Kimchi Mari is a very quick (5 min) kimchi rice dish that you can make any time. Just need rice, kimchi and few seasonings. No cooking is required! (except for rice). So simple and delicious!!
Yesterday was one of those days when I really did not feel like cooking anything but still wanted to have something good to eat for lunch. And then it hit me…Kimchi Mari 김치말이. I almost forgot how great this is! I LOVE how easy this is to make and how light and refreshing it is. I used to make this all the time when I lived in Korea.
The story behind Kimchi Mari (Also the name of my blog)
Now, if you don’t have any friends or family who came from North Korea during the Korean war, you probably have not heard of this dish before. Kimchi Mari is very uniquely North Korean, similar to Naengmyun(냉면) or Bossam Kimchi(보쌈김치). And unlike the latter dishes, very few restaurants serve Kimchi Mari. I think I have rarely seen it in menus in all the restaurants I have visited in Seoul.
Because both sides of my family are originally from North Korea (both my parents escaped separately to South Korea during the war and met up again afterwards-talk about destiny..), I grew up eating many North Korean dishes such as the ones above.
As a kid, I often had sleepovers at my cousin’s home and my aunt made Kimchi Mari for us as a nighttime snack! When I first saw it, I thought they were crazy – eating a full rice meal as a snack?? But once I tasted it, I could not stop eating it. Kimchi Mari is especially refreshing and delicious when it is made with ice cold Kimjang kimchi(김장김치) during the winter months.
But not many of us have that luxury so just use the best quality, well-fermented kimchi you can get and it will still be good.
Anyway, that’s why I enjoy this dish and when it became the time to name my blog, I thought of this dish because it’s the quintessential Korean food that reminds me of home and my heritage. Also, it’s pretty catchy and easy to pronounce, no?
Added 12/28/2020
Of course, I never imagined I would read or hear – “Hello Mari, Hello Kim”,.. lol. Which I don’t mind at all. At least, no one has called me ‘kimchi’ so far.. 😜😝
What is Kimchi Mari 김치말이?
The word ‘mari(말이)’ comes from the verb ‘malda(말다)’ which refers to the act of adding and mixing rice in a broth or soup. So, Kimchi Mari by definition is rice mixed into kimchi soup. However, the version I introduce here is a dry version without the soup.
I am not sure why my family made this version without the soup but I actually prefer this version when rice is used because it’s kind of hard to find the rice once they are swimming in the soup! So I guess this recipe is a unique family recipe.
BEST KIMCHI TO USE for COOKING
When we talk about using Kimchi for this Kimchimari dish and other recipes like Kimchi Fried Rice, Kimchi Jjigae, Kimchi Bokkeum, the best Kimchi to use is a traditional Baechu (Cabbage) Kimchi. You can follow my Blender Kimchi Recipe to make an easy classic tasting kimchi.
Kimchi Mari (Cold Kimchi Rice) Recipe
Servings: 1 Prep Time: 5 min Difficulty: very easy
Ingredients (adjustable) in Recipe Card below
Step-by-Step Directions
1. Measure about 1 C of cooked rice. Room-temperature rice works best. Use leftover, old rice if you have any. If using freshly cooked rice, let it cool and come to room temperature.
2. Slice baechu(napa cabbage) kimchi into bite sizes pieces (about 1/3 in wide). Measure about 1/3 C. Use more if you want it to be more flavorful and spicy. If you like radish and have radish Kimchis like Kkakdugi, Chonggak Kimchi, you chop or slice these thinly and mix in with the rice also.
3. Add kimchi, sesame oil, sugar and sesame seeds to rice. Mix everything together with a spoon.
4. That’s it! Taste it and adjust sugar, sesame oil and sesame seeds. My mouth is watering just looking at these pictures…
5. If you’d like you can also add some crumbled roasted gim (seaweed). And then it would look like this –
This is all you need to make a nice, simple meal that’s refreshing and just so addictive.
What to serve with
You really don’t need much else with this meal but you can certainly make some light soups to go with it. I love it with Sogogi Muguk (Beef Radish Soup) or Bugeo Guk (dried pollock soup)
Suggestions for Banchan or side dish for Kimchi Mari – Cold Kimchi Rice:
myulchi bokkeum, sauteed burdock, sauteed dried shrimp will all go really well with this dish.
Variations
- Substitute or add radish or other kinds of kimchi to vary the flavor
- Add some kimchi juice or dongchimi 동치미 juice to the rice if you want to moisten it. If you are making it very soupy, add some ice to make it extra crispy and zingy.
RELATED RECIPES
- Kimchimari Guksu (김치말이 국수) is a cold kimchi noodle soup that is similar to the soupy rice version. This is easier to find at restaurants than this rice dish.
- Try my 3-in-1 Freezer Friendly Kimchi Recipes
Kimchi Mari (Cold Kimchi Rice)
Ingredients
- 1 cup cooked rice (better if not too hot)
- 1/3 cup cabbage kimchi (sliced)
- 1/2 tsp sesame oil
- 1/4 tsp sugar
- 1 dash sprinkling of sesame seeds
Instructions
- In a bowl, add 1 cup cooked rice. If rice is hot, let it cool and come to room temperature.
- Slice 1/3 cup baechu(napa cabbage) kimchi into bite sizes pieces.
- Mix kimchi, sesame oil, sugar and sesame seeds with rice.
- Taste it and adjust sugar, sesame oil and sesame seeds.
I’m surprised something so simple to put together tastes so delicious. This is now my favorite way to eat kimchi and rice. I took the seaweed papers and used them as “spoons” to scoop up the rice and eat it all together, haha. Thank you for this humble and delicious recipe.
I totally agree with you! So simple yet so delicious! You are so very welcome. Thank you
I learned how to make Kimchi from a Korean woman I knew when I was quite young. I lovingly called her Umma(엄마) or Umuni (어머니) (Mother/Mom) at her request. Through all these years learning her dishes have become ingrained in my cuisine & raising my daughters on these dishes, they are there go to comfort foods. Adding kimchi to cooled rice w/a drizzle of roasted sesame oil was always a go to easy dish for all of us to enjoy. I never thought of it as a special way to eat it or that it even had a history. It just made since to me to put these 2 together. I also like to add a fried egg on top or just slice a boiled egg in half. These days I’ve found an enjoyment in a good quality white quinoa & I’ll substitute the rice for it. This dish (rice or quinoa) is always one of my go to favorites all of my life. Thank you for sharing this. 🙂
How interesting that you have been making essentially the same dish all these years! Thank you so much for sharing your story and it’s certainly my go-to dish too! ❤️
I love your story; the back story you shared is touching. Thank you for sharing your life and heritage here! 🙂
And yes, the recipe is awesome, I always have day old rice and this is perfect
I’m so happy that you enjoyed my story and the dish! Thank you!
Could you use Furikake in place of the added sugar and sesame seeds?
You could but it wouldn’t have the same flavor. The key flavors to this dish is the sweet vs kimchi flavor vs sesame oil. If you don’t want to add sugar, use a substitute or just omit it and should taste ok still.