Sauerkraut

[Emily Mattes]

OK, I just bought a red cabbage. I want to make sauerkraut. Anyone have any good simple recipes? I have no idea what I'm doing so I'm up for anything.

[Jay Cohen]

See recipe from Sandor's book at:

http://www.wildfermentation.com/reso...age=sauerkraut

[Garrett Smith]

http://bodyecology.com/cveggies.php

You do not need a "starter" culture, the veggies do that themselves.

Sauerkraut can include salt, but it doesn't have to if you don't want it, or you can add salt to the finished product after dishing it up.

Make sure to wash your prep items and jar well, with hot water.

[Gittit Shwartz]

Has anyone tried a combo for fermentation that is not cabbage based?

[sarena kopciel]

I have done carrots and ginger a few months ago. Still have a drop left in the fridge. at this point its way strong so a small spoonful to a large salad is enough!

[Emily Mattes]

OK, so here is what I finally did:

Chopped up the red cabbage. Split into two. One went into the jar with 1.5T salt, the other went into the jar with some ginger, garlic, kale, and 1.5T salt.

In both recipes, I blended maybe two cups of the cabbage with a bit of water into a soup-like consistency, added it back to the original mixture, then packed it into a glass jar.

I mashed the cabbage down. The mixture was fairly soupy and so I wouldn't say I had a layer of brine at the top, though I tried. I then topped with a cabbage leaf, packed the top of the jar with a Ziploc bag filled with water so it covered all the holes, covered the jar with plastic wrap, and put on the lid. It's as air-tight as I can make it--unfortunately, the jar does not have rubber sealing.

Does this sound right? Should I have left room to breathe? Should I be skimming off brine? How long should I let them sit? Different sauerkraut recipes tell me different things, so I kind of mixed them together.

[Garrett Smith]

I try to leave as little breathing room as possible.

I've never skimmed cultured veggies and never heard of doing so.

I let mine sit out for at least 3 days, then into the fridge.

[George Mounce]

The best I have ever had, and it comes from a woman who is German. It was her secret recipe for over 30 years and I was lucky enough to be allowed to get it, must less share it. Once you make the base sauerkraut, you can do this:

Ingredients

2 28 oz. cans Sauerkraut (Anneliese prefers Weinkraut by Kuhne)
1 medium-sized smoked ham hock
1 medium white onion
1 medium-sized red apple
1 small potato
1 Tbs vegetable oil
1 tsp caraway seeds

Preparation

Dice the onion and sauté in the oil in a large pot until golden brown. Drain the cans of sauerkraut; if using the Kuhne kraut, keep the liquid and set it aside. Otherwise, discard the liquid. Add the drained sauerkraut to the onions in the pot and sauté briefly. Add liquid to the pot to cover the sauerkraut. (If using Kuhne kraut, add the drained liquid from the cans, plus about 8 oz. of water. If using a different kraut, add water equal to the amount drained, plus 8 oz.) Add smoked ham hock to the pot. Cover pot. Simmer at a low boil for about 1 and 1/2 hours. Core and quarter the apple and add to the pot. Peel the potato and add to the pot. Add the caraway seeds. Cover and simmer on low boil for 1 and 1/2 hours. Check occasionally and add water if needed for desired consistency.

Guten apetit!

This is the only time I will ever eat potatoes, and damn is it worth it.