Brined in salt, kombu, and chili flakes, crunchy Japanese Pickled Cabbage makes a refreshing palate cleanser to accompany any Japanese meal. This tasty and quick pickle (tsukemono) recipe is so easy to make at home. Ready in about 2 hours!
When we eat Washoku (和食), a traditional Japanese meal with rice and miso soup, we almost always serve a small dish of Japanese pickles called Tsukemono (漬物). Today I’m sharing a quick and easy Japanese Pickled Cabbage (キャベツの浅漬け).
What’s Tsukemono?
Tsukemono (漬物, literally translates to “pickled things”) are Japanese preserved vegetables that are usually pickled in salt, brine, or a bed of rice bran called nuka.
During a meal, Tsukemono cleanses the palate and provides refreshments to counter the other flavorful dishes. It also offers color, texture, and fragrance to a meal. In fact, it is sometimes also called Kounomono (Kho no mono, 香の物) or “fragrant things”.
“Asazuke” – A Quick Tsukemono
In Japan, all types of tsukemono are available at grocery stores and specialty stores; however many people make Asazuke (浅漬け) at home, which is “quick pickling”. I serve this type of tsukemono with steamed rice and miso soup for my traditional Japanese meals.
Among the different types of Asazuke, shio-zuke (塩漬け), or salt pickles, is one of the easiest pickles to make. With shio-zuke, vegetables are salted first, then the heavy object is placed upon the vegetables. The pressure causes the vegetables to release liquids, and the vegetables are pickled in the brine. Making shio-zuke usually requires just a few hours; therefore it’s a popular pickle for home cooks.
Keep in mind that Asazuke typically needs to be consumed within 2-3 days as it’s pickled in a very small amount of salt that’s not enough to keep it for a longer time without spoiling.
What can I make into Tsukemono?
There are quite a bit of ingredient options for making tsukemono. I personally like using vegetables like cabbage, napa cabbage, cucumbers, eggplants, daikon radish, turnips, gobo (burdock root), carrots, ginger, and more. What I recommend is to pickle 1 to 2 ingredients at a time. When I make my own vegetable tsukemono, I know it’s fresh and absolutely love the crispy texture!
How much salt to add?
My general rule of thumb for Asazuke is that salt should be 2 to 2.5% of the vegetable’s weight. It’s easy to calculate when you have a kitchen scale (I like this kitchen scale).
If you use Diamond Crystal kosher salt, 1 tablespoon is about 10 grams and 1 teaspoon is 3 grams.
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Japanese Pickled Cabbage
Video
Ingredients
For the Vegetables
- ½ head green cabbage (9.9 oz, 280 g)
- ½ Japanese or Persian cucumber (1.8 oz, 50 g)
For Quick Pickling
- 1 dried red chili pepper
- 1 piece kombu (dried kelp) (1 x 3 inches, 2.5 x 7.6 cm per piece)
- 2 tsp Diamond Crystal kosher salt (use 2% of the vegetables’ weight; multiply the weight of the cabbage and cucumber by 0.02)
For the Toppings (optional)
Instructions
- Gather all the ingredients.
- Discard the core of ½ head green cabbage. Cut the cabbage into 1- to 2-inch (2.5- x 5-cm) pieces.
- Cut ½ Japanese or Persian cucumber in half and peel. Cut in half lengthwise then into thin slices diagonally.
- Remove and discard the seeds from 1 dried red chili pepper. (You can save the seeds to add in if you prefer a spicy taste.) Avoid touching the seeds with your bare hands/fingers. Cut the chili into rounds.
- Toast 1 piece kombu (dried kelp) over an open flame to make the kombu tender. Then, cut it into thin strips (I used kitchen shears).
To Brine
- Put the cabbage, cucumber, chili pepper, and kombu in an airtight plastic bag and add 2 tsp Diamond Crystal kosher salt.
- Rub together the ingredients from outside the bag until the cabbage softens. Remove the air and seal the plastic bag tightly.
- Place the bag under a heavy object. Place it in the refrigerator or a cool spot and let it pickle for 2–3 hours.
- Once the cabbage is pickled, take it out from the brine and squeeze out the excess liquid with your hands.
To Serve
- Transfer to a bowl or plate. Sprinkle with toasted white sesame seeds and drizzle with a little bit of soy sauce.
To Store
- You can keep the leftovers in an airtight container and store in the refrigerator for up to 2–3 days.
How long can you store pickled cabbage? In your recipe you say it can be stored in the refrigerator for 1-2 days. However, I have read in other recipes that it can be store up to 1-2 months. In the other recipe they didn’t do anything differently so I was just wondering about the time gap.
Hi Julia! No… Asazuke (quick pickling) can only last 2-3 days because you don’t ferment it, and it gets really salty if you keep it for a longer time. Maybe the recipes you found is meant to pickle for a fermented pickle version?
I love this, and it’s so healthy and easy to make. I think I’ve found another staple food for my diet! I’ll probably be making this every week now. I’m trying to make some healthy changes and this seems perfect to accompany meals and make them more healthy and filling. 😀
Hi Lion! I’m so glad you liked this recipe – it’s so simple to make, and with your pickle press, it’ll be much easier to store in fridge etc. 🙂
Way back when my grandma made Tsukemono she would add rice. But there was a sourness to the Tsukemono that I just can’t achieve.
Hi Claire! Your grandma’s recipe is not a quick pickling (asazuke) like this recipe, and I assume she add nuka (rice bran)?
Kombu is not sold where I live; can I omit it?
Hi Nancy! Sure! 🙂
How to soften the kombu if you dont have a gas burner?
Hi Lori! If you don’t don’t worry! It’s just an extra nice touch, but it will be okay without that step. 🙂
I have Kombu and want to put it in, could I soften it in the microwave for a few seconds?
Hi Lori! I apologize for my late response. Sure you can do that. 🙂
hi, really love this recipe : thank you. ) after i washed the cabbage, there is water, is that ok?
Hi Star! Glad to hear you liked this recipe! Try your best to remove water (because that will dilute) – but it doesn’t have to be 100% dry. 🙂
I have it in the fridge right now pickling away, so we’ll see how it turns out (excited!). Question though…for the measurements by weight (I also have a small kitchen scale–how did I ever make do without it?), did you weigh the cabbage after you removed the core or before? I imagine it would make a difference re: the amount of salt…?
With the core as shown in the picture. Hope you enjoy this recipe! 🙂
Thanks, Nami! It turned out GREAT.
Thanks so much for your kind feedback! 🙂
How long will this last in the fridge?
Hi Stephanie! 1-2 days for the best quality. 🙂
Just made it! I have always loved tsukemono at restaurants and was pleased to learn how easy it is to make! I used a 10 oz. bag of shredded cabbage to make it even easier. It was pretty sticky/slimy/goopy when I squeezed out the liquid after letting it sit for 2 hours. Is this normal?
Hi Kim! There are so many types of tsukemono, and the ones that I make at home is all quick pickle ones (“Asazuke”).
It could be from kombu (it gets a little slimy when it’s wet), or lack of salt. During pickling, make sure to keep the pickles in a cool place or refrigerator so it doesn’t go bad. Hope this helps! 🙂
I’m out of kombu and won’t be able to get some more until two more week. What can I substitute in its place? I have nori sheets, wakame seaweed, and used kombu in the fridge. I would use the used kombu but since it’s used I’m afraid it might have lost its umami. I don’t know if umami on the kombu affects the flavor in tsukemono.
Hi Catherine! You can make it without it, but it’s not going to taste the same. Kombu is something that’s not easy to be replace with… it’s very unique and I can’t think of anything that could work… Yes, umami from kombu is the key for this recipe, so I’d say just wait for 2 more weeks? 🙂
I like this. Very easy to follow. Personally I don’t need the soy sauce on my tsukemono though.
Also, I know Nami is in America and that is the greatest country on earth, but I would prefer if she used the metric system because that is what we use in Japan and pretty much everywhere else in the world.
Hi Joe! Yeah I don’t usually pour soy sauce, but I know many people who do it… I wonder if it’s regional thing in Japan?
By the way, I include metric system in my recipes (for the past 2 years or so), and I already put gram measurement in this recipe too. 🙂
Thanks for the recipe!
Do I squeeze the juices out and refrigerate for two days or let the veggies sit in the juices and squeeze out before using the next day?
Hi Lex! I apologize for my late response. This is asazuke recipe which requires to pickle for short time (max 2-3 hours), therefore I don’t recommend to have veggie sit in the marinade for such a long time. If you want to keep it for later, I recommend to squeeze and save. I might recommend to reduce the amount of salt if you plan to keep it for a longer… 🙂
Hi there Nami! Do you need kombu to make this? I don’t have any on hand, would I be able to do without? I have a whole bunch of carrots I thought I could pickle today.
Hi Kari! You can make it without it, but missing “umami” flavor from kombu. It’s definitely nice to add, especially if you are trying to make Japanese tsukemono. 🙂 I hope you try one with kombu next time to see the difference. 🙂
I made my own tsukemono for the first time! This recipe is wonderful. You make it so easy to follow and tastes great! My family enjoyed it. Thank you!
Hi Lisa! Thank you so much for trying this recipe already! I’m so glad to hear you and your family enjoyed this recipe. Thanks for your kind feedback. 🙂
Thanks so much for this great, simple recipe! I recently got a Japanese pickle press (the kind that is plastic with a spring loaded press) — do you think that could be used for this recipe (for the 2-3 hours under a heavy object part)? Thanks again, Nami!
Hi Anne! I’m so jealous! I should probably get one of those, saving money on ziploc bag. Yes, please it! 🙂