Sauerkraut (lacto-fermented)

(here is a new video I just did for making sauerkraut: Homemade Sauerkraut)
We have been making our own lacto-fermented sauerkraut for several months now. I am not a fan of canned sauerkraut at all, so I always assumed I would not like this stuff either. But ... I do like it. It certainly is not on my 'favorites' list, but I am thankful for the beneficial bacteria this lacto-fermented stuff offers to my gut.

To make your own, you will need: 1 head of cabbage, 2T good salt (I use celtic gray salt, but Real salt would work ... or pickling salt), a large glass jug (I use a glass pickle jug that is just over 2 quarts), a 1/2 pint jar, a plastic lid of some sort (see instructions below), a glass bowl, something to pound with, a cutting board, a knife, a little bit of time.

Here are the steps ...

1) Start with a good sized head of cabbage.

2) Peel off the outer layers and chop off the core at the bottom.

3) Quarter the head and slice out the center core.

4) Cut into thin strips; I found out later I prefer a little thinner than this. You'll eventually learn what works best for you and your tastes.

5) Place a quarter at a time into a bowl with 1 1/2t good salt and pound it down. I use the tamper from my vitamix, but there are special wooden kraut pounders that would be so nice to have ... they would probably work a lot more efficiently, but oh well. Maybe some day.
**Update: I now place a quarter at a time in a LARGE bowl, sprinkle salt over it, put another quarter in, sprinkle salt over it, put another quarter in, sprinkle salt over it, and so on. I then cover it with a towel and let it sit for an hour or longer (sometimes I get busy!). This really helps to draw out the juices and reduce the pounding time. Instead of pounding it in the bowl, I shove it into the glass jug and pound it down in there with my vitamix tamp.**

6) As you can see, the cabbage reduced by quite a bit and it is getting juicy. I think I pounded this for about 5 minutes total. Put this pounded cabbage into a 2qt (or larger) jar and repeat this process with the remaining 3 quarters; don't forget to add more salt!

Here is a picture of all the pounded cabbage in the 2+qt jar.

See the liquid (cabbage juice & salt) at the bottom?

7) Now you want to pack the pounded cabbage as hard as you can into the jar. The cabbage needs to be totally submerged in the cabbage/salt juice ... to make this possible, I cut out a plastic cottage cheese or butter lid just about the size of the inside of my jar. Maybe you can see the lid on top of the cabbage in this picture below?

8) Take another glass jar and fill it with water. Put a plastic lid on if you have one. Place this jar INSIDE the cabbage jar, on top of the plastic circle. Push down and you will see the juice rising above the cabbage. This inner jar will act as a weight to keep the plastic circle pressing down on the cabbage and thus keep the cabbage totally covered with the liquid at all times. If it is exposed to the air, it will oxidize and eventually begin to rot.

9) Now the waiting begins! Let it sit on your counter for at least 3 days. Here is a picture of the sauerkraut after 1 1/2 days - notice the bubbles forming at the top of the liquid? This is exactly what you want it to do.

10) Here is a picture of our finished sauerkraut - even more bubbles at the top and the cabbage/liquid level have changed. I think it sat out for 6 days?? Last time we left it out for 3 weeks before we put it in the fridge, but it was colder then as well. Usually we let it sit out for at least 7 days but not much longer than 2 weeks (unless it's too cold in the house!) Sauerkraut can be stored in a cool place, like a cellar (or the counter top if it's cool in the house), for many months. Or you can store it in the fridge. DO NOT HEAT IT! Consuming it raw preserves all the good bacteria in there; if you cook it you will kill the bacteria.

Be sure to check out the three other posts I did today! Gardening, Chickens and Cucumbers ... oh my!