Homemade Sauerkraut is just about as simple and nourishing as it gets! It makes a wonderful condiment to many meals and is much less expensive to make at home. This is also one of those cases where store bought products can be a far cry from the traditional food. I have been using the small batch method that Sally Fallon Morell introduced in "Nourishing Traditions". I am so grateful for this method, as some other ones out there seem time consuming and unsuitable for a small space. In NT, Sally writes, " The ancients understood the fact that important chemical changes took place during this type of fermentation. Their name for this change was "alchemy". Like the fermentation of dairy products, preservation of vegetables and fruits by the process of lacto-fermentation has numerous advantages beyond those of simple preservation. The proliferation of lactobacilli in fermented vegetables enhances their digestibility and increases vitamin levels. These beneficial organisms produce numerous helpful enzymes as well as antibiotic and anticarcinogenic substances."Wow! A great, easy process that preserves veggies, increases vitamins, and can prevent cancer? Count me in : )
Basically the method in NT involves pounding a whole head of cabbage with either salt or a combination of salt and isolated whey (you can make it from raw milk or yogurt). I have not been making whey recently, although I want to start up again, so I went the all salt route. The first time I made it, I used Sally's full recommendation of 2 tablespoons of salt. However, and probably because I used only about 3/4 of the cabbage instead of the whole thing, the end product was very salty. This time I cut back to 1 1/2 tablespoons for the whole cabbage. FYI: For the use of whey, you can use 1 tablespoon salt and 4 tablespoons whey. Make sure you core the cabbage and remove the outer leaves that are no longer hard. Sally's "basic recipe" also calls for a tablespoon of caraway seeds, which are a delicious addition. I tried to cut it as fine as possible, but it can be very difficult. If anyone knows of a knife or tool that makes this easier, I would love to hear it. Also, the cabbage will continue to soften over time so if you happen to cut it more coarse, you can always hang on to it longer.
I filled up a plastic bowl with the washed cabbage and got ready to pound it out. I definitely recommend doing this on a carpet on the floor if you don't live in a building alone and do not want your neighbors freaking out. Also, I found that being able to kneel helped use more force and I can imagine traditional cultures doing it that way. I probably pounded for about 10-12 minutes. You will hear bubbling noises and notice some liquid coming out in the bowl. You do not have to go too crazy because once it gets put in the mason jar, you will probably find that you have more than enough liquid to cover the cabbage.
Transferring the cabbage to the mason jar (or jars in this case) is not the most graceful process. I used a fork and my hands and did the best I could. The recommended size is a wide mouthed quart jar. After you add some cabbage (maybe every other forkful) , press down with your pounder if you can, or another tool if it does not fit, to get as much in there as possible. I used a muddle type tool that we got for guacamole a long time ago.
I kind of felt like I let Sally down a little because I found it impossible to get all the cabbage in one jar. However, I realized the cabbage I used might really be considered a large one and not medium like she recommends, so I felt better : ). Make sure the cabbage is covered with its juices AND that you leave some space at the top of the jar. Both equally important things. The cabbage will ferment and expand so you need space. You will see bubbles and the jar will probably pop the first time you open it. You can transfer it to the fridge after three days and it will continue to slowly age. I added some herbs de provence to this batch and it turned out great. Sally has many recipes in NT and there are endless combinations of spices to be played around with.
One of my favorite new quick dinners is adding the sauerkraut to my slow cooker stewed veggies with melted butter. The sweet butter complements the sauerkraut and the mix of temperatures works well together. I can imagine sauerkraut in almost any soup to be divine...
I heard Sally Fallon Morrel speak once and she mentioned that she thinks people overdo it on sauerkraut and that you only need a little bit. She states in the book, also, that it is a condiment and should be used as such. I agree and I think I was one of those people overdoing it when I first found out how good it was for you. I read that it helped with digestion so I began to buy it from a local organic farm in NY that made it with their own cabbage. It was daunting at first because I thought I needed to eat a whole bowl at a time; after hearing her speak, I cut back and discovered I felt just as good with just a forkful with meals...
Books:
One great book that I have heard about again and again is "Wild Fermentation" by Sandor Katz. He also just released anther one called "The Art of Fermentation". Also, Glowfglins blogger Wardeh Harmon has released "The Complete Idiots Guide to Fermenting Foods" that just got a glowing thumbs up review from the last WAPF journal.
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