1. Remove any wilted or damaged outer leaves from the Napa cabbage. Trim the stem as little as possible, then quarter the cabbage starting from the stem – the leaves should still be held together at the stem, if possible. Place the quartered cabbage in a shallow bowl so the individual pieces can sit next to each other. Carefully pull the cabbage leaves apart and sprinkle the salt between the leaves. Pour a little cold water over the cabbage – the cabbage should only be submerged halfway. Then place a heavy object on top and let the cabbage rest at room temperature for about 2-2 1/2 hours, turning it over once.

2. Peel the Daikon or white radish and cut it into thin sticks. Core the pear and cut it into thin sticks as well. Clean the spring onions, half or quarter them lengthwise (depending on their thickness), and cut them into 3cm long pieces. Peel and finely chop the garlic. Peel the ginger and then finely chop or grate it. Mix everything with the Gochujang, Gochugaru, fish sauce, and coconut sugar in a bowl until well combined. You want the veggies to soften slightly in the process. You can mix and mash everything by hand (we recommend wearing gloves) or use the bottom of a small bowl or similar and press everything down. Set aside until ready to use.

3. Remove the Napa cabbage from the water and let it drain. Discard the salty water. Return the cabbage to the bowl and spread the radish mixture evenly between the cabbage leaves. Layer the prepared cabbage with the remaining radish mixture in a large (clean) jar or several smaller jars. Try to avoid air bubbles between the layers. The jar(s) should be almost completely full. If the quartered cabbage is too bulky for smaller jars, you can also cut it into smaller pieces and then layer those. Seal the jars (we always leave the lids slightly loose to allow any gases that will develop to escape) and let them sit at room temperature for 1-2 days.

4. As soon as you can see red liquid in the jar(s), the fermentation process has begun. The jars should now be kept in the fridge. After about a week, the kimchi will be thoroughly fermented and ready to use. If you’ve worked with clean equipment, the kimchi will keep in the fridge for up to 3 months, but it will become more intense in flavor (and smell) with each minute.