Traditional napa cabbage kimchi (Tongbaechu-kimchi)

Instructions

1. If the cabbage cores stick out too much, trim them off with your knife over your cutting board.
2. To split a cabbage in half without shredding the densely packed leaves inside, first cut a short slit in the base of the cabbage, enough to get a grip on either half, and then gently pull the halves apart so the cabbage splits open.
3. Cut a slit through the core of each half, 2 inches above the stem, keeping the cabbage leaves loose but still attached to the core.
4. Dunk the halves in a large basin of water to get them wet.
5. Sprinkle salt between the leaves by lifting up every leaf and getting salt in there, using more salt closer to the stems where the leaves are thicker.
6. Let the cabbages rest for 2 hours, turning over every 30 minutes so they get well salted.
7. After 2 hours, wash the cabbage halves a few times under cold running water to remove the salt and any dirt.
8. As you wash, split the halves into quarters along the slits you cut into earlier.
9. Cut off the cores, give them a final rinse, and put them in a strainer over a basin so they can drain well.
10. Combine the water and the sweet rice flour in a small pot and mix well with a wooden spoon.
11. Let the mixture cook over medium heat for about 10 minutes until it starts to bubble.
12. Add the sugar and cook 1 more minute, stirring.
13. Remove from the heat and let it cool off completely.
14. Pour cooled porridge into a large mixing bowl.
15. Add garlic, ginger, onion, fish sauce, fermented salted shrimp, and hot pepper flakes to the porridge.
16. Mix well with the wooden spoon until the mixture turns into a thin paste.
17. Add the radish, carrot, and green onion, plus the Asian chives and the water dropwort if you're using them, and mix well.
18. In a large bowl, spread some kimchi paste on each cabbage leaf.
19. When every leaf in a quarter is covered with paste, wrap it around itself into a small packet and put into your jar, plastic container, or onggi.
20. Eat right away, or let it sit for a few days to ferment at room temperature.
21. Once it starts to ferment, store in the refrigerator to use as needed and slow down the fermentation process.