How is green onion kimchi different from regular kimchi?

Pa-kimchi uses whole green onions instead of napa cabbage, ferments faster, and has a sharper, more pungent flavor. It has a shorter shelf life (about 1 week) compared to cabbage kimchi.

Can I skip the fish sauce to make it vegetarian?

You can substitute soy sauce for fish sauce, but the flavor profile will change significantly. Fish sauce provides a fermented depth that soy sauce cannot fully replicate. Some cooks use miso paste as a vegetarian alternative.

Green Onion Kimchi (Pa-Kimchi) — Bold & Sharp

Name: Green Onion Kimchi
Prep time: 30 min
Cook time: 5 min
Total time: 35 min
Yield: 6 servings
Cuisine: Korean
Ingredients: 2 bunches Green onions (whole); 3 tablespoons Gochugaru; 2 tablespoons Fish sauce; 4 cloves, minced Garlic; 1 teaspoon Sesame seeds

Pa-kimchi occupies a unique spot in the Korean kimchi universe. While napa cabbage kimchi is the standard and radish kimchi (kkakdugi) is the crunchy alternative, green onion kimchi brings an intensity that neither can match. The natural sharpness of green onions, amplified by fermentation, creates something bold and almost aggressive in the best way.

This type of kimchi is deeply connected to Korean regional cooking. In the southern provinces, where green onions grow abundantly and the local palate tends toward stronger, more pungent flavors, pa-kimchi is as common as standard cabbage kimchi. It is often served alongside rich, meaty soups like galbitang and seolleongtang, where its sharp bite provides a necessary counterpoint to the fatty broth.

Fish sauce is the umami backbone here. Unlike the soy-sauce-based dressings in many muchim banchan, pa-kimchi uses fish sauce to achieve a deeper, more complex savoriness. The fermented fish flavor melds with the green onion over time, creating that characteristic kimchi funk that is hard to describe but unmistakable once you know it.

The salting step before dressing is brief -- just 15 minutes. Green onions are thin and delicate compared to cabbage, so they do not need the extended salting that traditional kimchi requires. The salt wilts them just enough to make them pliable for coating with the paste.

One day of fermentation at room temperature is the standard. Pa-kimchi does not improve with long aging the way napa cabbage kimchi does. The green onions lose their texture after about a week in the fridge, becoming slimy rather than pleasantly wilted. Make small batches and eat them relatively quickly for the best experience.

One thing worth noting: the white and light green parts of the green onion carry more natural sweetness, while the dark green tops are sharper and more pungent. Using the entire onion, as this recipe calls for, gives you a range of flavors in every bite. Trim off any damaged or slimy outer layers, but otherwise use everything from root end to tip.