So last Sunday, I decided to don my dirndl in search of a social experiment.

Just how far can a Fräulein go with a winning smile and bowl of fresh kimchi?

Apparently pretty far.  Being a Sunday in Germany, I couldn’t pop over to a shop in search of daikon-rettich or chinakohl, but I did have a freshly purchased, 100% organic kohlrabi.  What the heck, kohl is kohl, and this Fräulein is all about the fusion.  So I chopped and mixed my way to a bowl of instant kimchi and fed the masses.

The recipe for my deutsche Kohlrabi-Kimchi  was simple:

Peel and slice a kohlrabi into thin slices and then quarter. In a bowl mix together 1-2 TBS Korean Chili Powder (now you should know how I feel about bad chili powder…for heaven’s sake whatever you do don’t buy a Korean chili powder that’s been made in China! And yes…it is worth it to shell out for the more expensive stuff.  Look for the label that’s the Korean equivalent for “organic” co-op farming), 2-3 TBS rice vinegar, a dash of fish and soy sauce, 1-2 tsp sugar.  Mix together madly, add a few toasted sesame seeds and minced green onion, and voila…instant “kimchi.” (this isn’t the kind that ferments so eat up while its fresh)

My friend Max joined me on this venture to document the experiment, and here are some of the results.  If anyone wants to be my photo/videographer to hit up yet another one of Berlin’s finest Flohmarkts…drop me an email.

kimchi on the run

you'll like it, promise

sehr scharf!

schmeckt das?

ja!

the lovely stand where i bought my kohlrabi

you know you want it!

the amused bystander

she looked skeptical but she liked it anyway

now everybody wants the kimchi

"that would taste good with beer!"

open wiiiiiiiide!

and....finished.