← Nouns Cooking · Korean

Ingredients

• 300 g short-grain rice, rinsed and cooked
• 1 tbsp Toasted sesame oil
• ½ tsp Salt
• 1 tsp Sesame seeds
• 200 g Spinach
• 2 Carrot, cut into thin matchsticks
• 3 Eggs
• 4 strips of pickled yellow radish (danmuji)
• 1 Cucumber, cut into long batons, seeds removed
• ½ tsp Salt, divided
• 1 tsp Toasted sesame oil
• 1 tbsp Vegetable oil
• 4 sheets sheets of roasted seaweed (gim)
• 1 tsp sesame oil, for brushing

Method

1. While the rice is still warm, gently fold in the sesame oil, salt and sesame seeds with a spatula, without mashing the grains. Spread it out to cool to just warm.
2. Blanch the spinach in boiling water for 30 seconds, rinse in cold water and squeeze dry. Season with a pinch of salt and the sesame oil. Toss the cucumber batons with a pinch of salt for 10 min, then pat dry.
3. Heat a little oil in a frying pan over medium heat and stir-fry the carrot with a pinch of salt for 1–2 min until just soft.
4. Beat the eggs with a pinch of salt. Cook them in the lightly oiled pan over low heat as a thin omelette for 2–3 min, flipping once, then cut into long strips.
5. Lay a sheet of seaweed shiny side down on a bamboo mat or board. Spread a quarter of the rice thinly over it with damp fingers, leaving a 3 cm strip bare at the far edge.
6. Line up a quarter of each filling across the middle of the rice. Lift the near edge and roll it firmly over the fillings, tucking as you go, then keep rolling to the end. Dab the bare edge with a few grains of rice to seal.
7. Brush the rolls with sesame oil, then slice into 1.5 cm rounds with a sharp, wet knife, wiping it between cuts.

Tips

• Kimbap is best eaten the day it is made; the rice turns hard in the fridge. Cool the rice quickly and keep rolls cool if packing them for later.
• Leave out the egg and add strips of pan-fried tofu for a vegan roll.

Sources

Written in our own words after cross-checking these recipes:

Korean Bapsang Kimchimari Beyond Kimchee