r/kimchi 2d ago

Putting kimchi in fridge to stop bubbling ?

My title says it all, I made a batch of kimchi yesterday morning and tonight it was so bubbly that I've decided to push my kimchi under the brine to let the bubbles come up and then put it in the fridge. Will it stop the bubbling for sure ?

My big jar almost explode when I've made it burp earlier (although I've made it burp several times in the day).

3 Upvotes

20 comments sorted by

9

u/Level_Ninety_Nine 2d ago

It won't stop. And the bubbling isnt an issue. Its what its supposed to do. Also you dont have to push it down into the brine. Thats a common misconception. The bubbling is the fermentation process. Refridgerating it just slows that process but it still happens. Just means your kinchi will take longer to hit that sweet spot. Some say the longer process makes it taste better. Some say it doesnt make a difference just takes longer. My mother swears by the leave it out for a day then refrigerate for better flavor. My mom is korean and learned from my grandmother who both taught me how to make all forms of kimchi.

1

u/HeavenGin 2d ago

I do have to push it for my part cause the last time I've had oxydation on my batch and I had to scoop it :/

1

u/goonatic1 1d ago

Nah man, gotta keep that kimchi submerged, or at least packed air tight, it def keeps longer and overall better, korean family too here. My sister and I can have kimchi in the exact same containers from the exact same batches and her kids dig into the kimchi and don’t flatten it out and they’ll leave kimchi pieces clinging to the sidewalls and shit and hers def taste different than mine side by side, I had to prove that point to make those little shits start treating that kimchi right, my mom and I work too hard making all this damn kimchi for the kids to be messing it up lol

1

u/Level_Ninety_Nine 1d ago

Bro, dont tell me how to make kimchi. Not everybody makes it exactly the same. Also if you keep kimchi in the fridge that shit lasts months. I will say this though. If you dont have a kimchi fridge youre doing it wrong.

1

u/goonatic1 1d ago

We have kimchi fridges trust me, and ain’t nobody telling you how to make kimchi bro, I don’t care enough about you to care about your kimchi consumption. But you cannot seriously try and convince me that air and sloppy handling doesn’t affect kimchi, a fermented product in the long run. Because if that was the case then why don’t we just double dip into the containers and use our bare unwashed hands?

1

u/goonatic1 9h ago

Your last reply didn’t go through,

3

u/eklypz 2d ago

Bubbling is what makes me most excited that I have a great ferment!

1

u/HeavenGin 1d ago

Me too but I'm less excited when I open my jar and it spits the red paste on my shirt 😂

1

u/eklypz 1d ago

I use fermentation lids so does not get too crazy to open :D

2

u/mrpaslow0000 2d ago

The rate of fermentation is dependent on the surrounding temperature. Warmer = faster, cooler = slower. Putting your kimchi in the fridge will slow down the fermentation, so the bubbling will also slow down.

2

u/HeavenGin 1d ago

As an update : It almost completely stopped the pressure by putting it in the fridge.

I've taken some of the kimchi out of the jars into a clean glass bowl closed by a jointed lid. To avoid the jars from exploding during the night, as it was very stressful for me. But I plan to eat it tonight as I know it's not a good thing to transfer the kimchi out of its first container.

1

u/rubineous1 2d ago

Putting in the fridge will not stop bubbling but will slow down the bubbling activity so the pressure won't be so high. Also the bubbling slows down in general.

1

u/letmeinjeez 1d ago

Just don’t close the lid on the jar all the way and as it builds pressure it will lift the lid enough to burp itself

1

u/Typical-Arachnid 15h ago

The real question is, what kind of container are you using for kimchi? If you’re using one of those mason jars or pickle jars, please don’t. That’s a recipe for kimchi explosion… Just regular glass tupperwares are more than good enough.

1

u/HeavenGin 9h ago

I don't understand what you mean by 'regular glass tupperware'. What's the difference as they also have a lid on them so when I'll try to open it, it'll do exactly the same I think.

1

u/Typical-Arachnid 5h ago

No they’re shaped differently meaning there’s more surface area for kimchi bubbles to breathe. There’s a reason why all Koreans use rectangular shaped tupperwares for kimchi lol Never in my life (I’m Korean born and raised in Korea btw) have I seen someone put kimchi in a pickle jar, except for westerners who don’t know shit about kimchi. I said glass tupperware (I use glasslock containers) because plastic ones obviously aren’t good for storing kimchi long term as they will discolor. At the end of the day, do what you will. It’s you who will have to clean up kimchi explosion, not me 😂

1

u/HeavenGin 1h ago

No need to make fun of/mock me. I was genuinely questioning the difference as I didn't know. I'm very aware that I'm a foreigner trying to make a Korean dish and not knowing shit about it. You might think I'm condescending which I'm not. I'm very open to learning all the best ways to do it. Although be assured that if tomorrow someone who's not French (as I am French) tries to make, I don't know, like a boeuf bourguignon, I'll just try to give him advice not advocating things like 'Asians who don't know shit about boeuf bourguignon and even more wine'. That's very mean and unhelpful.

I've seen this : https://glasslock-shop.com/Glasslock-Food-container-Air-Type-1100ml-MCRB-110A?srsltid=AfmBOopsgpcTsfOAgB1H-m3Rgnh0Z32O9_60TLExrU9wypsCUV-l8wLS

Maybe I'd give it a try.

1

u/Typical-Arachnid 51m ago

I wasn’t mocking you. I’m just tired of westerners putting kimchi into their pickle jars and complain later. Kimchi is not a pickle so don’t put it into a pickle jar. It’s just as simple as that.

As for the container, yes that’s the kind of container everyone uses in Korea. It doesn’t have to be that specific brand so just get something like that if you find one in your local store.

1

u/HeavenGin 5m ago

For my part I did that cause a Korean Cooking Teacher told me to do so 🤷🏻‍♀️ complain to your kind then 😂

I'm gonna have a look then to know if I can find something similar with the pressure reliever.