Why We Love Fermenting
Fermenting vegetables helps minimise food waste by prolonging their shelf life, ensuring that excess produce is used rather than thrown away. It also reduces the need for packaged goods, cutting down on plastic and glass waste. By preserving seasonal vegetables, fermentation supports local food growing and reduces the carbon footprint of long-distance transportation. Also, fermentation offers health benefits, such as promoting a healthy gut microbiome and improving digestion through its probiotic content.
By following the steps below, you'll be on your way to enjoying fresh, homemade fermented sauerkraut that not only tastes amazing but is also better for the planet. Let’s get started!
What You’ll Need
- Fermenting crock with weights or jar with weights and bubbler
- Knife and chopping board
- Large mixing bowl
- 2 medium sized white or red cabbages (approximately 2.3 kg of chopped cabbage)
- 2.5 tablespoons of non-iodised salt
Prepare Your Equipment
Clean your equipment with hot, soapy water and rinse thoroughly to remove any leftover detergent. This will help eliminate surface bacteria and yeast.
Sanitise all surfaces of all your equipment by pouring boiling water over it and letting it drip dry. Be cautious to avoid burns. This step helps eliminate harmful bacteria.
Making Sauerkraut
- Wash Hands: Start by washing your hands with soap and water.
- Prepare the Cabbage: Finely chop the cabbage, removing the core, and place the chopped cabbage into a mixing bowl.
- Add Salt: Sprinkle salt over the cabbage and mix in with clean hands.
- Pack the Cabbage: Tightly pack the cabbage into your crock or jar and place a weight on top. The cabbage should be covered in its own juices. If not, top up with a brine solution (see below).
- Seal the Crock or Jar: For a crock, place the lid on top and fill the moat with water. For a jar, use a bubbler or pickling pipe to allow gas to escape. Make sure to fill the bubbler to the marked level, or loosen the jar lid daily to release gases. Be careful, as excess pressure can cause the jar to explode!
- Ferment: Store your sauerkraut at around 20°C for 3-7 days. Check the water in the moat or bubbler and topup as needed.
- Taste Test: After day 3, taste the sauerkraut with a sterile fork and replace the lid immediately. It should have a tangy, sour taste and a change in colour. You can continue fermenting for up to 2 weeks, depending on your taste preference.
- Store: Once ready, transfer the sauerkraut to jars and store in the fridge for up to 3 months.
Brine Solution (Optional)
Dissolve 1 tablespoon of non-iodised salt into 1 L of cooled, boiled water.
Tip: For a quicker and more consistent fermentation, use a vegetable culture. Dissolve the culture in 2 tablespoons of cooled, boiled water and 1 teaspoon of sugar, mixing well. After completing step 2 in the sauerkraut recipe, add the culture mixture to the shredded cabbage. The sauerkraut should be ready in about 5 days, depending on the temperature.