Recipe ~ Sauerkraut (Sour Cabbage)

Enjoy the following recipe for making wine cabbage in your Ohio Stoneware Water Seal Fermentation Crock.

To prepare fresh vegetables for lactic preservation, always wash in plenty of running water, remove non-edible parts, such as, stems and seeds, and peel or trim as desired. This preparation process should only take about 30 minutes or so.

Note: Five pounds of cabbage makes about one gallon of sauerkraut. So, this recipe makes about 3 gallons of sauerkraut. You will want to adjust this recipe to match the size of your crock.

Note: Recipes are translated from German originals. Conversions from metric to US standards are approximate.

IMPORTANT: Do not use iodized table salt, which inhibits fermentation. Pickling salt or natural sea salt is best.(Pickling salt is iodine-free, so it won't darken food or create a cloudy residue in the liquid.) 

Sauerkraut — aka fermented cabbage — once known mostly as a staple for Reuben sandwich and hot dog eaters, is also one of the most nutritious, easiest and delicious fermented food you can make.

Low in calories, easy and inexpensive to make, and reputedly able to tame cranky digestive tracts, cure canker sores, and even inhibit the growth of cancer cells… What’s not to love?

Ingredients

• 15 lbs white cabbage, trimmed and cored
• 9 tablespoons pickling salt

Directions

1. Cut the cabbage into quarters and remove the tough core. Finely chop the cabbage into uniform pieces.

2. Slice the cabbage to about the thickness of a quarter.

3. I like to work in batches, salting and mixing about 5 pounds of cabbage at a time.

4. Place the first batch of cabbage... about a third, so about 5 pounds or so... in your big mixing bowl.

5. Add 3 tablespoons of pickling salt and thoroughly mix with your hands. The salt should be, more or less, evenly distributed throughout the cabbage.

6. Pack the salted and seasoned cabbage firmly into a crock.

7. Salt the remaining two batches of cabbage, 5 pounds or so at a time, the same way, adding each batch to the crock with a firm hand once it's mixed well.

8. Cover the ingredients with a few cleanly washed grape leaves, and then place the stone weights on top of the grape leaves. This helps ensure that the cabbage stays submerged during fermentation.

9. The cabbage begins releasing water very soon after the salt is introduced. Within an hour or so, the cabbage will have released enough liquid to provide enough brine to completely cover the cabbage (provided it’s packed tightly enough).

10. After 24 hours, remove the weights and check the fluid levels. Fluids should cover the stone weights. If necessary, you can add boiled salt water (1 quart of water to 3 teaspoons of pickling salt) so there is enough liquid to cover the stone weights.

11. Replace the grape leaves and stone weights.

12. Cover the crock with the lid, making sure there is plenty of water to maintain the airlock seal. (The air lock prevents oxygen from entering the crock while letting carbon dioxide escape [burp!], which ensures the lovely anaerobic environment that promotes the healing bacteria and mouth-pleasuring tang you’re looking for.)

13. Set the crock in a room temperature location where the crock can live undisturbed for the duration.

14. Check the water every day or two to make sure the water hasn't evaporated from the airlock, adding more to keep the seal when needed.

15. Be patient. It will take about four weeks of fermentation for the various strains of friendly bacteria to have enough time to develop and mature.

16. As long as you kept the seal on the airlock (aka, didn't let it dry out) and didn't expose the fermenting cabbage to oxygen, you shouldn't have any spoilage, but be sure to look for browned or pink cabbage, yeasty odor, slime, and mold. If you notice any of these issues, clean your crock well, check it for cracks, and start again.