Cucumber Kimchi

ingredients: 

• 9 kirby cucumbers or about 2 lbs (Your choice. I usually like the Japanese cucumbers but these Kirby cucumbers were on sale at my asian market)

• Coarse salt

• 1/2 medium carrot, cut and sliced into thin strips that fits about 1/2 cup 

• One bunch asian chives, chopped into 1 inch pieces fits about 1 cup

• 1 tbsp minced garlic

• 1 tsp shrimp paste 

• 1/2 cup gochugaru (red pepper flakes)

• 3 tbsp fish sauce (make sure that it's the three crab brand)

• 1 tbsp plum extract (optional)

• 1 tbsp cane sugar

steps:

1. Scrub the cucumbers with salt and wash it with water. Then cut off the ends of each cucumber. While holding it upright, with a small knife carefully cut a ring around the top and bottom edges. (This is optional, but I have noticed that it makes it easier to eat. If the cucumber has soft skin, feel free to skip this step) In a large bowl, sprinkle coarse sea salt on top of the cucumbers and toss. Then set aside and let it brine for 10 minutes. 

2. Wash and cut chives into 1 inch pieces to fit 1 cup. Wash and peel a medium carrot and cut them into 1/2 inch slices matchsticks to fit 1/2 cup.

sorry disregard the bowl contaminated with the red pepper flakes on the sides. i was also making green onion kimchee at the same time and was lazy to wash the bowl in between the two recipes.

3. Mix the minced garlic, shrimp paste, gochugaru (red pepper flakes), fish sauce, plum extract, and cane sugar.

4. Add the paste into the bowl with the carrots and chives and mix the ingredients together.

5. Let's return to the cucumbers. After 10 minutes, they should be more bendy and wilted. With a small fruit knife, carefully cut a slit down and only along the middle part of the cucumber. Be sure not to cut the top and bottom parts. We want the top and bottom ends of the cucumbers to be intact. Turn the cucumber a quarter way and cut another slit. 

if you press the top and bottom ends together, the slits will look like this. 

6. Insert as much of the red pepper mix into the slits of the cucumbers. Then rub the rest of the red paste over the cucumbers.

7. After you are done inserting the chives and carrots into the cucumbers, they are ready to be refrigerated. Line them inside a tupperware. I prefer a glass tupperware with an airtight lid. This side dish can be eaten immediately with steamed rice. Also, I like my cucumber kimchi crunchy, so I try to finish this side dish within 1-1.5 weeks. If you wait any longer, the cucumbers will lose their crispness. Enjoy!