5280 How Dead Veggies’ Vegan Kimchi Gets Funky (in a Good Way) Daniel Lee and Matt Jung employ a month-long process to ensure their fermented cabbage gains the perfect combination of heat and tang.Patricia Kaowthumrong • Daniel Lee and Matt Jung’s quest to produce the perfect vegan kimchi started at nearly 11,000 feet. When the friends began making the fermented Korean side dish together in 2020 during a stint at (now-closed) Vesta, they would hike to an alpine snowfield carrying up to 150 pounds of seasoned napa cabbage in containers to bury. Why? Because the high country’s thinner air, consistently cool underground temperature, and arid soil mimic the conditions of Korean onggi, the clay pots traditionally used to ferment kimchi. “It’s the perfect environment for healthy microbes and probiotics to thrive while preventing the growth of unwanted bacteria,” Jung says. Weeks later, when the duo would return to unearth their buried treasure, they were greeted with crisp kimchi kissed with the perfect combination of heat and tang. Local chefs loved the results, leading Jung and Lee to establish Dead Veggies in November 2020 and move their operation to a commercial kitchen. Here’s the scoop on how the goods are produced today (no shovels required).