kohlrabi jangajji

sweet + savoury...with a surprise ingredient.

9 ingredients•Prep: 20 mins

Kenji Morimoto•

September 10, 2025

I suppose this is quite traditional - the proportions of soy:acid:sugar, as well as the technique - however here, I've swapped in (fairly) fermented kombucha in for the vinegar. If you're a kombucha maker, you can probably empathise about the amount of kombucha you have lying about, so this is a perfect solution. Freshly brewed or store bought kombucha should work but you want to ensure it tastes sour, not too dissimilar to vinegar. If you don't have kombucha, vinegar, of course, will work (I'd go with apple cider vinegar, personally, but white or rice vinegar are more traditional).

Kohlrabi is the perfect medium for this pickling method as it retains its crunch but absorbs the flavour really well - daikon, broccoli stems, turnips, or other dense vegetables are lovely additions. Just be sure they're cut relatively small in order to pickle effectively.

Ingredients (9)

Brine

Kombucha(130 mL)
See note below.
Soy sauce(130 mL)
I generally use Kikkoman
Waters(130)
Sugar(80 g)

Vegetables

Shallots(2–3, roughly 60g; peeled and chopped in large chunks )
Garlics(3–4, roughly 15g, each clove peeled and halved )
Kohlrabi(½, roughly 220g, peeled and diced into 1.5cm x 1.5cm cubes )
Carrots(2–3, roughly 150, diced the same as the kohlrabi )
Veg can be chopped smaller/larger however note that they should all be relatively uniform and the smaller the size, the faster it'll pickle.
Jalapeños(2, roughly 200g and roughly chopped)

Instructions

Put all of the brine ingredients into a small pan, in addition to the shallots and garlic. Let the sugar dissolve on low heat and allow the shallots and garlic to cook down, roughly 5-7 minutes. Allow the brine to cool slightly before moving to the next step.
The vegetables at this stage should be cooked through.
Put your prepared vegetables in a heat-proof glass jar and pour the brine on top. I tend to leave this at room temperature for one day before moving to the fridge. These can last quite a long time however the brine will dilute over time - my batches generally last 3-5 days since we eat them with everything!

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