There are certain foods that are an acquired taste! Sauerkraut for many people is one of those foods. For those of us that are fans of the salty, tangy, umami flavor of sauerkraut, there is little we won’t eat it with. I can eat sauerkraut on almost anything, especially this recipe. It has a little heat from chili peppers, freshness from fennel seed, lemony-pine quality from rosemary, and earthy minty flavor from thyme.
What does this sauerkraut taste best with?
- In an egg tortilla wrap
- On almost any sandwich
- With sausage
- Beside a steak
- In a pork taco
- On a hamburger
- With tofu
- Tossed into a stir fry (always at the end of cooking)
- Added to beans
- In a grilled cheese
- Thrown into a soup
- The obvious…with schnitzel
Believe me I can go on, and the health benefits of lacto fermented foods are endless. They are full of probiotics to nourish your gut flora, and support your immune system. Sauerkraut also contains calcium, potassium, and vitamin D.
Tips for Fermenting Foods & Making Sauerkraut
When it comes to fermenting food. Cleanliness is of the utmost importance. All tools, mason jar, fermenting rocks, air locks must be thoroughly washed and rinsed. As much as you do not want any bacteria or dirt introduced to your ferment, you also don’t want any soap residue. The produce you will be fermenting, must be rinsed well and any wilted or spoiled outer leaves removed. I also like to keep a few clean large outer leaves aside to place on top of my kraut and below my weighted rocks. This prevents little pieces of cabbage from floating up to the top and out of the brine.
What do I need to make sauerkraut?
Fermentation Crock or wide mouth mason jar.
Air locks, or pickle pipes.
fermenting rocks.
I’ll have some links coming soon to make sourcing these products easier.
How to Make Spicy Rosemary & Fennel Sauerkraut
A Sauerkraut that combines the heat of chili flakes, and the fresh, lemony-pine taste of rosemary, fennel, and thyme. Creating a fresh, salty, tangy, umami flavored sauerkraut.
4
servings30
minutesIngredients
1 head cabbage (3-4 lbs)
42 g fine sea salt (2-3% the weight of your cabbage)
2 tsp. dried chilli pepper flakes
2 Tbsp. dried rosemary
1 tsp. dried thyme
2 Tbsp. dried fennel seeds
Directions
- You want your salt to be equal to 2-3 % of the weight of your cabbage. What I like to do is peel off the outer leaves of my cabbage, remove the core and rinse the cabbage. Then I weigh it. The one I used in the recipe was 3 pounds, that is roughly 1400 grams. Your equation is: 1400 x 0.03= 42 g salt.
- Chop the cabbage to your liking. I like mine relatively finely chopped.
- Place it on a bowl and massage the leaves with salt, for about 5 minutes. As you work the cabbage with the salt it will release its juices creating a brine.
- Once the cabbage has decreased in volume to about half and, is submerged in brine, add you spice blend and mix well.
- Scoop your cabbage into 32 oz. glass mason jar.
- Top with large cabbage leaves and press down so cabbage is fully submerged in brine. If the brine is not at least an inch above the cabbage, you will have to make additional brine. Simply take a cup of warm clean, water, and stir in 17 g salt. Stir till salt is dissolved and pour over Kraut.
- Place fermenting weights on top, seal jar with airlock. Fill up the air lock to the fill line with vodka or water, I chose vodka because I feel it’s a better barrier from bacteria.
- Set the jar on the counter in an area with little temperature fluctuations and cover with towel to protect ferment from direct sunlight. Leave for 3-4 weeks. Periodically you can check the progress, somewhere between day 3-7, you will see a fair bit of bubbly activity. The bubbles are a sign the fermentation process is occurring. Once the process is complete around 3-4 weeks, taste your sauerkraut, pretty good isn’t it? pack it into smaller mason jars and store in your refrigerator or cold cellar. It will keep for 6 months.
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