Abigail and Duane Lunde are bringing local kimchi to Austin, Texas, one of the nation’s culinary capitals. The couple makes several variations of Korea’s national dish and have seen tremendous success selling their products in the foodie city they call home. The recipes used at their business, Oh Kimchi, are passed down from Abigail’s Grandma Oh, the namesake of the burgeoning kimchi enterprise. Like many modern culinary endeavors, Oh Kimchi came to fruition after the couple began selling jars of kimchi at farmers markets. Kimchi is an interesting food in that there are infinite ways to prepare and flavor it, allowing any aspiring cook to make the dish their own. Austin culinary courses are the perfect place to learn the techniques necessary to make kimchi at home.
Kimchi
Kimchi is generally composed of fermented cabbage, fish sauce, ginger, chili peppers and garlic, although at times the main ingredient can be other vegetables such as cucumber. The dish was originally not much more than cabbage and beef stock, but red chilies have become a staple ingredient, providing more spice and flavor. This dish differs in various regions and also changes with the seasons based on what crops are being cultivated.
Kimchi is an incredibly versatile ingredient. Though it can be eaten on its own as a side dish or snack, it can also be added to sandwiches, soups, tacos and more. The Oh Kimchi website includes a wide array of recipes in which its products can be included.
Furthermore, kimchi boasts many health benefits, including four times the probiotics found in Greek yogurt, making it in many ways a superfood.
Oh Kimchi Austin
The couple worked in Johnson’s Backyard Garden in Austin before establishing Oh Kimchi in 2013. Encouraged by supporters and fans of their kimchi, Abigail and Duane decided to make a business of their jarred culinary delights. Abigail is half Korean and says that the authentic recipes were passed down from her mother and grandmother. The family recipe has been used for over half a century, and jars of the kimchi were originally sold by Abigail’s grandmother in its country of origin. Oh Kimchi caters to many tenets of the Austin food scene, mainly using local ingredients and emphasizing sustainability. This allows the couple to provide customers with the freshest, most nutritious kimchi.
