Perilla leaf pickles

(The other recipe in this video is Kkaennip-kimchi)

Kkaennip are one of my favorite vegetables. They have a unique flavor and are used for so many Korean dishes. They’re also easy to grow!

Ingredients:

• 1 pound of perilla leaves (about 450 grams)
• soy sauce (1½ cup)
• a medium size apple
• 1 medium size onion
• 4-5 cloves of garlic
• 1 cup water
• 2 jalapeño peppers
• 1 tbs of sliced ginger

Directions:

1. Wash and drain 1 pound of perilla leaves and put them into a basket.
   *tip: Wash the both sides of each leaf in runny cold water and shake it to drain water
2. Prepare 1½ cup soy sauce to salt the leaves.
3. Pick some perilla leaves (about a dozen leaves) and put them into a large bowl. Drizzle soy sauce directly between the leaves, little by little.
4. Repeat until you used all the leaves.
   (You will see some soy sauce on the bottom of the bowl)
5. Turn the leaves over a couple of times to salt evenly and wait about 1 hour.
6. 1 hour later, squeeze the leaves slightly and put them into a container.
7. Transfer the liquid of soy sauce brine to a pot.
8. Add 1 cup of water, 1 medium size sliced onion, 4-5 cloves garlic, 1 medium sized sliced apple, 1 tbs of sliced ginger to the brine.
9. Bring to a boil for 30 minutes over medium high heat.
10. Strain the brine and cool it down until it reaches room temperature.
11. Pour the brine onto the leaves in the container and keep it in the refrigerator.

Serve with rice!
When you serve it, transfer some leaves to a serving plate and garnish with roasted perilla leaves and shredded red pepper (called shilgochu or silgochu: 실고추).