racheee. I make sauerkraut. I am a true convert to the wonders of sauerkraut. You need to google it and read as much info as possible. There are two types of sauerkraut - the cooked type (which is for taste only) and the true, cold fermented sauerkraut which is the most healthful and most delicious. I started out using a food grade bucket with a lid and a glass cake plate with a bottle of water on top and have graduated to a real Harsch sauerkraut crock.
buzzy110,
Aug 12, 4:50am
When I first became interested I looked at recipes on the net with very detailed instructions. At first they seemed way too complicated but as you work through them, step by step, you will realise just how easy it is to make. A few tips are: Ensure you use sea salt, (the sprinkling type not the lumpy type) not iodised. You can buy it in the supermarket in the salt aisle. convert the weights of salt to metric before starting and try and stay within the weights as too much salts stops fermentation and too little makes your cabbage go bad.
buzzy110,
Aug 12, 4:53am
Cutting up bulk cabbage and other vegetables with a kitchen knife is not really practical unless you are a skilled knife handler and have good quality knives to do the job at hand. I bought a V-cutter with attachments from a food show a few years ago. They were being sold for $105 at the last Food Show just gone. I use it nearly every day. However, a big food processor will work almost as well.
buzzy110,
Aug 12, 5:02am
rachee, before I go any further and bore you to tears, can you explain what sort of sauerkraut you were thinking of. There is the pickled cabbage as posted by donald6 or the genuine cabbage as explained by uli. I actually think I am the only person in here who is currently making sauerkraut properly so can be of help to you if that is what you want. Once I mastered sauerkraut I moved on to fermented vegetables. Having loads of these two types of veg has really cut down on my winter food bills and I always have a healthy vegetable to eat with my lunch and sometimes dinner.
buzzy110,
Aug 12, 5:06am
Now that I have sauerkraut and fermented mixed vegetables mastered I am thinking that next season's glut (when vegetables are at their cheapest) I'm going to try making Korean kimchee. But only in small quantities for me to eat when my husband isn't home as he hates garlic and chilli. lol
Oh do come back racheee. I am so excited to think that there is another person who wants to make sauerkraut to. Thus far I have been a solo voice and it has been a lonely experience. Everyone on here just wants to know how to cook cakes & muffins, like that is rocket science for heavens sake. Not even my friends are interested. Their eyes just glaze over while they look longingly at the next slice of chocolate brownie.
racheee,
Aug 12, 6:45am
Hi Buzzy, yes yes yes the real type of sauerkraut!I am really interested in fermented alive food - have been introduced to it by a fantastic lady here in Invercargill, Sherry Elton, and am just starting to get back into it. She had a natural health workshop on Monday night which reignited my interest.She actually does workshops in making sauerkraut, cheese, sourdough bread etc and can't wait to go to one.She also introduced me to raw milk too so that is great.Was wondering if anyone else on here was into it and glad I found someone!Was actually looking at the special sauerkraut pots on the internet yesterday, and she sells the cabbage shredder too but it was really pricey.
racheee,
Aug 12, 6:48am
You should look up Sherry's site, it is her name dot co dot nz.Have actually got my soaked nuts in the oven now to dry them out, and hoping to get a dehydrator soon.Found another interesting website today, thenourishinggourmet dot com.Interesting.I have two young boys though so don't have a great deal of time to browse the net, but there is a lot of interesting information out there.Have been reading your sourdough thread for a while and am really keen to try it.
uli,
Aug 12, 9:31am
Ok then - here we go: Homemade Sauerkraut For small quantities you can use a big Agee jar, for bigger quantities use a large ceramic crock or a food-grade plastic bucket. To keep the cabbage down in the brine you need a plate that fits inside crock or bucket and a cloth like a boiled kitchen towel and a weight. I use a clean Riverstone which is easy to wash, but other people use filled jars or bottles or even a heavy-duty plastic bag filled with water (I would prefer about three bags over each other to make absolutely sure the water does not get into the fermenting cabbage!). Then of course you need the cabbage and some non-iodised salt.
uli,
Aug 12, 9:32am
Slice the cabbage into strips, I do this with a hand-held slicer (like you use for cucumbers, just bigger) or if the cabbage is already splitting (cause of the rain) I just quarter it, clean it up (remove especially the young earthworms in the leaf axils!) and slice it with a big knife. Doesn't take much longer. You don't want it too fine, but not too coarse either, maybe 3mm. And if possible all the same size. Don't use a food processor, it will not work. I tried it once and it was a desaster! Place cabbage in a large bowl as you chop it and sprinkle salt on the cabbage as you go. The salt pulls the juice out of the cabbage (through osmosis), and this creates the brine in which the cabbage can ferment and sour without rotting.
uli,
Aug 12, 9:33am
The salt also has the effectof keeping the cabbage crunchy, by inhibiting organisms and enzymes that soften it. Use approx. 3 tablespoons of salt for 2kgs of cabbage. I never measure the salt, I just shake some on after I chop up each cabbage. I use more salt in summer, less in winter as the salt preserves it until it ferments. You can add garlic, bay leaf, caraway seeds, dill seeds, celery seeds, and juniper berries. I don't add anything, as I prefer to keep it simple, and I add whatever I feel like when I cook it.
uli,
Aug 12, 9:34am
If the brine does not riseabove the plate level by the next day, add enough salt water to bring the brine level above the plate. Add about a teaspoon of salt to a cup of boiled and cooled water and stir until it is completely dissolved. Now leave the crock to ferment in a corner of the kitchen where you will see it and not forget about it. You could also store it under the house if you want a slower fermentation that will preserve for longer. Check the kraut every day or two. The volume reduces as the fermentation proceeds.
uli,
Aug 12, 9:35am
In winter you can leave the kraut in the crock, and scoop out a jarful at a time and keep it in the fridge. The sauerkraut juice is a rare delicacy and unparalleled digestive tonic. Each time you scoop some kraut out of the crock, you have to repack it carefully. Make sure the kraut is packed tight in the crock, the surface is level, and the cover and weight are clean. Sometimes brine evaporates, so if the kraut is not submerged below brine just add salted water as necessary. In summer you will have to either keep it in the fridge or freeze it. Some people preserve kraut by bottling and heat-processing it. But its "aliveness" will be killed.
uli,
Aug 12, 9:36am
You can make sauerkraut all year, so you can develop a system whereby you start a new batch before the previous batch runs out. You remove the remaining kraut from the crock, repack it with fresh salted cabbage, then pour some of the old kraut juices over the new kraut. This gives the new batch a boost with an active culture starter. And now I leave you to read all this and ask questions :)
lilyfield,
Aug 12, 10:05am
I make itthe same as Uli did you mention not to use ionised salt? Plain only, sometimes hard to find.
racheee,
Aug 12, 11:46pm
Thanks Uli, that is awesome.Can't wait to have a go!
buzzy110,
Aug 13, 3:42am
Yes. I make it exactly the same as uli as well. I haven't yet cooked my s/k, prefering to eat it 'raw'. I make a coleslaw type salad drizzled with olive oil and eat with sour dough bread. It is a match made in heaven. Currently my favourite recipe is home sprouted sunflower seeds (grown till the green starts to show or they taste horrid), avocado, tomato, fresh Italian parsley and canned salmon. Eat with sour dough bread and you have a match made in heaven. However my recipes change all the time.
buzzy110,
Aug 13, 3:44am
It is a pity you live in Invercargil rachee. My very kind husband carried a wonderful Harsch crock pot home for me from San Francisco and he is going up there again in a few weeks. I could have made him bring one home for you too.
racheee,
Aug 13, 8:13am
Wow, that is awesome, you were lucky to get one.One day I might be able to get one of my own - better at least make one batch before I get too professional though. Very nice thought.Hey, could you please do me a teensy favour, if you have time?Looking for a slicer as you suggested, and there are a few different ones here on TM - could you please suggest a good one?There are so many different ones and different prices, there might be a bargain in there somewhere!
there is nothing like it on TM you could buy 235931641 or 235060687 or 235102431 - however none of them have the "crate" to hold your head of cabbage securely. It will take some trial and error (= lots of turning of the cabbage while slicing) to do it with one of these. The one from Golden fields is much better (and much more expensive).
racheee,
Aug 13, 11:25pm
Thanks Uli, saw that website the other day.They have some good stuff.Might have to save up and splash out!
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