Korean Kimbap

Ingredients

  • 4 sushi nori sheets 
  • 120 g spinach (4.2 ounces), asian or baby spinach
  • 2 eggs , beaten
  • 1/2 carrot (120g / 4.2 ounces), julienned
  • 2 to 4 imitation crab sticks (depending on the length), cut in half length ways
  • 4 sticks spam, (cut spam block into long sticks)
  • pickled radish, cut into 4 long strips  
  • 12 strips seasoned edible burdock root (optional)
  • 2 1/2 cups steamed rice
  • 2 Tbsp sesame oil, divided
  • 3/8 tsp fine sea salt (or more to taste), divided

Instructions

  • Rinse the spinach and parboil it in rapidly boiling water (30 seconds to 1 minute). Drain the water away and run some cold water over the spinach. Gently squeeze the spinach to remove any excess water. Put the spinach into a bowl. Add 1/8 tsp salt and 1/2 Tbsp sesame oil then mix them well.
  • Pre-heat a pan/skillet. Add a small dash of cooking oil and spread it around the pan. Add the beaten egg and cook both sides well over medium heat. Place the egg omelette on a cutting board and cut it into long strips.
  • In a heated pan, lightly cook the carrots, crab sticks and spam (about 1 min per ingredients), separately, and over medium heat. (Some people use these raw, but I prefer cooking them first for my kimbap.)
  • Place the cooked rice into a mixing bowl then add 1/2 Tbsp sesame oil and 1/4 tsp fine sea salt (or more to taste). Mix them well with a rice spatula.
  • Gather all the kimbap ingredients at the ‘kimbap rolling station’. This makes it easy to assemble.
  • Place one dried seaweed sheet on the bamboo mat (shiny side down). Put the rice on the seaweed sheet then spread it evenly and thinly to cover about 2/3 of the seaweed. (Leave about 5cm / 2 inches gap at the top of the seaweed).
  • Now fill the seaweed with the filing ingredients. Make sure you evenly use the ingredients so that you’re not short of them later.

    Here’s how I do it. (A short video instruction within the post above.) Place one yellow radish pickle at about 1/3 point of the seaweed then add three burdock strips, one ham strip, one crab stick around it. Then pile up a few eggs strips, carrot sticks, and some spinach. Then roll the seaweed.

    If the seaweed doesn’t stick, paste some water on the gap you left in step 6. You can also use a few grains of cooked rice in this gap. Set the rolled kimbap aside.
  • Repeat the step 6 and 7 with the remaining ingredients.
  • Line up all kimbap on a cutting board and paste some sesame oil (1 Tbsp) around the seaweed surface. Slice kimbap into bite size pieces. Serve.
Korean Kimbap

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