Comfort food means different things to different people. To use myself as an example: I was raised by a Southerner on a series of military bases, so to me comfort foods can be anything from slow-cooked grits served with lots of salted butter and black pepper to a bowl of miso with tofu and spring onions. Today, after the snow and the rain and the wind, all I wanted in life was kimchee.

Kimchee, also spelled kimchi or gimchi, is a traditional Korean side dish, often used almost as a condiment (ala Indian chutneys), of brined and fermented vegetables. The most common type of kimchee is baechu kimchee; baechu is a type of Chinese (Napa) cabbage. The cabbage is brined in salted water for several hours, rinsed, and then smeared with a seasoning paste made of garlic, scallions, Korean chili powder, and ginger, among other ingredients. After seasoning, the cabbage is packed into jars to ferment for at least a day or two. Kimchee, properly prepared and stored, can keep for months, but I prefer relatively fresh kimchee. There are probably thousands, if not millions, of variations on the basic recipe, but good kimchee, however it is prepared, is spicy-hot, salty-sweet, and perfectly tangy.

Kimchee is also a very healthy food, despite the sodium content. The vegetables provide lots of dietary fiber, as well as vitamins A, B1, B2, C, carotene, calcium, and iron. The fermentation process promotes beneficial bacteria, such as Lactobacillus kimchii, which aid digestion and keep intestinal fauna well-balanced. All of these factors make kimchee a wonderful food for when one is feeling a little under the weather, with the added bonus of clearing those sinuses right out.

Unfortunately, finding kimchee in Seattle can be challenging. As of the 2000 US Census, although 13.1% of Seattle residents identified as Asian, only .9% were self-identified Koreans, versus 3.4% Chinese or 2.1% Vietnamese. This might help explain why one can get a bowl of pho anywhere in town, but kimchee historically has only been available at Uwajimaya, or by bribing (extorting, semantics, whatever) Korean-American friends to part with some of their stash.

The tragic Seattle kimchee shortage is being addressed, finally. Both PCC and Whole Foods stores have been known to carry small jars, and there are a few Japanese-Korean restaurants around town that are rumored to serve kimchee to regulars, or upon request, although it’s not necessarily on the menu. I’m not insider enough to know what these restaurants are, and those who claim to know won’t tell me, so until recently I’ve been left to seethe in my own frustration.

I’m all better now, because our very own Pike Place Market is now home to Market Galbee, a Korean BBQ lunch counter right across from Pike Place Bakery, home of the giant “Texas” donuts and fritters. Market Galbee specializes in meat– galbi means “rib” in Korean, and generally refers to marinated and braised BBQ’d short-ribs– but if you look carefully, they also have a small menu of side dishes: rice, noodles, or kimchee, all for very little money. A fiver will feed a healthy appetite with change for a tip.

I recommend getting noodles to go with your kimchee. The kimchee is fresh, crisp, and spicy-tangy-salty-sweet, but the rice has been gummy and stale both times that I’ve ordered it. The noodles are a safer bet. And more fun!

Market Galbee
1505 Pike Place
(Main Arcade, top level)
206 623 3305