My cousin's kimchi comment made me check my whole process

I was showing my cousin my latest batch of kimchi, and he said it looked 'too clean' and asked if I was using tap water. He told me his grandma in Busan always said city water could slow down the good bacteria because of the chlorine. I've been using filtered water for my kombucha for years but never thought about it for kimchi. I looked it up, and sure enough, a lot of guides say to use spring or boiled water that's cooled. I just finished a batch with bottled water, and the ferment started bubbling in under 48 hours, way faster than before. Has anyone else noticed a big difference when they switched their water source?

3 comments

3 Comments

sanchez.ivan23d ago

Oh man, that's so true. I read this whole article about how even tiny bits of chlorine in tap water can really mess with the start of a ferment. It doesn't kill everything, but it can make the good stuff sluggish. I started leaving my water out in an open jug overnight for my ferments, and it made a huge difference. Your cousin's grandma from Busan definitely knows her stuff.

garcia.wren23d ago

Totally! I've even heard that chloramine, which some cities use now, doesn't evaporate out at all. For that, a tiny pinch of campden tablet crushed into the water works wonders. It neutralizes it almost instantly so you don't have to wait.

charlesschmidt23d ago

Ugh, that sluggish start is the worst. Glad you found a fix that works.