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Cooking adventures in a small, closet sized, kitchen. - I came to realize that my meals were boring and that I had been eating the same few dishes over and over again for years. It was time for a change! I now spend my free time searching for, creating and trying tasty new recipes in my closet sized kitchen.

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Kimchi Reuben Sandwich

[heart_this] · Mar 20, 2012 · 44 Comments

Kimchi Reuben Sandwich

A reuben sandwich with the spicy hit of butter sauteed kimchi.

I had still had some corned beef left over and with corned beef, cabbage and kimchi burritos and reuben sandwiches on my mind, I naturally thought about combing them to create the kimchi reuben sandwich. This reuben sandwich has two forms of fermented cabbage with the sauerkraut and the kimchi and the combination is pretty amazing. The sauekraut brings a nice light tanginess and the kimchi brings some flavour packed heat. As with the regular reuben, you have to be concerned about the amount of liquid going into the sandwich and I find the best way to deal with it is to lightly saute the sauekraut and kimchi to remove any excess moisture. I have to say that I quite enjoyed the heat that the kimchi added to the sandwich and the kimchi went particularly well with the creamy Russian dressing to which I added a touch of gochujang.

Kimchi Reuben Sandwich
Kimchi Reuben Sandwich
Kimchi Reuben Sandwich
Kimchi Reuben Sandwich

Kimchi Reuben Sandwich

Kimchi Reuben Sandwich

Prep Time: 5 minutes Cook Time: 10 minutes Total Time: 15 minutes Servings: 1

A reuben sandwich with the spicy hit of butter sauteed kimchi.

ingredients
  • 1 teaspoon butter
  • 2 tablespoons kimchi, squeezed and drained, coarsely chopped
  • 2 tablespoons sauerkraut, squeezed and drained, coarsely chopped
  • 1 tablespoon butter, room temperature
  • 2 slices rye, lightly toasted
  • 1/2 cup swiss, shredded, room temperature
  • 1 tablespoon russian dressing
  • 2 ounces cooked corned beef, sliced or shredded, warm
directions
  1. Melt the butter in a pan over medium heat until it bubbles, add the kimchi and sauerkraut and saute until most of the moisture has evaporated, about 2-3 minutes.
  2. Heat a clean non-stick pan over medium heat.
  3. Butter the outside of each slice of bread, sprinkle half of the cheese on the inside of one slice of bread, top with half of the kimchi and sauerkraut, half of the russian dressing, the corned beef, the remaining russian dressing, kimchi and sauerkraut, cheese and finally the other slice of bread.
  4. Add thesandwich to the pan and grill until golden brown and the cheese has melted, about 2-4 minutes per side.
Gochujang Russian Dressing

Gochujang Russian Dressing

Prep Time: 5 minutes Total Time: 5 minutes Servings: 1cup

Mayonnaise and gochujang combine to form a wonderful combination of creamy and spicy and it works amazingly well in a Russian dressing.

ingredients
  • 1/4 cup mayonnaise
  • 1/4 cup sour cream
  • 1/4 cup ketchup
  • 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
  • 2 tablespoons onion, grated
  • 1 tablespoon horse radish
  • 1/2 lemon, juice
  • 1 teaspoon gochujang
  • 1/4 teaspoon paprika
  • salt and pepper to taste
directions
  1. Mix everything.
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Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. vanillasugar says

    March 19, 2011 at 8:39 pm

    OMG you didn't?
    i love kimchi and never thought to use on a reuben. Kevin you just rocked my reuben world!

    Reply
  2. tanja says

    March 19, 2011 at 8:54 pm

    What a deliciously looking sandwich! I am sure that this would absolutely be a perfect dish for my fiance! But I would not say no too 🙂

    Cheers,
    Tanja

    Reply
  3. Anonymous says

    March 20, 2011 at 1:12 am

    Brilliant!

    Reply
  4. Pam says

    March 20, 2011 at 2:02 am

    Kimchi reuben – that's genius!

    Reply
  5. Fritos and Foie Gras says

    March 20, 2011 at 2:43 am

    This is positively genius! Love kimchi, love Reubens…such a fantastic fusion sandwich!!! Can't tell you how in love i am with this idea! Bravo!!

    Reply
  6. Allison Day says

    March 20, 2011 at 2:45 am

    My gosh, this (and that burrito you posted recently) looks ridiculously good!

    Reply
  7. Katie says

    March 20, 2011 at 2:48 am

    I love reubens. I'd love to try some with kimchi. How unique!

    Reply
  8. Homemade Sausage Blog says

    March 20, 2011 at 3:12 am

    That sandwich sounds great. Thats a nice tip about how to control the moisture of the sandwich. Thanks for posting.

    Reply
  9. Tamar1973 says

    March 20, 2011 at 4:43 am

    I made a video about a Kimchi Reuben sandwich a couple of years ago but you took it to the next level.

    Reply
  10. Kay Heritage says

    March 20, 2011 at 5:17 am

    What a combo, Kevin! As a native Korean, I applaud you for such great combination of flavors! Never thought to add kimchi in a reubin sandwich! 🙂

    Reply
  11. Joanne says

    March 20, 2011 at 10:47 am

    I knew you were going to add kimchi into the mix somewhere!

    Reply
  12. ETEC 5213 Blog says

    March 20, 2011 at 12:58 pm

    Your recipes have been amazing but I have one question about the bread…how do you keep it from scraping the crap out of your gums and the roof of your mouth?! Sometimes I almost prefer a soggier sandwich because the moisture softens the bread.

    Reply
  13. Anonymous says

    March 20, 2011 at 1:04 pm

    Your recipes are amazing and I love that you're combining the leftovers. I have one question though, with all the moisture that you're drawing out of the sandwich, how do you keep the bread from scratching the crap out of your mouth?! I appreciate a non-soggy sandwich but sometimes the added moisture makes the bread a bit more pleasant.

    Reply
  14. The Duo Dishes says

    March 20, 2011 at 4:06 pm

    Nice heat and spice in this one!

    Reply
  15. Aurelia says

    March 20, 2011 at 5:09 pm

    Reuben sandwiches seem to be a running theme on the blogs I read lately! This looks so tasty, I'm actually going to make myself something to eat soon because it's made me hungry lol!

    Really great addition to an already lovely sounding sandwich 🙂

    Reply
  16. A. Rizzi says

    March 20, 2011 at 6:17 pm

    that looks intense! nice flavor combo. hungry!

    Reply
  17. Campariandsoda says

    March 20, 2011 at 8:07 pm

    You combined two of my most favourite things in the world; kimchi and the rueben! Genius!

    Reply
  18. Sprinzette @ Ginger and Almonds says

    March 21, 2011 at 1:19 am

    Too many delicious sandwiches to know which one to appreciate most. Lovely blog.

    Reply
  19. Linda Makiej says

    March 21, 2011 at 2:16 am

    wowie!! This looks great!

    my food blog a boardinghouse reach

    Reply
  20. Irish says

    March 21, 2011 at 4:05 am

    Wow!This is Fantastic!

    Reply
  21. Joëlle Lemire says

    March 21, 2011 at 10:36 am

    Fabulous idea! Bravo!

    Reply
  22. katerina says

    March 21, 2011 at 5:24 pm

    I just did a post today about how Asian fusion is back "in". This is a perfect example of the right way to do it, yum I love kimchi!

    Reply
  23. Anonymous says

    March 21, 2011 at 7:43 pm

    I love this take on the Reuben! Although, I must confess, that i've never actually had kimchi before…but it sounds delcious. I tried my take on a Reuben pizza over the weekend (okay, I didn't exactly use tradtional Reuben ingredients but I was trying to use what I had handy – I'm still calling it Reuben though!).

    Reply
  24. yannie says

    March 21, 2011 at 8:04 pm

    Holy shazam, experiencing a Pavlovian response right now, this looks so good!

    Reply
  25. julialikesred says

    March 21, 2011 at 8:38 pm

    God this looks awesome. Ooooh, I bet kimchi and that dressing would be UHMAZING on a hotdog…

    Reply
  26. Tanja @ Postmodern Hostess says

    March 21, 2011 at 9:13 pm

    Genius! Of course hearing you talk about it, this seems perfectly logical, but I don't think it ever would have occurred to me on my own.

    Thank you for sharing your inspiration! Can't wait to try this.

    Reply
  27. Andrea says

    March 21, 2011 at 11:55 pm

    How come when I click on a recipe that looks delicious, I get sent right to you? Can't wait to try this!

    Reply
  28. Van of Your Smart Kitchen says

    March 22, 2011 at 11:08 am

    I must try kimchi then too! What a delightful sandwich. Thanks for this post.

    Reply
  29. The Short (dis)Order Cook says

    March 22, 2011 at 8:56 pm

    Great idea. Why not substitute (or add on) one type of cabbage for another. Brilliant!

    Reply
  30. Meredith says

    March 23, 2011 at 4:52 pm

    This makes perfect sense- why have I never thought of this? I have some homemade pastrami left over

    Reply
  31. Anonymous says

    April 3, 2011 at 3:47 am

    genius!

    Reply
  32. 20 something says

    April 8, 2011 at 5:06 pm

    I absolutely love your blog for making such adventurous combinations seem so sensible, yet never obvious.

    Reply
  33. Meester Brown says

    June 26, 2011 at 5:11 pm

    gawk

    I need to try that this very weekend!!! To quote a korean-american friend from my childhood, 'Yo…that looks good as sh_t!!'

    Reply
  34. Bobby Fresser says

    December 30, 2011 at 10:45 pm

    Wow this is amazing! it is on my food to do list for 2012

    Reply
  35. Joanne says

    March 20, 2012 at 10:22 am

    I don't even NEED the corned beef but just give me a kimchi grilled cheese with all the other fixins'! Yum!

    Reply
  36. Lea Ann (Highlands Ranch Foodie) says

    March 20, 2012 at 1:13 pm

    Such a nice surprise to see your comment on my blog, and good to hear from you. I lost my hard drive a few months ago and it's been hard to remember all the blogs I subscribed to. Resubscribing to Closet Cooking. I've only had kimchi once, prepackaged from an Oriental market. Didn't care for it, but I do realize it was just one sampling and I know there's better out there. Great idea for the sandwich.

    Reply
  37. Viviane Bauquet Farre says

    March 20, 2012 at 2:04 pm

    What a novel and inspirational use of kimchi. You've taken an aready lovable ingredient and combined it with a classic sandwich. Inpsirational!

    Reply
  38. Lannie says

    March 21, 2012 at 1:53 am

    such a clever fusion food i can get down with!!

    Reply
  39. nataszagawrys says

    March 21, 2012 at 6:32 am

    dont eat meat, but came across this and have to say it looks amazing. great job, what a wonderful idea!

    Reply
  40. Kevin says

    March 21, 2012 at 10:06 am

    Lea Ann: Kimchi is actually pretty easy to make at home (with a few ingredients) and it will be a lot better than the prepackaged store bought ones. I have a recipe here: kimchi recipe

    Reply
  41. Season with Spice says

    March 21, 2012 at 11:32 am

    Hi Kevin, that first picture really jumps off the screen. When Apple finally gives us 3D iPads, it's going to be hard to resist not opening my mouth while staring at the food images on your site.

    Reply
  42. Honey says

    March 26, 2012 at 1:17 am

    this looks so good. we have this korean truck that sells kimchi quesedillas, and I love it. the smell of it.. like butter. i bet this tastes divine.

    Reply
  43. laura says

    March 31, 2012 at 4:03 am

    Looks like something my husband would just love. I will have to make it!!

    http://bit.ly/H55ymS

    Reply
  44. Chris Calentine says

    November 26, 2012 at 3:43 pm

    I love kim chi, we make hundreds of gallons each year. We also have used it for many of the same things I see here including dressing up a burger and shredded on hot dogs or sausage.

    For anyone interested in making kim chi I have a recipe and photos posted on the blog I just started.
    http://hehooluvstocook.blogspot.com/

    Reply

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