Korean Pickled Daikon Radish 

by Dominique Didier

Bright yellow pickled daikon are a staple in Japanese and Korean cuisine. Known as takuan in Japan and Danmuji in Korea, these pickles add a sweet and savory crunch to sushi rolls or as a side in many Asian dishes. You can eat them as a snack, add to sandwiches or salads, or chop and sprinkle on plain white rice. This recipe came to me from my Korean roommate’s mother. We always had a jar of her pickles in the refrigerator. 

  • You will need a large airtight glass jar or jars. 

Ingredients: 

1 lb. daikon radish peeled and cut in pieces 3” long. You can make these into 1 – 2” thick spears or thick chunks. 

1 cup sugar 

1 cup water 

1/3 cup vinegar 

¼ TBSP red pepper seed 

1 small red chili pepper (optional – I did not use it) 

1 tsp ground turmeric (optional; this will give the pickles their yellow color, adjust turmeric to get the color you like) 

¼ tsp alum 

Instructions: 

  1. Place daikon chunks in a large bowl of water to completely cover the daikon. Soak for 24 hours, then drain. 

  2. Add sugar, water, vinegar, red pepper seed and chili pepper and tumeric (if using) to a saucepan and bring to a boil. Cool. 

  3. Once the vinegar solution is cooled, add the alum. 

  4. Fill jar(s) with daikon and cover with the vinegar solution. These will be ready to eat in ~8 hours but will taste best after 24 – 48 hours. These last a long time in the refrigerator – I still have some I pickled last year – but they will lose some crispness over time. 

Note: You may have to adjust the volume of vinegar solution depending on how much daikon you use and the size of your jar(s). Sometimes I make 1.5x or double a pickling recipe to ensure I have enough liquid to cover my pickles. More than once I’ve had to whip up a second batch of pickling solution to top off my jars!