Got Cabbage? Make Sauerkraut!

(Page 3 of 3)

August/September 2006
By Megan Phelps 
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Varying the Ingredients

RELATED CONTENT

As a food preservation technique, fermentation is not an exact science — unlike canning, which requires specific techniques for safety reasons. The proportions in these sauerkraut recipes can be adjusted to taste, including the amount of salt. Salt is a preservative, so using more of it creates a crunchier, longer-lasting sauerkraut. Less salt produces a softer sauerkraut that may not keep as long. Many recipes call for 3 tablespoons salt for every 5 pounds of cabbage, but this can be reduced. No-salt sauerkraut is theoretically possible, but not recommended.

Garlic Sauerkraut
Follow the above recipe, adding 5 cloves of chopped garlic and 2 sliced onions when you add the salt.

Spicy Sauerkraut
Follow the above recipe, adding 3 sliced poblano peppers when you add the salt. Leave the seeds in the sliced peppers for added heat!

Sauersprouts
Follow the above recipe, but also chop 5 to 10 Brussels sprouts and thoroughly mix into the cabbage when you add the salt.

Resources

Check out these books for more on food preservation techniques.

Wild Fermentation: The Flavor, Nutrition, and Craft of Live-Culture Foods
By Sandor Ellix Katz

The Joy of Pickling: 200 Flavor-packed Recipes for all Kinds of Produce from Garden or Market
By Linda Ziedrich

Keeping Food Fresh: Old World Techniques and Recipes
By The Gardeners and Farmers of Terre Vivante

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Comments

  • BILL VAN BEERS 3/29/2009 11:15:34 AM

    NEED INFO ON HOW TO MAKE SOLAR HOT WATER USING EXISTING HOT WATER HEATER

  • Liz Peters 12/25/2008 11:03:51 AM

    Jehan - My mother used to make sauerkraut in wide mouth canning jars (Mason jars). She would pack the cabbage in the jars, top with salt, and have us kids tamp it down tightly, pulling the moisture out of the cabbage. When it was fully tamped down she'd add more cabbage and salt and we'd pound some more. After the jars were full of salty, wet, pounded cabbage she'd top it off with water to cover and another half teaspoon of salt. I don't remember if she sealed the jars. I'd like to know if others have used this method or know if it should be sealed for food safety reasons.

  • Janine 12/21/2008 9:36:06 PM

    It really is easy. You can look up sauerkraut and buy kits online which are basically the crock and the supplies vary. The first time I sliced the cabbage myself. Then, I found a slicer at costco that does the trick. My first batch was crunchier but you include juice from the last batch to get a head start on bacteria growth. I use juniper berries and caraway seeds(my kit came with them). I'm going to add garlic and onion the next time. Pick heavy tight caggage and organic is better( I've read this and it was true in my experience.)This is really worth the effort.

  • Barbara 11/5/2008 1:49:54 PM

    I would like to know if there is somewhere in the Portland, OR/Vancouver,WA area that makes fresh sauerkraut and sells it. I do not have the time or necessary items to make and store my own homemade kraut.
    Barbara

  • jehan 9/5/2008 4:18:53 PM

    how would one go about canning it? putting it in mason jars, and sealing them?

  • Arthur Ayres 8/11/2008 12:52:47 PM

    Years ago, I purchased a magazine called The Mother Earth News. I got the first issue ever published and still have #1 through #144 issues. I found it to be a most fascinating magazine, but then I moved to England and lost track of the magazine. I still enjoy reading it when I come across a copy.The original publishers, the Shuttleworth's were true visionaries.
    Sincerely,
    Art Ayres

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