Simple Sauerkraut
I am so excited to share this simple sauerkraut recipe with you. This was my go-to recipe when I first started my fermenting journey. It’s super delicious, healthy, and so versatile! Let’s dive in!
Health Benefits of Sauerkraut!
Some commonly asked questions or curiosities of saurkraut usually start with, is it good and what are the health benefits. YES! It’s so good, especially if you love pickled foods or something to make a sad meal more exciting. Secondly, the health benefits are amazing! Sauerkraut, or fermented cabbage, is loaded with vitamins C and K, iron, and fiber, and naturally contains healthy gut bacteria called probiotics. By eating foods like sauerkraut, we enhance the health of our digestive system by optimizing our gut flora and balancing our gut microbiome.
Tools/supplies you’ll need to start fermenting! (Suggestions to make the process easier but by no means NEED! 😬
Heads of Cabbage
Salt (I love Redmonds Real Salt)
Glass Weights for Wide Mouth Jars / Glass Weights for Regular Mouth Jars
Here is how to make this simple saurkraut!
Step 1: Core cabbage and peel any sad outer leaves. Then go-ahead and weigh your cabbage. This is important as we need make sure we get the correct amount of salt to cabbage ratio. The best fermentation results are achieved with a 2% brine. To get that you’ll take the weight of your cabbage multiplied by .02 and and you’ll get the amount of salt to add to your cabbage. For example 2000g of cabbage multiplied by .02 equals “the number of grams of salt you need”.
Step 2: Shred your cabbage. You can do this either by manually chopping it with a knife, adding to your food processor, or using a mandolin slicer. Try and keep your cuts as thin as possible. Then add it to your large mixing bowl.
Step 3: Sprinkle cabbage with salt and work together with your hands. You’ll want to do this until the cabbage starts to get juicy and soft. It takes about 10 min. the brine that pools at the bottom of the bowl is what you’ll use to pour over the cabbage we stuff into our jars.
Step 4: Grab your clean mason jars and pack in the cabbage. Do a little bit at a time and the use your sauerkraut pounder or a spoon and pack it in tightly. This helps with making sure the sauerkraut stays below the brine. Place a fermentation weight on top and press down making sure the brine covers all of the cabbage.
You could also place rocks in a ziplock bag and placed the ziplock on top of the folded up cabbage leaves and the weight should be enough to keep all of your shredded cabbage beneath the brine.
If any is above the liquid it will be exposed to oxygen and possibly mold, so that is why it is so important to keep it under the liquid.
Step 4: Place your sauerkraut on the counter and wait! You can leave it out for 5 days - 2 weeks! This is where I suggest to taste your sauerkraut. I like to try mine around day 3-5 depending on how warm the weather is. Once it’s to your flavor liking then go ahead and put a lid on it and put it into your refrigerator! You can enjoy this for up to 6 months!
How Long Does Fermented Sauerkraut last once it’s placed in the fridge?
Properly prepared and stored in a cool, dark place (like the refrigerator) can last at least around 6 months.
Look for any signs of mold, an even color throughout, and it still looks edible.
Make sure to keep the lid tight in refrigeration storage (after the fermentation process).
Use your nose to see if it still smells as it should. It shouldn’t smell off and make sure the texture is still good, and not mushy.
Lastly, give it a little taste to make to make sure it tastes good.