Why buy sauerkraut when you can make arguably the best tasting sauerkraut you have ever had... and far more nutritious then whatever has been sitting on the grocery store shelf. The ingredients are few and the health benefits many!
Cabbage- 1 or 2 heads (I have since graduated to 4 heads at a time)
Sea Salt- 1tsp per head (or to taste)
patients
Slice the cabbage into the thin strips you are accustom to seeing in sauerkraut. In a large bowl mix together the cabbage and sea salt, really working it with your hands.
What you're trying to do here is use the sea salt as a natural desiccant, drawing the water out of the cabbage, so really squeeze and mash the cabbage with your hands.
Do this once every hour for about 4 hours (the more the merrier), letting it sit out on the counter between each "mashing". Once you have drawn enough water out where the cabbage can be fully submerged in its own juices, it's time to let nature do its thing. Find a container to store the cabbage in like a crock, using something pressing down on top of it to keep it submerged; I use a medium size pyrex bowl with a mason jar filled with water inside the bowl for added weight. Do not cover the outer container that the cabbage is in, since the fermentation process will release gasses that need to escape. Let it sit for about 4 weeks in a cool dry area, and that's all there is to it.
This is a re-post of a previous "Recipe of the Week" that I put on my blog this past fall. I bring this up because even though I am posting this now I recommend making you sauerkraut in the fall/winter when cabbage is in season!
Enjoy!
No comments:
Post a Comment