s/o I'm addicted to homemade sauerkraut

[rose]

that is all....  :drool5:

[Liz CA]

You could be addicted to worse things. :lol:

 

Can you share your recipe and process?

[rose]

You could be addicted to worse things. :lol:

 

Can you share your recipe and process?

 

My process is on a huge scale because we eat so much but it's basically the same at a small scale.

 

Sauerkraut

some volume of cabbage - I do 45lbs at time!

2-3% salt by weight

 

Weigh your cabbage on a kitchen scale. I shred the core as well but if you want to omit the core weigh it shredded. Metric will make this whole process much easier, even for the metrically impaired. Then calculate 2% of that weight. Measure out this amount of salt (or up to 3%). Mix it into your shredded cabbage. Now grab the cabbage and scrunch it in your hands to break it a little. This will help the salt draw out the juices. Put the salty cabbage in a clean bucket or bowl. Cover with a plate and place a weight on top (I use a sterilized stone but some people use a canning jar full of water). Put the lid on the bucket or a cutting board over your bowl.

 

Next day: check and see if the brine has risen above the cabbage. If so then ignore the kraut for a week. If not then add 1 litre (or quart)  of water with 1tbsp of salt at a time until the juice is above the cabbage. Cover again and leave for a week.

 

After a week, check for tartness, if it's adequately tart, dig in, otherwise leave for a few more days. If a white film develops before you're done don't despair. It's a harmless mold. Just take off as much as possible and pretend it's not there.

 

Example of the salt calculation:

3.45kg cabbage = 3450g so 1%=34g, 2%=68g, 3%=102g. Therefore use 68-102g salt (see - metric is SO superior!)

 

Our most recent batch just finished up so we're having our first feast tonight!

[happi duck]

I really want to try this sometime! Thanks for the information!

 

My late mom did all sorts of awesome stuff, like make sauerkraut, that I took for granted.

 

We even had a shredder that my grandfather made. I don't know where that ended up.

[Guest]

I won't call you a weirdo because that wouldn't be nice. :)

 

 

ETA I'm glad that you like it 'cause it's good for you. I had to eat it as a kid and I didn't like it at all. My ds21 just got back from Germany, and he said that the sauerkraut was really good. It was definitely different from the store bought kind he's tried here.

Edited June 23, 2017 by Fifiruth

[StaceyinLA]

I LOVE sauerkraut - I must try this! Where do you put yours while it's getting ready? Does it need a cool, dry place or something?

[SparklyUnicorn]

We make it too. 

 

We are out and it's too warm at the moment.  Boo

 

 

[rose]

I LOVE sauerkraut - I must try this! Where do you put yours while it's getting ready? Does it need a cool, dry place or something?

 

The homemade stuff is SOOOO much better than the poor excuse for sauerkraut that they sell in the grocery store. It's like the difference between artisan sourdough bread and white wonder bread. It's also wonderfully full of pro-biotic bacteria.

 

While my kraut is fermenting I have it in two 5 gallon pails underneath my stairs. The ideal temperature is about 20C (70F - I think). If it's cooler it just takes longer. If it's warm it's faster. I think, but I might be mistaken, that you can do it when it's really warm but it's much faster, like 3 days. I do remember a friend of mine making some in Missouri in July in an un-airconditioned house. It was really hot that week (like 108F). We ate it and enjoyed it. I'd run a google search before trying again though. Humidity doesn't matter. The cabbage is in a brine, afterall. Green cabbage is better than purple imho but both are good.

 

You can also ferment other veggies with the same basic recipe. If the veggies don't let out juice, like carrots, then you just submerge them in brine at  about 2% salt by weight or the dry measure  I used above. I've done carrots, kale and onions this way with good success. Sometimes I grate carrots and/or onions into my cabbage. I like it best with onions but some of my children balk so I omit this. My German friend says that it also badly needs juniper berries but I don't feel up to that. :)

 

I should also mention that table salt will work but your kraut will be cloudy. Pickling salt will avoid this.

 

My 16 month is standing next to me at the moment eating a bowl of plain sauerkraut. I think that it's her favourite food. :)