburp\u201d your jars after 12 hours, not 24, to release the gases and avoid any small explosions!<\/p>\n
After the initial 24-hour fermentation period, you want to burp your jars every 8-12 hours until you see consistent and active bubbles whenever you open the lid. As soon as you see lots of bubbling on a regular basis, screw the lid on tight and transfer the jars into your refrigerator. Now it\u2019s ready to be eaten!<\/p>\n<\/div>\nWhat is lacto-fermentation?<\/h2>\n\n
I mentioned lacto-fermentation earlier, but I just wanted to touch on what that actually means. It\u2019s a natural preservation process where good bacteria (lactobacillus) feed on the sugars in the veggies and produce lactic acid. That acid gives these fermented veggies a tangy flavor and helps keep them safe to eat. This is the same process used when making sauerkraut and dill pickles. But before that can happen, we need to salt the veggies.<\/p>\n
Salting helps draw out moisture, slows the growth of harmful bacteria, and creates a brine that sets the stage for fermentation. So, yes, all that massaging the veggies isn\u2019t just a good workout\u2014it\u2019s vital for the lacto-fermentation process!<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
\n
\n
\nCLEAN CLEAN CLEAN!<\/strong> <\/em>Whether you\u2019re experimenting with this recipe, sauerkraut, pickling, brewing beer, or making kombucha, you want to make sure you\u2019re always working with clean materials when it comes to fermentation. We\u2019re trying to promote healthy bacteria, not the bad kind!<\/li>\nSanitize your jars.<\/strong> Following on from the previous point, you must sanitize your jars before starting this recipe. Run them through the dishwasher on high heat, submerge them in boiling water, and let them air dry, or give them a bath in a food-grade hydrogen peroxide and water mix (follow the label for the correct ratio and instructions).<\/li>\nKeep it submerged.<\/strong> You can use the rough ends of your cabbage and red onion or the butts of carrots to help keep the prepared vegetables submerged in the brine during the fermentation process. Just put the lid on top after you add the rough vegetable ends. Before you get to the refrigerator step, discard those pieces of veggies that didn\u2019t go beneath the brine. If you skip this tip, you must remove any fermented vegetables that didn\u2019t sit underneath the brine before eating.<\/strong> (Sometimes this happens if you are short on brine.) Everything underneath will be fermented just right and safe to eat!<\/li>\nDon\u2019t tighten the lid during fermentation.<\/strong> Make sure to leave the lid loose while your vegetables ferment. Tightening the lid too early can lead to pressure buildup (and possibly a veggie explosion\u2026not fun!)<\/li>\nUse a sea salt with no additives. <\/strong>Stick to plain sea salt with no additives. Additives can interfere with fermentation, and I want you to give those good bacteria the best chance to thrive!<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/div>\n
![\"Homemade](\"https:\/\/www.budgetbytes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/Homemade-Kimchi-PIN2.jpg\")
<\/div>\n![\"Homemade](\"https:\/\/www.budgetbytes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/Homemade-Kimchi-PIN1.jpg\")
<\/div>\n![\"Overhead](\"https:\/\/www.budgetbytes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/Kimchi_V1.jpg\"\/)
![\"Overhead](\"https:\/\/www.budgetbytes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/Kimchi_V1.jpg\")
<\/figure>\n