Napa cabbage before being hacked to bits as an offering for the kimchi gods.
Not long ago there was a class provided by The Sustainable Living Arts School in Vancouver, BC that was devoted entirely to the art and culture of kimchi. For those who aren’t exactly sure what sustainable living is, it involves doing anything possible to reduce our impact on the available natural resources. This translates to everything from reducing one’s carbon footprint to altering your diet. Basically the idea is that once you’ve kicked the bucket, there should be as little trace that you were ever here as possible. No garbage left behind, and no reduction in the resources that were available when you first arrived.
Natural kimchi (which can be tricky to find nowadays) is an excellent addition to any sustainable living diet because it is a fermented product (fermentation is a sustainable practice), and because it consists of all vegetables/spices with no commercially processed food products. Additionally, to quote from the Sustainable Living Arts School, “It’s spicy, delicious, and very, very good for you!” If you don’t know how to make it yourself, Granny Choe is happy to provide you with some… in a highly recyclable glass jar.
