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Has anyone had luck finding kimchee that is compliant or do you guys make your own?

I went to the largest Asian grocery store I've ever been to today and looked at EVERY bottle and container of kimchee the store had (over 25 kinds!) and each and every one listed sugar in some form. I was amazed that there wasn't a single type without sugar.

Vegan ones. Cucumber ones. Garlicy spicy ones. Plain ones. Country style ones. Spring onion ones. Ones with nothing else but a tiny list of ingredients written in English. Ones packaged from a bulk container by the grocery store staff.

Every damn kind had sugar. Does anyone have any advice?

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I found a random jar at my grocery store that was compliant, but don't remember the brand. Wild Brine makes some (not all varieties are compliant, but some were last time I looked) -- you might find those at a Whole Foods or Sprouts or a local health food store.

It's not hard to make, but it does take time -- it'll need to ferment at least a couple of weeks, and if it's like sauerkraut, possibly a couple of months or longer. This blog has a couple of recipes, I haven't tried either of them, but I've tried others of her fermented recipes and found them easy to follow and tasty, so if I were going to do kimchi, I'd probably pick one of her recipes.

 

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If you have any Farmer's markets or the like close by you could see if there are any local fermenter's with a stall. We're lucky enough to have a number of fermenter's here in Ireland and they tend to tour the markets selling their produce - kimchi, kraut, sourdough bread (not compliant obviously!), all kinds of fermented veg & kombucha. I buy kimchi from a Polish lady who has settled here - it's expensive, but I know there are no added nasties, and it has quite the kick!!

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1 hour ago, Babsie95 said:

I don't know this answer but would sugar in Kimchi be ok? kinda like in the first ferment of kombucha, It is fermented...

No, it's not. I think because you can actually make kimchi without sugar, it's not necessary to the process, unlike kombucha where there must be sugar for it to ferment at all. 

 

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Thanks for all the replies, folks. One of my jobs is located across the street from Whole Foods so I'll check them out next week when I go in for a shift. If not, I may look into fermenting my own. There aren't many farmer's markets around me this time of year, and truth be told, I've never once seen a fermenter's stand. Produce, honey, wine, candles, soap, bread, cheese, yes. Fermented stuff, no. Too bad, it sounds like a lovely idea.

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  • 3 weeks later...

Unlikely this particular one is available outside of Australia, but it's worth looking for refrigerated sauerkraut (the kind that must be kept in the fridge) as they may have a kimchi version, they're not always marketed as kimchi.

This one comes from the hippy heart of Australia, Byron Bay and is found in health food shops and some online grocers.

https://glutenfreeshop.com.au/peace-love-and-vegetables-kimchi-medium-superkraut-sauerkraut-680g.html

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  • 3 weeks later...

Hi folks!  I am new to Whole30...my husband and I are on day 2.  (Feel so blessed he is doing it along with me!)  I have been making my own Kimchi for a long time.  There are lots of easy recipes on Pinterest.  Instead of using sugar I puree half of a pear and half of an apple in a cup of filtered water and add it to the rest of the ingredients.  This greatly aids the fermentation process.    Hope this helps!!  (Sunja's from Whole Foods is also good, but as already mentioned, pricey.  Kimchi is SOOO good for your gut---full of healthy probiotics.

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  • 4 weeks later...
On ‎1‎/‎19‎/‎2017 at 7:49 PM, susanj2870 said:

Hi folks!  I am new to Whole30...my husband and I are on day 2.  (Feel so blessed he is doing it along with me!)  I have been making my own Kimchi for a long time.  There are lots of easy recipes on Pinterest.  Instead of using sugar I puree half of a pear and half of an apple in a cup of filtered water and add it to the rest of the ingredients.  This greatly aids the fermentation process.    Hope this helps!!  (Sunja's from Whole Foods is also good, but as already mentioned, pricey.  Kimchi is SOOO good for your gut---full of healthy probiotics.

Susan, that sounds great. Would you mind posting the entire recipe along with your process? I'd love to try your pear and apple puree method. Thank you!

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  • 1 year later...
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Remember to check not just for added sugar but for soy -- there are different types of kimchi, and I've seen some that contain miso or tempeh, either of which would make it not okay for Whole30 even if there's no sugar added. 

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9 minutes ago, xx_firefly said:

Yeah....kimchi usually contains some kind of sugar (and maybe miso or soy) as Shannon mentioned above. It needs something to ferment on. But if anyone finds any brand name compliant kimchi, let me know! #koreanproblems

This one is: https://wildbrine.com/product/korean-kimchi/ (but this brand has a version that is not, so be sure you get the right one). Their website has a store locator so you can look and see where it might be available near you.

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