Vegan Kimchi Focaccia
Putting bread and kimchi together. Is that allowed? I know I haven’t posted a proper blog entry or recipe on here for a while but I recently threw together these two things that I love, namely some leftover kimchi and a fluffy focaccia dough, and it turned out so lovely, to my surprise, that I just had to share!
The kimchi flavor comes out so nicely in this one, but also pairing it with a fluffy yeast dough reduces its tartness and acidity, so I’d say it’s a perfect and fun twist for kimchi lovers and first-triers alike. (Ofc kimchi is amazing on its own, but if you like to get creative with your favorite foods from time to time, this is a fun twist to try, hehe!)
and here comes the recipe for this:
Vegan kimchi Focaccia
Ingredients:
for the main dough:
325g + additional 30-40g all-purpose flour or light spelt flour
1 tsp salt
165g chopped up (vegan) kimchi*
leftover kimchi juice (this was about 15g for me)
200g lukewarm water
2 tbsp olive oil
1 tsp sugar or maple syrup
1 1/2 tsp dry active yeast
for the toppings:
some more kimchi
some more olive oil
flaky salt
black pepper (optional)
gochugaru flakes (korean red pepper flakes) (optional)
sesame seeds (optional)
pumpkin seeds (optional)
Instructions:
To make the focaccia dough, dissolve the dry active yeast in the lukewarm water, add the olive oil, kimchi juice and sugar and set aside.
Combine salt and 325g of flour in a bowl, add the chopped up kimchi and mix roughly.
Add the yeast mixture and bring everything together with a (wooden) spoon until a sticky dough forms. (The dough will be quite sticky, but that’s okay, it does not need to be pretty at this point.)
Cover the dough with a clean kitchen towel and let it rise in a warm space for 1-2 hours until doubled in size. (The longer you let the dough rise, the fluffier it’ll get).
Once the dough has doubled in size, add the additional 30-40g of flour and fold / knead the dough a few times.
Then transfer to an oiled baking dish (or one that has been lined with parchment paper) and spread it out.
Chop up some more kimchi and decorate your focaccia with it, plus anything else that you like (e.g. gochugaru, sesame, pumpkin seeds, black pepper,…)
Let the dough rise for another 15-30mins while preheating the oven to 200°C. Brush the focaccia generously with some more olive oil and top with some flaky salt.
Bake for about 40-45mins until golden brown and serve right away, for example with some vegan yoghurt and spring onion, cream cheese, gochujang dip, or simply on its own, while it’s still fresh and fluffy!*
what a surprisingly good combination.
*Notes:
Some Kimchi is traditionally prepared with animal, specifically fish, ingredients, so if you want to be sure, look for a certified vegan variety at the asian grocery store.
The focaccia stays fluffy and juicy for another day or two if kept at room temperature (never store yeast dough in the fridge, or it will dry out faster!). However if you really want to have a super nice leftover piece, just sprinkle some water on top and re-bake the focaccia for a few minutes until the outside gets amazingly crispy again.
Did you make this recipe?
leave a comment or tag me on Instagram @choartemi