Im going to teach you how to make your own sauerkraut and how to make sauerkraut your own….

But first, lets talk about the process. Sauerkraut is one of those things that I took for granted until I actually understood what it is and the health benefits it can provide. Now I am more fascinated than ever by watching its transformation in its little jar and how the flavors mature and come to life through Lacto-fermentation. For some of you that may not know what Lacto-Fermentation is or means, it is defined by Collins Dictionary as “fermentation or preservation of food through naturally occurring lactic acid”. OK, so what is lactic acid then? This is the healthy bacteria that we call probiotics, they are the good bacteria that fight the bad bacteria in our gut when ingested. Kind of weird right? so when we eat foods that have gone through lacto-fermentation we are defending our body’s immune system with little bacteria soldiers that are going to go and do their work to help strengthen our immune system against the bad bacteria. Wow, now thats a pretty powerful hot dog topping, don’t you think??

Not only do these bacterias help strengthen our immune system, preventing illness and infection, they also have been known to assist with bowel health, eliminating constipation, diarrhea or IBS Symptoms and they can fight urinary and yeast infections and for those who are lactose intolerant these probiotics can assist in helping digest the lactose so you could have that cheese on your dog too. So now that we know what lacto-fermentation is, how does it work?

Salt!! Salt is the factor that will help us to make our delicious kraut. By adding salt the bad bacteria cannot thrive in a salty environment which leaves the good probiotics, the lactobacillus bacteria to be scientific. Due to the lack of oxygen in the jar, the bacteria already in the cabbage begins to create carbon dioxide and lactic acid turning the environment highly acidic and replacing the bad bacteria with the good lacto bacteria. Knowing this stage is important when making sauerkraut because gas can build up in jars and it is important to have a loose lid during the first stages to let those gases escape. Keeping your kraut in a cool place, but not the refrigerator will help this good bacteria thrive and starts to ferment the sugars in the cabbage by anaerobic respiration that is creating enough lactic acid to eventually bring the Ph level to a healthy #3. Although it may seem scary to leave a vegetable out at room temperature for 20-30 days without spoiling, its completely safe as long as the acid in the environment reaches the correct PH level which takes about a week. After that time period the bacterias that could spoil our kraut will not be able to survive. So once you have created a high enough acidic environment in your kraut, it will not spoil.

Traditionally sauerkraut is made with Cabbage and Salt (the addition of caraway seeds are very common). However, I am always trying to come up with different variations of sauerkraut as I love to add spices, herbs and other vegetables to create different flavor profiles and incorporate more health benefits. We will get into these variations later, However for your first batch I recommend doing just cabbage and salt, this way you can taste how the cabbage transforms without adding any other flavors, then as you add different variations to your kraut you can take notice on how they transform during the fermentation and you have your original recipe to compare to. You can always cut your cabbage in half and do a plain kraut in one jar and then try a fancy one so you can watch them side by side and make any notes. I want to empower you to be your own “Chef”, which means not just following a recipe, but applying your own taste and creativity to be more confident creating things in your own kitchen. Don’t worry if your not ready for that yet though, I have detailed instructions for you to follow…

Ok lets make some Kraut!!

First you will need the following materials;

• Glass mason Jars – a large cabbage can fill about 2/32oz. jars ( saving and reusing old jars is also encouraged!)
• Cutting board, knife or mandolin
• bowl to fit your cabbage
• Salad Spinner or strainer to clean your cabbage
• A positive attitude – make sure you keep good happy positive intentions while making your kraut.. you are creating life so give it a little love!

Now that you have all of your materials, you will need the following ingredients

• Cabbage – I prefer large green cabbage but purple is ok too
• Salt – I prefer Sea Salt, kosher is ok… just please don’t use iodized salt, to cook…. ever
• Other spices, herbs or veggies you would like to add to your kraut (I have provided a list of variations below)

Ok first we have to start by making sure everything is CLEAN. Sanitize your jars by boiling them or in the dishwasher. The cleaner your jar, the more likely there will be less bad bacteria.

Then we are going to cut our cabbage for the kraut. If you own and are comfortable using a mandolin, this is a great tool to get an even consistency on the size of shredding your kraut. I like mine about 1/4 in thick, so it has a little bit of a bite still to it, however you can make it however thick or thin that you like it will not change the flavor profile however the texture may vary.

Remove the outer layers of the cabbage that are darker green, save these as we are going to use them later.

Cut cabbage into Quarters, removing the core and using your knife or mandoline, shred the cabbage about 1/4″ thick

Next we are going to have to wash the cabbage before we salt it, so I put mine in a bowl and soak it in cool water mixing it around with my hands to seperate the cabbage and rinse it clean, then I use a salad spinner to get rid of the excess water. If you dont have a spinner I would put it in a strainer and shake it out a bit, you want it to be relatively dry so it absorbs the salt.

Once my cabbage is clean and dry then I add 1 teaspoon of salt to the bowl, Using my clean hands I Mix the salt thoroughly and start squeezing and massaging the cabbage to really make sure it is absorbing the salt. The cabbage will start to sweat and wilt a little, once the salt has been incorporated, I like to leave the cabbage to sit for about an hour in the bowl, giving it time to do its thing.

*If I am adding other flavors to my kraut I will do it at the same time I add the salt, this way if I am adding something like beet or fresh turmeric I am also allowing the salt to draw those flavors out too to enhance the flavor of my kraut.

After the cabbage has sat it is going to be wilted and wet, I give it another massage with my clean hands to draw out any more excess water, at this point there should be a brine at the bottom of the bowl. which means its time to pack our jars.

When packing our jars, we dont want to pack them too tight, but we do want to pack them enough so they are covered by their own brine. You will find some cabbages produce more brine than others. I used a clean wooden spoon to pack my jars leaving about an inch or two at the top of the jar, and I don’t pour the brine until all of the jars are filled with the cabbage mixture then top them off with the brine.

Remember those cabbage leaves we pulled off before we cut our cabbage? I like to use those to cover the cabbage in the brine before I put the lid on. I fold up the cabbage leaf so it sits at the top of the jar and push it in so it is holding the shredded cabbage below the brine. This way no oxygen is touching my kraut. If the cabbage leaf is a little exposed to air that is ok as we are not going to eat it and it will protect our kraut.

If you dont have enough brine to cover your kraut, you can add a little bit of salt water to top it off. I recommend leaving some space at the top of the jar to reduce the possibility of brine overflow.

Once your jars are filled, put the lid on LOOSELY, this way the gases can escape during the early fermentation process so it wont leak or explode into a kraut bomb (ok that probably won’t happen but lets just be safe).

Make sure you label your jar, so you know the date it was made and find a cool dark place to put it, but not the refrigerator.

Now we wait… during the first week, I check my sauerkraut almost daily, opening the lid to release gas which we call “burping”, giving it a little push down to make sure it is under the brine and keep an eye on it. There have been a few times I may have overpacked the jar and it has leaked some brine so I also keep it on a towel for the first day or too in case something weird happens..

Once it has passed a week and your kraut hasn’t molded, then you are in the clear. To be honest Ive never had a moldy kraut YET but its happened to people before and depending on the type of mold it could be saved. For instance, if you see a grey or green mold form on the top of the kraut then you can just pick out the moldy part and make sure the kraut is under brine and continue. If you see any kind of orange, pink or black mold I would throw out the batch and call it a learning experience. Your kraut should smell tangy, its ok if it has a hint of skunkiness from the cabbage but if your kraut smells foul or inedible I would also discard and start over.

After the first week i like to taste my kraut every 5-7 days to check its flavor and keep an eye on it. Its also fun to taste how it transforms, usually after about 30 days its done its work. I like to push mine to the 30 day mark because I really like the tanginess it accumulates over time. However you could start eating it around day 20 if you want a more mild fermented tangy flavor.

You will find often when your sauerkraut is fermenting that your brine may disapear! Do not worry, this is normal… I find this happens often when I add a vegetable with higher sugar content like beet or carrot. However don’t panic, first give it a little push down and see the bubbles rising to the top, this means that there is c02 building in your kraut and maybe it pushed out some of the brine which is why the jars overflow sometimes. If it is passed the 7 day mark, I usually just let it ferment from there with the little brine that is left because I find adding more brine after the initial fermentation that takes place in the first week will weaken the flavors that I am trying to develop. If it is within the first few days you can top it off with a little more salt water to be safe. Generally, once the kraut has made it passed a week without spoilage then you can continue to let it ferment without worries as the Ph balance will preserve it.

After 30 days or when you feel your kraut has reached a great flavor profile, you can put your kraut in the refrigerator and start to enjoy!

I recommend eating the kraut raw as the good bacteria will die if cooked over 110 degrees F and all of your hard work and patience will be destroyed.

Adding Flavors to your kraut

Classic Sauerkraut is great! However, if you want to get fancy with it then adding spices and other veggies to your kraut is fun and delicious. For example, The Golden Kraut doesn’t only get its name from the color but the powerful health boosters in it pack a serious punch! The addition of a powerful herb like garlic you can add extra immunity booster to your kraut, the ginger is great for adding more antioxidant power and turmeric for anti-inflammatory properties with the black peppercorn to help the absorption of turmeric. This kraut packs a lot of flavor and health potential, which is why it is my favorite and it will 100% give you garlic breath, for sure.

When adding other ingredients to kraut I make sure the cabbage makes up around 3/4 of the amount of kraut. Using all raw ingredients and keeping the veggies grated or sliced thin. Some great enhancers for kraut are spices such as caraway seed, juniper berries, fennel seed, black pepper, dill, coriander, turmeric and mustard seed. Vegetables that go good in kraut are garlic, ginger, horseradish, beets, carrots, fennel, onions, radishes, jalapeño, apple, cucumber and lemon peels.

Some of my favorite flavors are

• Golden Kraut – 1 tsp each of grated ginger, minced garlic, turmeric 1/2 tsp fresh black peppercorn
• Beet Kraut – 1 grated beet, 1 tsp ginger
• Fennel Kraut – Fresh Shaved Fennel, 1 tsp fennel seed
• Horseradish kraut – Fresh horseradish, 1 tsp caraway seed
• Jalapeno Kraut – 1 Grated Carrot, 1 sliced jalapeno
• Lemon Dill Kraut – 1 tbl lemon peel, 1 tsp Dill

If you have any questions or would like to share any of your own variations or ideas, please comment below!

Sauerkraut

Liz

How to make and ferment your own sauerkraut

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 30 days d

Cook Time 2 hours hrs

Equipment

• Glass Mason Jars with Lids
• Large Bowl
• Knife or mandoline
• teaspoon measure
• wooden spoon
• Salad Spinner or Strainer

Ingredients

  

• 1 each green cabbage
• 1 tsp Sea Salt

Instructions

 

• Clean and sanitize jars by boiling them or running through dishwasher
• Peel green outer layers of cabbage and save for later use
• Cut cabbage into quarters
  
• Using a Mandoline or knife, shred the cabbage 1/4" thick
• Soak and rinse cabbage thoroughly cleaning with cool water, using a salad spinner or strainer to remove excess water
  
• Add Sea Salt (Other flavorings can be added during this step)
  
• massage salt into cabbage, squeezing until thoroughly mixed and let sit 1 hour
• massage one more time to squeeze out excess liquid from salting process
  
• Pack cabbage into clean jars, using a wooden spoon or similar to push cabbage down, not packing too tight, leaving 1 inch at the top and topping it off with the brine left in the bowl
  
• Use the outer cabbage leaf to cover pushing the cabbage under the brine
  
• Loosely cover and put in a cool, dark place (Not the refrigerator) for the next 30 days, checking it everyday during the first week "burping" it by pushing it down to make sure the cabbage is under the brine
• Label and date your jars
• If no spoilage occurs in the first week let sit for another 20 days to continue to ferment
• After 30 days, place in refrigerator and enjoy
  

Notes

For a more detailed description, follow my blow post